East Africa · Drink
Chai ya Tangawizi (Spiced Ginger Milk Tea)
A fiery, invigorating Kenyan milky black tea loaded with freshly bruised ginger, crushed spices, and rich whole milk.
The story
Chai ya Tangawizi is the undeniable heartbeat of Kenyan daily life, served from rural homesteads to bustling roadside kiosks as both a dawn pick-me-up and a universal gesture of hospitality (karibu). Influenced by centuries of Indo-East African maritime trade along the Swahili coast, the Kenyan method distinctively simmers loose CTC black tea and aromatics directly within a milk-and-water decoction rather than steeping leaves in hot water. The hallmark of true Tangawizi tea is crushing the fresh ginger root unpeeled with a pestle, which releases essential spicy gingerols and natural zesty oils from beneath the skin.
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