As the winter chill sets in, there’s nothing like a warm cup of tea to keep you cosy and content. From rich, spiced brews to fragrant, floral teas, there are endless varieties that not only warm you up but also come with unique health benefits. Here are 7 types of tea perfect for embracing the cold weather and keeping your spirits high all winter long.
Ladakh's dry, cold climate led its people to invent the calorie-dense gur-gur chai made from locally available ingredients. Better known as butter tea, it is crafted from yak milk, butter, salt, and Tibetan tea leaves from Pemagul. Consumed daily, it is an essential part of life for the Ladakhis. This all-in-one drink provides energy, helping ward off the winter chill. Often enjoyed with fresh bread, it is also paired with tsampa.
An acquired taste, the salty flavour of gur-gur chai will eventually grow on you. It’s said that the best gur-gur chai can be found at Leh’s Hemis Monastery, though variations of this tea can be found in regions across international borders.
Another salty tea hails from the cold northern region of India—this time, from Kashmir. Noon chai, also known as pink salt tea or sheer chai, stands out for its distinct colour and taste. Adding baking soda to Kashmiri tea leaves achieves its beautiful rose hue. The two react to create a deep pink colour, further lightened by aerating the tea mixture through whipping.
To make this traditional brew:
Start by boiling the water. Then add the baking soda, followed by spices like cardamom and star anise.
Add the tea leaves, let it come to a boil, and incorporate milk and salt.
Add a dash of fresh cream and serve with dried fruits, naan, or even a buttered bread sandwich for an indulgent touch.
Once you savour a cup of Nathdwara tea, you'll crave another. Its appeal goes beyond the tea leaves and sugar—the humble mint truly enhances its allure.
To prepare it, bring water to a boil, add the tea leaves, then remove them from the flame to let them steep for about a minute. Next, add crushed ginger root, return the tea to a boil for another minute, and then add milk. Let the mixture brew for five minutes. Add the mint last, allowing it only to boil on high flame, and serve with a bit of sugar. Be careful not to boil the mint too long, as it may turn the tea bitter.
In most Gujarati households, ukado is prepared in a flash whenever someone complains of a runny nose or sore throat. Made with or without tea leaves, this brew is packed with ingredients that give it a unique, soothing flavour. Milk is boiled with sugar, lemongrass, mint, and shaved ginger, then left to simmer for five to eight minutes. And just like that, ukado is ready to warm you up and ease your symptoms.
In Mumbai, cutting chai is more than just a tea—it's a cultural staple. This small, ribbed glass holding just three sips of intensely flavoured tea is something every tea-loving Mumbaikar would weave through crowds to get. Cutting chai pairs perfectly with classic Indian snacks like vada pav, kanda bhaji, bread and butter, and, of course, the beloved samosa.
The tea is boiled for at least 10 minutes and infused with cardamom powder, crushed ginger, milk, sugar, and tea leaves. Start by adding everything except the milk and tea leaves to the water and letting it boil for a couple of minutes until fragrant. Then add the tea leaves, followed by the milk a minute later. Brew for a couple more minutes before serving. Consider a longer brewing time for lighter teas to achieve the right intensity.
More of a herbal tea or kadha, the kashaya chai of Mangalore is a milk-based drink infused with various kitchen spices. Known for its immune-boosting properties and soothing effects, it is flavoured with cumin, peppercorns, coriander, dry ginger, cardamom, nutmeg, mulethi, and jaggery.
To prepare, the spices are dry roasted, cooled, and ground into a powder, then added to water. After a slow boil, some milk is added and simmered, and the tea is served once the jaggery has fully dissolved. This comforting tea is perfect for keeping the Mangalorean winter chills at bay.
A frothy brew known more for its preparation skills than the ingredients, meter chai, has become part of Kerala’s heritage. The tea mixture is poured from one container to another to aerate the brew and create a rich froth. This pouring is done with the chaiwala’s hands stretched as far as possible, stopping when the containers are a meter apart, which is how the tea earned its name. The artful chaiwalas of Kerala are experts in this practice, and they do not spill a drop.