The Ultimate Homemade Chai Tea Latte Recipe (Video)

This post may contain affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Want to make the most delicious homemade chai tea latte? This simple chai tea latte recipe is better than Starbucks or the boxed mixes from the grocery store. Made with pantry ingredients, like black tea and warming spices to create a homemade chai tea concentrate, and frothy milk (use dairy or dairy-free milk). This homemade drink has a rich and warming chai flavor with the perfect touch of natural sweetness from the maple syrup.

I know we are still overly obsessed (in the very best way) with our homemade pumpkin spice latte and rightfully so. A homemade pumpkin spice latte is clearly the drink that’s meant to be enjoyed multiple times (maybe even daily?) during the fall season, and beyond!

I’m not asking you to abandon the pumpkin spice latte today, rather, maybe add some variety to your coffee routine? Think of this recipe as a delicious change to keep things from getting boring (side note: homemade pumpkin spice lattes would never make it to the boring list). Trust me, friend, I know you’re going to love filling your favorite mug with warm chai spices, black tea, and perfectly frothy milk.

What is a Chai Tea Latte?

The chai tea latte originated in India. In India, the word chai translates to “tea.” So yes, calling this drink a chai tea latte is technically saying “tea tea latte” But since most of us in the Western world order “chai tea lattes” when at the coffee shop and that’s what we search for online when wanting to make a chai latte at home, we’re going with it.

Traditionally, a chai tea latte is a combination of tea and milk. The homemade chai tea latte recipe we’re going to make today, and what most of us recognize as that classic chai latte taste, is called masala chai: a blend of tea, milk, and spices (like cardamom, cinnamon, and ginger).

How To Make a Chai Tea Latte at Home

Want to skip the expensive coffee shop lattes or the grocery store concentrates and mixes and instead make a homemade chai latte? This delicious recipe is the best way to save money and enjoy the classic flavor of a chai latte at home.

You’ll first need a few tools:

• small saucepan
• fine mesh strainer
• immersion blender or a whisk

And ingredients:

• 2 cups water
• 2 black tea bags or English Breakfast tea bags or 4 grams of loose-leaf tea leaves
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom (if you don’t already have this spice in your pantry, it’s a great addition as it can be added to baked goods like banana bread, pumpkin bread, or muffins.)
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/2 ground allspice
• 2 tablespoons maple syrup or honey
• milk of choice: either dairy milk (do you know how to find the healthiest dairy?) or dairy-free milk (such as unsweetened coconut milk or homemade almond milk or oat milk)

First, Brew the chai tea…

First, make a homemade chai tea concentrate. To do this, brew the spices and water in a small saucepan over medium heat on the stove top. Bring the water and spices to a boil. Give the water a stir and then let the ingredients simmer for 5 minutes. Turn off the heat and add the tea bags and natural sweetener: maple syrup (or honey). After another 5 minutes, pour the chai concentrate through a fine mesh strainer and into a bowl. Reserve 1/2 cup of chai tea concentrate to immeadiately make a latte. Store the rest of the concentrate in a jar in the refrigerator for up to two weeks. Reheat the chai concentrate in the microwave or a saucepan when you’re ready to make a latte. 

You can buy a chai concentrate or “chai tea bags” (which infuse spices with black tea) from the store, skipping this step, but none of the concentrates from the store taste like this homemade version. They lack the flavor profile that you’ll get from this homemade chai concentrate.

Second, make a warm chai tea latte …

To make a latte, in a medium-size saucepan, bring the milk, a tablespoon of maple syrup, and a pinch of cinnamon to a slight boil. Once the sides of the milk begin to bubble, remove the pan from heat. Using an immersion blender (this is the trick to making a latte without a professional milk frother, but if you don’t have an immersion blender you may use a whisk although it doesn’t produce the same frothy milk experience like the blender), blend the milk until it’s frothy (just a few seconds).

Pour 1/2 cup of warm chai tea in a mug. Slowly add the warm, frothy milk to the tea. Sprinkle the top of the chai tea latte with an extra pinch of cinnamon, if desired.

Or, make a homemade iced chai tea latte…

If you’d prefer an iced chai latte, add 1/2 cup cold chai concentrate from the refrigerator to a glass with ice, then pour milk of choice over the top.

Since this homemade chai tea latte calls for black tea, it does contain caffeine so it’s best to enjoy this drink in the morning or early afternoon.  But no matter what time of day you choose to make and enjoy this homemade latte, I think you’ll find the flavor and taste is far superior to anything you can get at a coffee shop (since many like Starbucks uses a pre-made concentrate) or grocery store.

Give it a try and tell me what you think!

4.96 from 48 votes

Print

Homemade Chai Tea Latte Recipe

Want to make the most delicious homemade chai tea latte? This chai tea latte recipe is better than Starbucks or the grocery store.

Course Drinks

Cuisine Indian

Keyword Chai Tea Latte

Prep Time 5 minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes

Total Time 20 minutes

Servings 4 chai lattes

Calories 74 kcal

Author Kristin Marr

Ingredients

Chai Tea:

• 2 cups water
• 2 black tea bags or English breakfast tea bags or 4 grams of loose-leaf tea leaves
• 2 whole cloves
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp ground ginger
• 1/2 tsp ground cardamom
• 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
• 1/2 tsp ground allspice
• 2 TB pure maple syrup

Chai Tea Latte:

• 1/2 cup chai tea from the recipe above
• 3/4 cup whole milk or dairy-free milk: coconut milk, almond milk, oat milk
• 1 TB pure maple syrup or honey
• pinch ground cinnamon

Instructions

1. For the chai tea: In a small saucepan, bring the water and spices to a boil. Whisk the spices in the water. Once the water reaches a boil, turn off the heat and allow the spices to steep in the water for 5 minutes. After 5 minutes, turn the heat back on and add the black tea bags and maple syrup. Return to a slight boil (the goal is a hot liquid for steeping). Once boiling, turn off the heat. Allow the tea bags to steep in the water and spices for 5 minutes. Remove the tea bags and strain the tea through a fine mesh strainer. Reserve 1/2 cup of chai tea to make a latte. Store the rest of the chai tea in a jar in the fridge up to two weeks.

2. For the chai tea latte: In a medium saucepan, bring the milk, maple syrup, and pinch of cinnamon to a slight boil (the sides of the milk will begin to bubble), stirring often. Once the sides of the milk begin to bubble, remove the pan from heat. Using an immersion blender (this is the trick to a frothy homemade latte), blend the milk until it's frothy.

3. Pour 1/2 cup of chai tea in a mug. Slowly add the warm, frothy milk to the tea. Sprinkle the top of the chai latte with an extra pinch of cinnamon, if desired.

4. Serve warm.

   Pumpkin Chai Latte Version: You can make a pumpkin chai latte by whisking 2-3 tablespoons of pumpkin puree into the milk as it warms.

Recipe Video

3 More Homemade Drinks To Try

• Homemade Pumpkin Spice Latte
• Lemon and Honey Sore Throat Tea
• Homemade Turmeric Milk Latte