Going into a first-year university chemistry exam I wanted peak performance and I had the answer: chemistry itself — in the form of a double-shot espresso. Chemistry got the better of me that day. I jittered and sweated my way through the exam receiving a first inkling of what was to be later recognised as a fully-fledged caffeine sensitivity.
Here’s the thing: I absolutely adore coffee. The smell of it, the experience of it. But even with decaf, numerous migraines and multiple adrenal blowouts later, I’ve oft wished for a drink that could be equally as satisfying without the caffeination.
It was thus to my absolute delight when a friend (knowing my predicament) one day dropped off two jars of Chai Guy Tumeric Chai paste. After years of longing an answer had finally landed.
I’d previously gone down the road of pure turmeric with milk. It’s an acquired taste that was never quite “it”. This turmeric chai is not that. It has a very slight kick to it but is otherwise just a mild blend of pleasant and undeniable flavour - not particularly of tumeric. The type of flavour that has me boiling the kettle regularly. The paste is a little grainy, so while it mixes in well, you can get the dregs at the bottom like a slightly dodgy plunger coffee preparation. This is the type of thing you can either avoid in your preparation, or embrace entirely. I choose to embrace.
The instructions on the packet state to heat the paste in milk directly. While this is no doubt better, I am drinking multiple of these bad boys a day, and I don’t want it to take all day to get them prepared. I’ve found simply adding boiling water and letting it sit for a minute or two before adding milk largely does the trick.
When I ordered my first few top up jars online, he seemed like he was going through a slightly existential labelling crisis, trying to adjust the number of cups each jar advertised making. It used to be 27 cups, but it seems like someone felt like this was unrealistic. I will say I upped my per cup amount after that and haven’t gone back, but I think ultimately don’t be swayed by the label: you get to do you, and you can do it to your taste – weak and economical, or strong like you mean it.
Finally there is milk choice. If you’re not going for cow’s milk, well you probably have your opinions. The major issue I have with alternative milks in general, is the volume of pure oil they contain, sometimes like 10-15%. I personally go for pure harvest unsweetened soy milk. In my opinion you can’t beat the alternative milk classic. Soy has more bulk and so while they add a tiny bit of oil, it’s a lot less than most oat milks. The only downside is I only know one shop in Auckland that sells unsweetened soy.
Whether you’re unconvinced or popping over excitedly to buy some Tumeric Chai his website is worth a read. The type of down to earth passionate entrepreneurial energy that epitomises wholesome small
Of note is that he points out that turmeric should generally be boiled pretty solidly to release the nutrients before consumption, which is something he does in preparation. It’s an excellent anti-inflammatory and that’s the final beautiful thing I’ll say about this chai drink: it’s guilt free, and although I haven’t checked every detail on this, last time I checked, spices were good for you.
Multiple cups of this chai per day for the last few months warrants this as a life changing pick from me!