I have been making masala chai for some time now, but recently i am having problems making tea. i add milk, water, and the various spices i use. i don't make the temperature too hot on the stove, like medium heat. the past 4 times i have made chai, the milk curdles and turns into little clumps. i am frustrated that i am having difficulties making something i have prepared countless times before. any suggestions on what is going on? i use a stainless steel pot to make my tea. the same pot i have been using for about 2 years now. i don't know if it's the temperature, the pot, or the milk. please help. :)

If you are using the same equipment, method and ingredients you have used numerous times successfully before, I would have thought the most likely variable would be the milk? I what point does it curdle?

the milk seems to curdle when it gets hot. right before the layer comes on top and it boils and starts to foam. i am clueless as to what is happening to my chai. i am having guests tomorrow, and i am afraid if i make chai, it will fail yet again. i made chai with just water and spices and added the milk after i poured it in my cup, but it just doesn't taste the same. any suggestions?

Curious and curiouser!

Have you tried heating up just some milk by itself and see what happens?

I agree, probably a change in the milk... if you get it from a supermarket, perhaps they have swapped supplier recently or it's being processed differently.

Could try milk from somewhere else?

its probably the spices. Either a new batch with acid in, or the old batch has developed acidity.

Does the milk curdle if you don't add spices?

If the milk is okay, then there has to be a curdling agent somewhere in the ingredients. What spices are you adding to your chai? Which chai masalas recipe are you using?

If you don?t have time to check/refresh all your spices, make it wih just ginger, green cardamoms and perhaps a little black pepper and try it out this morning. This is how it is often served at railway stations and dhabas in India.

My main computer is gone, so I may not be visiting the forum as frequently as I normally do.

Mamt

Thank you all for your suggestions.

To Mamta - I use ginger, green cardamom, clove, black pepper, khas khas, and cinnamon as the masala for my chai. (sometimes I just use a few of the ingredients, not all of them). Should I add the masala as the tea is boiling, or in the beginning when i turn the burner on? Also, what heat do you recommend cooking my tea on? at medium and it heats slowly, or on med-high and it heats quicker? How often should i change my spices? I bought new pack of cinnamon sticks about 2 weeks ago, and I buy new ginger every time I go to the bazaar (because I use it when I cook food for my husband and i). I think the khas khas, black pepper, and clove are older. Please let me know.

I really appreciate all of your efforts in helping me solve my chai problem. :)

Are you using fresh root ginger?

Yay!!! I purchased new cloves, whole black pepper, khas khas, and cardamom and tried again to make masala chai. My husband is from India, so I asked him how Mummy makes her chai. We boiled the milk, water and tea, and then added the masala and fresh ginger at the end once it was boiling... The tea was delicious. Thank you to all who offered advice on solving my chai problem. It wasn't the milk, but I think my spices went bad.

Note to Mamta: I made palak paneer aur aloo matar last night for my husband and i... It was delicious. We added more chili powder because we like our food really spicy, but the dishes were amazing!! I want to try to make some sweet for us, so I will definitely refer to your website for some recipes. I will start with something simple like besan ladoo or atta ki halwa. :)

Good luck Kristu!

Mamta