chai means tea.
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Chai means “tea” throughout most of India. In West Bengal it is called cha, in Nepal – chyaa. The Hindi word chai, derived from the Mandarin Chinese word cha, refers to the black, green, oolong or other types of tea, all made through different processing methods from the same Camellia sinensis plant. Next to water, chai, or tea, is the world’s most consumed beverage.
In the West, “chai” refers to what in India is called masala chai. Masala means spice mixture. Masala chai is black tea brewed with spices like ginger and cardamom along with water, milk and sugar. In Nepal and India, chai is made in fresh batches and drank in almost every home. Each family has their own traditional way of making it. On every street there are open-air chai stalls where Chai wallahs, or chai vendors, serve chai in small glasses or clay cups. It is a part of daily life – morning chai, afternoon chai and chai any time with friends or visitors. Most any gathering or transaction involves sitting down and sharing a small cup of chai. It is the commodity of friendship.
