· By ODM Masala
Chai Masala Recipe: How to Make Tea Masala at Home
Quick answer: Chai masala is a ground blend of warming spices — dry ginger, green cardamom, cloves, black pepper and cinnamon — that you stir into tea for aroma and warmth. You can make it at home in about 10 minutes by grinding these spices in the right ratio, and it keeps its fragrance for up to three months in an airtight jar.
Also known as: chai masala is called tea masala or chai ka masala in Hindi. The dry ginger in it is sonth (dry ginger powder in English), elaichi is green cardamom, laung is cloves and dalchini is cinnamon.
Shop-bought chai masala is often mostly filler with a whisper of real spice. Grinding your own takes ten minutes, costs less per cup, and the difference in aroma is obvious from the very first batch. Here is the ratio that gives you a balanced, tea-shop-style cup at home.
What goes into a good chai masala?
A good blend is built around ginger and cardamom, with the other spices playing a supporting role. This is the ratio we recommend for a small jar:
| Spice | Quantity | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Sonth (dry ginger powder) | 2 tbsp | The warm, pungent backbone of the blend |
| Green cardamom seeds | 3 tbsp (about 30 pods) | Sweet, floral aroma — the smell people recognise as masala chai |
| Cloves | 1 tbsp | Deep, sweet-pungent notes |
| Black peppercorns | 2 tsp | A gentle bite at the back of the throat |
| Cinnamon sticks | 2 sticks (2 inch each) | Woody sweetness that rounds everything off |
| Fennel seeds (optional) | 1 tsp | A cooling, licorice-like finish |
| Nutmeg (optional) | Half a seed | Warm and nutty — use sparingly |
Because the spices are the entire recipe, their quality decides the cup. ODM spices are handpicked and ground fresh, with no artificial colours, no fillers and no preservatives — so what goes into your jar is only spice.
How do you make chai masala at home?
- Peel the cardamom. Split the pods and keep only the black seeds inside. The husks add bulk and dullness, not flavour.
- Dry-roast the whole spices. On the lowest flame, warm the cardamom seeds, ODM Cloves, whole black peppercorns, cinnamon and fennel for 60 to 90 seconds, just until they smell fragrant. Do not let them darken.
- Cool completely. Grinding warm spices makes the powder clump and turn pasty. Give them five minutes off the heat.
- Grind fine. Use a small dry grinder jar in short pulses so the motor heat does not cook the oils out of the spices.
- Add the sonth last. Stir in the ODM Sonth Powder after grinding rather than putting it in the jar. It is already a fine powder and it stays free-flowing this way.
- Sieve and store. Pass the blend through a fine tea strainer, regrind whatever stays behind, and pour it into a small airtight glass jar.
How much chai masala should you add per cup?
Start with a quarter teaspoon for two cups of tea and adjust from there. Chai masala is meant to sit behind the tea, not shout over it — if the cup tastes sharp or medicinal, you have used too much.
- When to add it: once the water, milk and tea leaves are boiling together. Adding it to cold water dulls the aroma.
- For a stronger ginger note in winter: add a pinch of extra sonth to the pan rather than more of the blend.
- Make a small jar: half a cup of blend is roughly 100 cups of tea, and it tastes best within a few weeks of grinding.
How do you store chai masala so it stays fragrant?
- Use a small airtight glass or steel jar, filled close to the top — trapped air is what flattens a blend.
- Keep it in a dark cupboard, away from the stove. Heat and light are what strip the aroma.
- Always use a dry spoon. A single damp spoon can turn the whole jar lumpy.
- Grind small batches every two to three months instead of one large jar a year.
FAQ
Can I use fresh ginger instead of sonth powder?
Fresh ginger is lovely crushed straight into the pan, but it cannot go into a dry blend — the moisture will spoil the jar within days. For a stored masala, dry ginger powder is the right choice.
Should I roast the spices before grinding?
A very brief, low-flame warming helps the spices release their oils and grind more evenly. It is optional, but skip high heat entirely — browned spices turn the blend bitter.
Why does my homemade chai masala lose its smell so quickly?
Usually one of three reasons: the cardamom husks went into the grinder, the jar is too large for the quantity, or it is stored near the stove. Fix those and a batch stays aromatic for months.
If you would like to start with the two spices that carry the whole blend, our sonth powder and green cardamom are a good place to begin your first jar.