Chai Spice Mix Recipe

Urvashee Patel | Dessarts

Chai Spice Mix is warm and wonderful for the colder months. Add it frostings, lattes, pies, and breads.

Chai Spice Mix Photo

Move over pumpkin spice! Make room for my other favorite fall spice blend, chai masala. Well, ok, it’s not really a “fall” flavor since people drink it year round. The list of warming spices just reminds me of fall, and once you start putting the mix into dessert recipes, the dessert definitely screams fall.

You might already know that chai is simply the word for tea. Western retailers that label their product as “chai” actually provide spiced tea or masala chai. It’s the masala that gives the tea its distinctive flavor. There’s no single way to make a good masala mix. Recipes are based on personal preference.

From what I’ve seen and tasted, the spice that is always present is cardamom. It’s one of my favorite spices, so I like to put more of it in my recipe. Ironically I used to loath cardamom growing up. It was ever-present in anything Indian that was sweet. I would pick out every little dark seed or else refuse to eat it!

Cinnamon, ginger, and black peppercorns are also common in chai masala mixes. If you like your tea to have more heat, you can dominate it with black peppercorns and ginger. Fresh ginger steeped in the teapot is always better than ginger powder. However, since I don’t always have fresh, I’ve put in the powder.

Chai Spice Mix Picture

Also, I don’t always use my masala mix for tea so it’s easier to have everything ground and ready to go. I like to use it for flavoring cupcakes, cookies, cake or whatever else, like these chai spice donuts. You might even like it in place of pumpkin pie spice in Rachael's old fashioned pumpkin spice doughnuts.

Cloves are also common to chai masala recipes. Personally, I think they overpower the taste, so I use only a few or sometimes skip them completely. Fennel is also used in recipes, but I prefer star anise, which is similar in flavor but sweeter. Finally, my recipe also contains nutmeg and mace. These two spices are similar, but mace is a little sweeter and stronger in flavor. It’s not as common to find whole dried mace, so you can always substitute it for more nutmeg.

I’ve provided my personal blend of spices but feel free to alter it to your taste. This mix is a little sweeter with just a little bit of kick from the peppercorns and ginger. Once you have a batch, you can use it in teas, lattes, frostings or other dessert recipes. Enjoy!

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Chai Spice Mix Recipe

    8 Servings

Ingredients

  • 3 tablespoons Green Cardamom Pods
  • 1 tablespoon Whole Black Peppercorns
  • 2 1/2 Cinnamon Sticks
  • 1 Star Anise
  • 2 tablespoons Whole Mace
  • 10 Whole Cloves
  • 1/2 Whole Nutmeg, grated
  • 2 tablespoons Ground Ginger

Directions

  1. Over low heat, dry roast the cardamom pods, peppercorns, cinnamon sticks, star anise, mace and cloves for about 5 minutes.
  2. Remove from heat, and let them cool completely.
  3. Using a spice grinder, grind them into a fine powder.
  4. Whisk in the nutmeg and ground ginger.
  5. Store in an airtight container. 

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Published:
Modified:
Author:
Cooking Method:
Roasted
Cuisine:
Winter
Category:
Homemade Spices
Tags:
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Related Recipes:
Homemade Spice Recipes, Copycat Recipes, Easy Recipes, Roasted Recipes, Homemade Recipes, Fall Recipes, Winter Recipes, Drink Recipes, Coffee Recipes, Frosting Recipes
Recipe Yields:
1/2 cup
Prep Time:
Cook Time:
Total Time:
Related Post:
Published:
Author: Urvashee Patel
Recipe Yields: 1/2 cup
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 5 minutes
Total Time: 15 minutes

Nutrition Facts

Serving Size 1 tablespoon
Servings Per Recipe 8

Amount Per Serving
Calories from Fat 0
Calories 6

% Daily Value*
0%
Total Fat 0g
0%
  Saturated Fat 0g
0%
Sodium 1mg
0%
Total Carbohydrate 1g
0%
  Dietary Fiber 0g
  Sugars 0g
0%
Protein 0g

* Percent Daily Value are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.
** Nutrition Facts are estimated based on ingredients and data provided by Fat Secret. Please consult a doctor if you have special dietary needs.
Urvashee Patel

About Urvashee

Urvashee blogs about delectable desserts on her blog, Dessarts. Lucky for us, she's sharing her delectable vegetarian dishes too as a Vegetarian Fanatic.

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