How to make chai for a crowd

Making chai for a crowd is the same as making it for two, scaled up: one level tablespoon of chai, about 5 g, for every cup, with equal parts water and milk. The difference is the pot. A big pan takes longer to boil and boils over faster, so here is how to manage it, and how to make it ahead if you would rather be with your guests than at the stove.

How much chai for a crowd: 10 or 20 cups

Cups	Chai	Water	Whole milk	Sugar (optional)
10	10 level tbsp (50 g)	1 liter	1 liter	10 tsp (about 3 tbsp)
20	20 level tbsp (100 g)	2 liters	2 liters	20 tsp (about ⅓ cup)

Each cup here is about 200 ml. A 150 g tube of our chai makes about 30 cups, so one tube covers a 20-cup pot with 50 g, about 10 cups, left for the next morning. Plan on more than one cup per guest, since some will want seconds.

Making a big pot on the stove

1. Use a pot that holds at least twice as much as the liquid you are putting in, because chai foams up as it boils. For 20 cups, that is an 8-quart stockpot or larger.
2. Boil the water with the chai. With a liter or two of water this takes longer than a small pan, so give it time.
3. Simmer for two minutes once it boils, until the water is deep amber.
4. Add the milk and bring it back up. Stay with the pot: a large pot of milk can boil over quickly. Let it rise three times, as with a small pan. A full pot is too heavy to lift, so turn the heat right down each time it foams up, then turn it back up.
5. Sweeten in the pan, or leave the sugar out and set out sugar for guests.
6. Strain into a jug or a flask to serve.

Make it ahead with chai concentrate

For a party, concentrate is easier. Make a batch of chai concentrate the day before. One batch, a liter of water and 30 g of our chai, makes about 12 cups, so make two for 20. It keeps five days in the fridge. When guests arrive, heat it with milk at about one part concentrate to one and a half parts milk, and pour. For iced chai, pour one part concentrate over ice with two parts cold milk.

Something for every guest

• Dairy-free: keep some oat milk aside and warm a small pan of chai with it. Do not boil oat milk hard.
• Less sweet: leave the sugar out of the pot and set out sugar or jaggery on the side.
• Something gentler: some guests find masala chai strong. Cardamom chai is lighter.

Giving chai as a thank-you

If someone else is hosting, our gift box has a tube of our chai with two ceramic cups and a golden spoon. It ships in one to two business days.