A Brief Introduction To Indian Tea
Tea was introduced to India by the British in the nineteenth century, to overcome the monopoly of Chinese production. According to legend, tea has been known in China since about 2700 bce. For millennia it was a medicinal beverage obtained by boiling fresh leaves in water, but around the 3rd century ce it became a daily drink, and tea cultivation and processing began. The first area to be planted was the mountain region surrounding the city of Darjeeling, perched on the Himalayan foothills, in the 1850s. Tea is an aromatic beverage prepared by pouring hot or boiling water over cured or fresh leaves of Camellia sinensis, an evergreen shrub native to East Asia which probably originated in the borderlands of southwestern China and northern Myanmar. Tea is also rarely made from the leaves of Camellia taliensis. The spices in the Indian masala chai, such as tulsi, clove, cardamom, and ginger promote digestion. The ginger in it males the benefits more profound ealichi increases the saliva production which further helps digestion. Indian tea, called chai in hindi, is rich and milky, deeply coloured, steaming hot, and boldly flavourful with a definite need for sugar to offset the toasty bitterness. Everyone enjoys chai, from Kashmir to Kanyakumari. While the manner of preparation varies from place to region, the true constant is the love for chai. Without a doubt, chai is one of the most favoured drinks in India. When it comes to masala chai, there is no doubt that everyone loves it. Chai tea means hot black tea with milk and almost always with spices, but can be without spices. Masala chai tea definitely means hot black tea with milk and spices, because the word masala in many South Asian languages means spices/mixed spices. Tea or chai are not two different things but same thing in different languages. Tea is an English word which means chai in Urdu, it is called shai in Arabic. Plus the aroma and these health benefits will tempt and draw you towards drinking this chai every day:
Different types of Indian chai?
1) Masala Tea
2) Ginger Tea
3) Assam Tea
4) Green Tea
5) Kawa Tea
6) Lemon Tea
7) Regular Tea
8) Chocolate Tea
9) Gulab Tea
10) Chai latte Tea