Updated: 7th, nov, 2019
Step by step recipe of Kashmiri tea with photos. Like many, I also came across this tea for the first time in one of the weddings. Getting a good Kashmiri tea in Karachi could be difficult and I had to go really far to get it. So making my own as per my taste was a quest. In order to develop a deep pink color naturally, I did three attempts. The pink or gulabi color that developed in third attempt was worth it. I have tried to give detailed pictorial step by step so you can make it in the first try.
Many people complain Kashmiri tea is just like ‘badaam pista doodh’ or ‘hareera’. That is because many restaurant serve a very milky Kashmiri tea. The Kashmiri tea with less milk has more intense Kashmiri tea flavor and warmth. So I like my home-made Kashmiri tea more than what it served on ‘dhabba’ or cafe.
My other chai recipes are
Kashmir and Kashmiri tea
Kashmir is heaven on earth and their culture, jewelry and food all are fascinating. Even Kashmiri people are very hospitable and beautiful.
In authentic Kashmiri tea salt is added and it is called noon chai. But some non Kashmiri people in my city (Karachi) add both salt and sugar so it’s up to you. In Kashmir, where temperature drops below zero degree they add cream and butter along with powdered dry fruits in the tea. This makes this tea ideal for winters as it is filling and body warming. In my city temperature hardly goes below 10 degree so we enjoy it without fats (like cream and butter) and with little dry fruits. So you adjust that too as per weather in your city.
Tips for beginners
The pink color in Kashmiri tea is reaction of chorophyll present in tea with baking soda. So basically you have to cook the tea enough to get all the chlorophyll released in water. You also need enough baking soda in tea for reaction. A pinch is enough. Do NOT add more than that as too much baking soda can spoil the taste. This process might take place in 30 minutes and sometime may need 45 minutes. If all water has evaporated and still you don’t get reddish color then add more water and cook more . Once the reaction has completed and we have deep red color. We have to add ice-cold water. This shocks the tea and we get deeper red color. I’m trying to explain this so you can handle if something goes wrong. Like normal chai you can adjust milk, sugar and spices to your taste. I added only two spices but you can add more or none at all.
How to make Kashmiri Tea
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Kashmiri tea recipe, Kashmiri chai recipe
Ingredients
- 2 cups water
- 3 tablespoon kashmiri tea leaves
- 9 green cardamom – ,crushed ( choti elaichi)
- 3 inch cinnamon – ,broken into chip (dal cheeni)
- ¼ to ½ teaspoon salt
- ⅛- 1⁄4 teaspoon baking soda – (khane ka soda)
- 1 cup cold water – (pani)
- 3 to 4 tablespoon sugar – (cheeni),( optional, since sugar is not added in Kashmiri tea but some non kashmiri people like it sweet.)
- 2 cup milk for strong or 3 cup milk for light – (dhood)
- ½ cup cream – optional
- 1 tablespoon grounded pistachios – (pista), optional
- 1 tablespoon grounded almonds – (badaam), optional
- * For authentic taste and aroma use Kashmiri tea. If not available use pure green tea leaves can also be used.
Other variations ( in some regions these ingredients are also added)
- 4 jasmine flowers – (chambeli)
- 1 star anise – (badyaan phool)
- 4 cloves – (laung)
Instructions
- In a wide based skillet, take water, Kashmiri tea leaves, salt and cardamom, cinnamon.
- Bring it boil and let it boil for a minute. Now add baking soda.
- Cook more till you get deep red color and water is reduced to half. (20-30 minutes)
- Add ice cold water in boiling hot tea. Mix well for 1 minutes.
- Kehwa is ready. You can strain, cool and store in fridge for 3-4 days.
- When making tea add milk, sugar (if using) and powdered dry fruits to kehwa.
- Cook for another 2-3 minutes and serve. Garnish with more nuts.
Notes
Step by step Kashmiri tea or pink tea or gulabi tea or noon chai
Take water and add Kashmiri tea leaves.
Add cardamom.
salt,
cinnamon and bring it to boil.
Add 1/8 teaspoon of baking soda, you can skip baking soda if you decide to cook longer for 45-60 minutes.
Let it boil on medium flame.
The color changes. Continue boiling.
You can see a slight pink color at this stage but keeping cooking,
The water is reduced to half. And the color is deep red.
Add icy cold water. And mix well for 1 minute.
Kehwa of Kashmiri tea is ready. You can strain and after cooling you store in fridge at this stage.
When you wish to make the tea add milk about 1/2 cup or more for each serving,
A beautiful pink color is visible. Add sugar 1 teaspoon for each serving.( Add only if you like it sweet, authentic Kashmiri tea is saltish and not sweet.)
Boil for another few minutes. Strain and add 1/4 teaspoon pistachio and 1/4 teaspoon almond in each serving. Serve hot.
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Thank you for publishing your version of this recipe! I got some green tea from Balochistan and it worked very well. Moreover, to my taste, you got the tea-soda-water-ratio well figured out. As a last step, I added the method of aerating the tea by scooping it up and letting it fall back into the pot, but didn’t do this for a very long time. (5 mins perhaps) Still, I got the impression that this improved the deep red colour even further. Although I had a dark red brew to start with already. Any thoughts on why the aerating method would do that? Thanks again — you made my day!
Thanks Eli for leaving a detailed review.
The aerating is a common method used at all DHABBA (STREET STYLE CHAI CAFE) for all milk teas. I don’t have any scientific reason for your question but it is well practised way of making tea. It might be extra oxygen from air helping the enhanced color or the areating might be helping to combine all elements well.
