It’s super-chilly in London, so I whipped up a batch of fresh spiced yogi tea before I set out to teach on Saturday morning, and we all shared a cuppa after the class. I’m not one for following precise recipes, but here’s the gist of it…

You will need:
1/2 tsp white pepper to support your digestion
1/2 tsp black pepper to cleanse your blood
1/2 tsp cinnamon to strengthen your bones
2 coins of peeled ginger to ward off illness
2 cracked cardamom pods to support digestion
1 clove to tone your nervous system
Black tea for a kick (optional)
Honey/agave/maple to sweeten (optional)

Method:
Add the spices to 500ml water and boil for 10 minutes or so. If you want to give it an energy boost, add a teaspoon or a tea bag of black tea towards the end, but you can leave this out if you’re sensitive to caffeine. Sweeten it up with a squeeze of maple or agave syrup if you like. It also tastes lovely with a teaspoon of honey. In India, every family has their own take on chai, and every family will make their signature version differently – some will prefer more cinnamon, some will be liberal with their cardamom. You need to experiment to find out which flavours you prefer for your chai.

The recipe above is a fresh version of the Classic Yogi Tea that you can buy from most health food shops. Admittedly I was a little heavy handed with the white pepper in the batch I made on Saturday and it was a supremely hot and fiery. But everyone was brave (bless them!) and gave it a shot… and we finished the entire thermos flask of it! If anything will clear your nasal passages and warm you from the belly out, it’s this. Enjoy.

Sat nam x