Vegan Karak Tea Recipe

Can Vegans enjoy an authentic, delicious, creamy, and aromatic karak tea? Certainly, they can! Following a plant-based diet shouldn’t be about deprivation but experimenting and enjoying alternatives, a guilt-free plant-based alternative! This Vegan karak tea recipe is worth trying!

Making vegan Karak tea is not as difficult as you might think, and this blog post will provide an easy step-by-step guide on how to make it. You will learn what ingredients are needed, how to prepare the tea, and how to serve your vegan Karak tea. All that’s needed is a commitment to good taste and a willingness to try something new!

What is Karak Tea?

Also known as Karak Chai or Masala Chai, Karak tea is a strong, sweet, hot tea with milk that traditionally originated in India. It is consumed across GCC countries, where it gained popularity as a favorite drink among locals and expatriates alike!

The term “karak” translates to “strong” in Arabic, perfectly capturing the essence of this robust tea. The secret to authentic karak tea lies in its unique spice blend, which enhances the flavor and gives it that signature kick. The traditional spices commonly used in karak tea include cardamom, cinnamon, saffron, cloves, and ginger. The tea can be prepared with one, some, or all of the spices mixed together.

Ingredients you will need:

To make this beloved tea beverage, you will need the below ingredients:

• Black Tea: To prepare a traditional karak tea, opt for loose black tea leaves such as Red Label black tea or any other brand you prefer. Alternatively, you can prepare karak tea using black tea bags.
• Water: use either hot or cold water.
• Sweetened Condensed Milk: in this recipe, I have used sweetened condensed coconut milk (from Nature’s Charm), It was sweet enough, that you don’t need to add any more sugar.
• Plant-milk: Oat barista milk was used in this recipe, but opt for any plant-milk you have available.
• Ginger: If you are a ginger fan, then you MUST add ginger, it gives a spicy kick to the tea. I have used fresh ginger slices, but you can use ginger powder instead.
• Cinnamon.
• Cardamom: the star ingredient in any Karak recipe! If you would choose only one spice to make your karak tea, I suggest you use only cardamom! It is basically what makes Karak tea, a karak tea 😉

How to prepare this karak tea recipe?

• To begin, gather all your ingredients: tea leaves, milk, and spices. Crush the cardamom pods to release their flavor into the tea.
• Add 2 cups of water to a pan/big teapot, and when the water starts to bubble, add 2 tablespoons Red Label tea leaves, half a tablespoon of fresh chopped ginger, 1.5 tablespoons of slightly crushed cardamom pods, and 1 teaspoon cinnamon powder. Let it simmer for 2 minutes.
• Add one cup of the condensed coconut milk, and 1 cup of barista oat milk and stir till all is combined.
• Let the tea simmer for another 1 – 2 minutes.
• Strain the tea leaves, and serve the tea in individual cups.

Serving your tea

Serve it with a small plate of snacks, preferably savory snacks, since it is a sweet tea.

To have a true karak experience, here in the UAE It is usually served with a cheese paratha sandwich, in most cafeterias that offer karak tea. Which are basically everywhere in the UAE.

How to store leftover tea?

First, it’s important to let the tea cool down before storing it. Allow the tea to reach room temperature naturally before storing it. Once the tea has cooled, carefully transfer it into an airtight container, preferably a glass container/ bottle. Store it in the refrigerator, it can last up to 2-3 days.

Although it is widely available in the Gulf region, finding a dairy-free/Vegan karak option can be challenging. Therefore, prepping it at home is more convenient, and this karak tea recipe is the one you need to try right now.

So, why wait? Gather your ingredients, and impress your friends and family with your homemade vegan karak tea.

Recommended Recipes:

• Vegan sahlab recipe.
• Easy vegan lazy cake recipe.
• Epic tahini salad dressing.
• One-pot Iraqi potato stew recipe.

If you make this recipe, I’d love a comment and a rating. Please make sure to tag me in re-creation on Instagram @veganbilaraby. I love to see your take on my vegan recipes 💚