You’ve made my day too since this recipe is very dear to me. Thanks
Hi there I’m just finished my Kashmiri chai it was so nice 👍🏽 thanks I did boil the water for about 40/50 minutes it’s well worth it i used almost all the ingredients but left out the baking soda thanks again Saj
I’m so happy to read you comment, so much insight and detail. Thanks buddy!
Can’t wait to try this! Also, read through the comments for additional tips – can’t believe how negative some people are and kudos to you for dealing with it in such a great manner. I think it comes down to education and common courtesy which unfortunately is not very common in the sub-continent. Thanks for sharing the recipe and I will definitely follow up with my experience. Disclaimer: I am rubbish in the kitchen
Thanks dear for your kind words. 😊
Lovely recipe! Thanks for sharing. Just wanted to clarify milk to kawa ratio. When I am ready to make 1 cup, how much milk and how much kawa. Thank you
Lovely recipe! Thanks for sharing. Just wanted to clarify milk to kawa ratio. When I am ready to make 1 cup, how much milk and how much kawa? Thank you !
The ratio is not very strict. The less the milk, the deep pink and strong taste it will have.
Usually, a soft pink is preferred.
Thank you!!
Adding baking soda isnt necessary..i boiled the leaves thrice without adding baking soda n by adding milk it turned in to pink tea
That’s true, baking soda speeds up the process. You can skip baking soda if you cook it for very long. Thanks.
Some well water already comes with baking soda in it (naturally). This is the case with the water from my well, which is a little alkaline. This alkalinity (slight) does no harm.
Thanks for elaborating. 😊👍🏻
We Make Daily Non Chie as This Is Our Traditional Tea and I personally Love your thoughts
thanks for a detailed recipe 😊 also don’t let haters like Sikh de motivate you. you’re doing a great job!
Thanks for the lovely comment Brinacyl. You’ve really made my day. 😊
Sorry but it’s Indian Cuisine since Kashmir is in India so please correct it
Hi Sikh, Kashmir is on both sides of border. I haven’t been to Indian Kashmir, I don’t know about their tea. Anyway, cuisine on both sides of border is similar with few variations. Have a nice weekend.
I just read your article of kashmiri pink tea, This is very unfortunate that without knowing the reality, you make a story of pink tea( kashmiri tea)
I am a Kashmiri guy, and I work in Tea company in assam, Let me clear you some points.
1. Pink tea or kashmiri tea in local language it is noon chai, and in this tea no one is adding sugar, it ia Salt based tea, every kashmiri person having this tea with salt, if you are not liking salt, and adding sugar then this is not Noon chai.
2. You are adding soda, you can add it, to save the gas bill, or electricty bill, there is no need to add soda, you have to boil it for longer time.
3. There is no need of add other things.
What is kashmiri tea:
Just boil green Tea, it will take you minimum 45 minutes or more to boil, till the water color will be dark brown, then add milk according to thinkness of the tea, the color of the tea will be pink, and then just add salt…. Kashmiri tea is ready…..
Thank you.
If you have any doubt, mail me at
shahtultea@gmail.com
Thanks for shading light.
I had already mentioned point number one in the post.For sugar, I had already mentioned above the recipe that in authentic Kashmiri tea sugar is not added. But to further clarity, I’m now adding that point to recipe card as well.In my city it is common to have it with sugar.
Soda helps speed up the process, and the recipe comes from another Kashmiri like you. I’ll test again to see if sodaless version works.
I agree adding other spices is up to everyone’s taste.
Thanks for the recipe. But boiling green doesn’t work for me.
Thank you for the detailed steps and pictures. I think I followed them but didn’t get the pink colour. It matched the pictures till the kehwa stage but not after adding milk. I thought it was still drinkable. Will try again with less baking soda. Could it be that there was too much tea? Btw, used pure organic green tea, so that’s a difference too.
Thanks again for the pictures.
If it tasted well and had a tinge of pink then you were quite close. I used Kashmiri tea leaves in pictorial. Try to use Kashmiri leaves for best result.
If it tastes well adding a little pink color is also ok, since many restaurants and caterers do it.
it didnt worked for me , tastes and smells of baking soda , undrinkable , could not be more worst
Oh! It’s really sad. If you got the pink color right. Then, try again reducing the baking soda to ⅛ teaspoon. I’m really sorry that it disappointed you.
Been searching for a Recipe for ages that actually worked, thank you so much
I’m glad it is helpful. Thanks
thank you for the recipe, it was really delicious.
Hi, do you know where to purchase Kashmiri tea leaves in the US? Thanks!
Go to any Indian/ gujarati store. These are huge cheap supermarket like stores found in more rundown areas
But have access to herbs and stuff u would actually pay the price of gold if ordered online
Gujarati stores seem to bulk up all foods from all parts of India including Kashmir
Thanks for the info! 😊
It is a great recipe and great step by step instructions but I’m not cut out for cooking because I even messed this one up 😅 but thanks for the recipe.
Ooh! Try again. Kashmiri tea is tricky, in second attempt you’ll do better.
Thank you for this recipe! Yum!
Thanks for the feedback.
😊👍🏻
Thx from US for the step by step recipe and especially the pictures. Craving for Kashmiri tea my mom used to make but my wife didn’t know the recipe
Thanks for a lovely feedback. It’s a tricky thing and I tried my best to be detailed in this recipe. Good Luck!