The first time I made cha for my wife, she was shocked. Growing up, I knew chai as “saunf (fennel) tea.” The recipe had been passed down by my grandmother, and was an ingredient seemingly everyone in the Punjabi community on the west coast used. Yet, my wife, who grew up on the east coast, had never had it or seen it used before.
After consulting my “aunty network,” visiting countless chai cafes, and inspecting & tasting copious amounts of chai from around the world, I realized that each cup of chai’s distinguishing flavors could be rooted back to the maker’s geographical heritage.
Compared to other regions, Punjabi chai contains a larger array of ingredients. Saunf adds notes of sweetness to the chai, cloves give it a warm undertone, while black pepper, ajwain, and ginger give it a true “masala” kick.
Other regional blends tend to be very “sharp” and highlight one ingredient extremely well, often cardamom or ginger. In contrast, Punjabi chai is full of depth.
When we decided to build out Masala Magic, we wanted to highlight this. The goal is to have every cup of chai taste like home, and the only way to do that is with the highest quality ingredients.