Nun Chai- Love in a cup!
You guys remember Byul? He featured in an earlier post on the blog and stars in this one as well.
Of the rare chances he gets to go out on a date with his wife Sweety Jan, Byul never misses one. On a particular occasion, Byul and Sweety sneaked out of the house and decided to try this new tea room everyone was talking about. Compared to the hundreds of westernized coffee shops and cafes opening lately in Srinagar, the heart of Kashmir, this one was more exciting. The word on social media was that it served nun chai as one of the highlights on the menu. And all of Sweety’s friends had been posting Instagram pictures from this place; so, for all the hype-driven curiosity, it was high time they paid a visit too.
From the pretty decorations, each with a traditional touch, to the floral designs on the walls, everything about this place was so Instagrammable. Sweety couldn’t hold her excitement and started taking pictures before ordering two cups of nun chai latte and makai tchot.
They found themselves mesmerized in the upmarket surroundings. Before long their order arrived. The makai tchot was nice. However, Byul and Sweety were rather disappointed after taking a few sips of chai. “Little effort on extracting the flavour and more on the presentation,” said Byul. “Nun chai latte: such a brilliant, futuristic idea but I hope they learn to improvise on the taste front,” said Sweety. “Maybe they should take a lesson or two on making the perfect nun chai from you,” laughed Byul.
The couple spent the rest of the time talking about nun chai. Everything about it is unique. The salty flavour, the vivid pink colour and the overall taste. For some, it may be an acquired taste, while others may develop a liking for it in the first try. Sweety recalled that she had a friend try it one time and she remembered her comment that it tasted more like soup than chai. Though she liked it the first time, Sweety kept serving her nun chai so frequently that her taste buds grew up to acquire the ‘chai’ taste in it eventually.
They had a good laugh as Byul recalled the incident when Sweety had stored tyoth in the plastic bottle of Coke in the fridge and he had a shot at it, thinking it was actually Coke. Tyoth is the bitter nun chai base liquid, prior to the addition of milk and salt. It is almost identical to Coke in terms of looks.
If you are not a Kashmiri, it’s time for some more definitions. Noon means salt and chai, as you may know, means tea. “Salted tea”, that’s right. Strange as it may seem, it is the most cherished hot beverage of Kashmir. If I may say so, it is the National tea of Kashmir.
Conventional tea was not part of our culture until recently introduced by the British in the last century or so. Lipton was probably the hot selling brand in those initial days and ever since, we refer to the conventional tea as “Lipton chai“. It is indeed a simple and pragmatic way to distinguish this tea, now gaining huge popularity, from the other varieties of tea already part of our culture. Most Kashmiris are connoisseurs in matters of tea. Generally, we like our conventional tea to be strong, kahwa to be aromatic and nun chai to be creamy and mild.
Coming back to the date, Byul exclaimed to his wife that her nun chai was the best: “kotar rath hish” which literally means, “like a pigeon’s blood”, and is the best compliment one can receive for nun chai in Kashmir. As they sat there, sipping their cups of nun chai latte, revisiting their stories revolving around nun chai itself, they realized that it plays an important role in the family life. It is the focal point of all major discussions in the family. Most people in Kashmir start their day with a cup of nun chai and tchot and it is also served as a conversation extender to guests. This timeless tradition continues to bring together families, spreading a contagious feeling of joy everyday.
Nevertheless, Sweety and Byul had a calming break from the hustles of life over a cup of nun chai latte. To satisfy their nun chai teth (a craving for nun chai), Byul and Sweety later headed home and helped themselves to Sweety’s ‘kotar rath hish‘ nun chai. What better way to end a perfectly romantic date than to have both the mind cheered and taste buds satisfied!
So what exactly is nun chai?
This Kashmiri tea is made with green tea leaves, a specific kind, available in Kashmir. However, I am told regular green tea leaves can also work as a substitute. But its taste is so distinctive, far better than green tea. Check out this recipe by Zoondaeb using regular green tea leaves.
The pink colour is credited to the reaction of baking soda with the green tea leaves. Although it is not recommended to consume baking soda in large amounts, but a pinch in a cup of nun chai is believed to help in alleviating acid reflux, heartburn and indigestion.
This is not one of those classical teas which can be had without the addition of milk too, while blaming the English for introducing the preposterous idea. Nun chai is incomplete without milk and the British have played no role in this. Not just milk, on some occasions we do not hesitate to add fresh cream and a splash of butter as well to relish a heavenly cup of extra special nun chai.
It takes a bit of practice to perfect your nun chai in taste and color. The tricky factors are the correct proportions of tea leaves and baking soda, boiling time and the technique. Speaking of technique, there are so many ways in which it can be made. The most authentic way is to brew it in a Kashmiri Samavar (Samovar), but that is a bit too inconvenient for a daily cuppa. I know someone who makes it in a pressure cooker and well, it does come out good. However, I find mummy’s recipe the best. Perfect colour, flavour and minimum preparation time.
What sets this recipe apart from the rest is that it is quicker to put together. But the relatively greater proportion of baking soda used may repel some from using this method. The tyoth is poured over and over from one vessel to another repeatedly. This process of aerating the chai, called “khaal waal” helps deepen the pink colour and flavour of the nun chai. Everyone in our family loves it this way.
Nun chai is best served with any of the Kashmiri breads like tchot, tchochwor, baakirkhaen, kulcha, etc. Even chicken patties or plain puffs can serve as good accompaniments.
Nun chai | Pink Tea | Kashmiri Chai
Ingredients
- 1½ tbsp nun chai leaves (or green tea leaves)
- ⅓ tsp baking soda
- ⅔ tsp salt (or to taste)
- 2 cups milk
Instructions
- In a saucepan, add the nun chai leaves and baking soda. Add a little water, just about 30 ml and bring to boil. Allow it to boil, for about 3 minutes, till most of the water gets evaporated.
- Add 1½ cup of water and bring it to boil again. Now turn the heat to medium and allow it to boil for 10-12 minutes, until it attains a Coke-like reddish brown colour.
- Turn the heat off and place a lid on the saucepan. This liquid is called tyoth. Allow it to rest for at least half an hour.
- Add 1 cup of cold water to the tyoth.
- Now pour the tyoth from the saucepan to another vessel and back to the saucepan again. Keep repeating this step for a minute or two.
- Now pass the tyoth through a sieve into a vessel to get rid of the tea leaves. This should be about 2 cups of tyoth. Add more water if it is less than 2 cups.
- Now pour the tyoth into the saucepan again. Add milk and salt. Allow it to boil and turn the heat off. Four cups of nun chai are ready.
Notes
- Cup means the standard 240 ml mug.
- It tastes best when full fat milk is used.
- For more flavour and once-in-a-while-unhealthy-indulgence, add fresh cream or butter or even better, both to the cup of nun chai.
- The tyoth can be saved in the fridge for 2-3 days, after which the colour and flavour won’t remain intact.