Raja Kumari's Must-Have Products
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"Everyone that knows me knows that chai is my morning ritual," Kumari says. And as a chai connoisseur, she can't stop raving about the blends from Kolkata Chai Co.'s Variety Pack ($57, originally $62). She has the subscription delivery, and she's sure to take a few pouches of the chai blend whenever she travels. She appreciates that this chai has spices already mixed in, including cardamom, ginger, black pepper, and the works. However, she likes to add more depending on her mood. "I do a giant chunk of ginger, and I just crush it in my mortar pestle with my cardamom pods, sometimes fennel seeds, and cinnamon sticks," she says. Although she enjoys the masala flavour in the mornings, she treats herself to the rose flavour too: "When I have a rose chai, and I can see the rose petals, I feel really fancy."
Pro Tip: Kumari recommends throwing spices into boiling water, then adding the tea blend a little later so that the tea doesn't become bitter. Once the tea and spices have boiled on low for a bit, she adds in milk. To get the perfect milk-to-water ratio, she recommends having equal amounts of both. "The most important thing about chai is when it boils over. You need to be there for the action, but you've got to wait. You've got to wait until it's about to boil over and turn it down, blow on it. I do that three times to make the milk light and frothy and for a deeply rich chai," she says.