Servings: 20-30 cups

Ingredients

• 6 tsp Kashmiri tea leaves
• ¼ tsp nutmeg (jaifal)
• ¼ tsp mace
• 9-10 cloves (laung)
• 9-10 cardamom pods (elaichi)
• 1 stick cinnamon (dalchini)
• 2 bay leaves (tez patta)
• Pinch of bicarbonate of soda
• 2 tsp salt
• 1 cup sugar, or to taste
• 15-20 cashews, ground to a paste
• 10-15 almonds, ground to a paste
• 1 tsp coconut paste
• ½ tsp kewra water
• 2-3 drops sweet essence (meetha itr, used in Awadhi cuisine)
• Red rouge food colouring

Directions

Boil around 500ml of water in a pot. When it starts to boil, put tea leaves in a pouch (potli) and add to it. Add a pinch of soda, bay leaves and cinnamon stick. Cover and let it simmer on medium heat.

Meanwhile make another potli with nutmeg powder,mace powder, whole clove and green cardamom in it. When water gets a tinge of colour add about 250ml room temperature water and toss using a steel mug from a sufficient height. Keep adding room temperature water, while simultaneously tossing till it turns pink/red.

After this, dissolve some colour (red rouge colour) into milk and add to the tea. Add rest of the milk to complete 20-30 cups (ratio of milk to water must be 1:1). Add sugar and stir occasionally until dissolved. Thereupon add salt (adjust salt and sugar according to preferred sweetness). Subsequently, add the smooth cashew and almond paste and coconut paste, followed by 2-3 drops of sweet essence. Bring to a boil. Let it simmer for about 5-7 minutes so that the spices blend well.