JOIN USWarmly yours
Creative juices flow as the world innovates to make staying at home interesting. How about strolling down the alleyways of Istanbul to listening to Umm Al Kulthum’s captivating classics at an old Cairo café? Soaking in the Mediterranean sun at the Qasbah of Algiers or shaking a leg with Beirut’s boisterous? We’re not talking travel in times of lockdown. It’s a sip of that one elixir that has enchanted humanity through ages, that preserves the earth’s cultural diversity in just a cup — Tea.
Doctors unanimously recommend sipping warm drinks to prevent the virus from infecting the body. Experts believe that it bears a fat cover which preserves the lethal DNA protein. This layer can be destroyed either by soap or by heat. “When the virus enters through the mouth or nose, it takes around three to four days for it to descend into the lungs from the nasopharynx and pharynx. Sipping hot water will deactivate it before that,” explains an eminent Mumbai physician.
While grandma’s good old turmeric in hot water or the legendary salt and water sore throat remedy can get utterly monotonous, with the most commonly available ingredients present in nearly all Indian households, one can prepare tea varieties from different regions to provide the body the necessary warmth and absorb the senses in diverse cultural experiences. Ingredients like mint, cardamom, cinnamon, clove, ginger and anise, experts say, improve appetite and boost the immune system. Sugar or honey are optional in all the varieties.
African excellence
“The first sip is as sweet as love, the second, as intense as life, the third, as bitter as death,” says a hilarious North African French saying. Indeed is tea the backbone of Africa’s Maghreb region of Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia and Libya. “From the coast to the Sahara, Shaay bi-n-Nana or mint tea makes friends out of strangers,” believes Tunisian scholar Sidi Adel.
Ingredients & Method
Around two hands full of fresh mint (pudina), water, green or black tea (Libyan style). Boil the water, add the tea and immediately the mint and let steep. One can even add mint to the cups and then pour the tea to release the flavours as you drink.
Iraqi enchantment
The charm of the quaint old tea houses of Baghdad is incomplete without the legendary Chai Al Iraqi.
Masterpieces of Maqam music fill the air as rugged folks gather for chatter and chai.
Ingredients &
Method
Water, 2-5 pods of cardamom, black tea. Grind cardamom and add it to water, bring it to a boil. Add as much tea as can retain the balance of flavours.
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Refreshingly
Turkish
Tea is to Turkey what water is to fish! One can never imagine the scenic seascapes of Istanbul or the stunning expanses of Seljuk without that cup of bright red joy. “Turkish chai, though simple, is generally an
elaborate process. Turkey grows its unique black tea. During these times, drinking limon çayı or Turkish lemon tea is considered healthy,” shares Turkish homemaker Handan Ishik.
Ingredients & Method
Water, black tea, lemon. Boil the water and add any black tea leaves or dip. Make sure to get an orange or a light red colour and not over-brew. Squeeze a few drops of lemon making sure it doesn’t overpower the tea.
Lovably Lebanese
Known to be some of the friendliest folks in West Asia, the gregarious Lebanese warmth usually follows a cup of tea. In Lebanon and Syria, among other varieties, anise and cinnamon tea are a palate-teasing delight.
Water, anise, 2-4 cinnamon sticks or powdered cinnamon, black tea. Boil water with cinnamon sticks and anise added. Make sure not to let the former overpower the latter. After boiling, add the black tea and steep in proportion to the other two ingredients for perfect balance.
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Sumptuously
Sulaimani
Synonymous with the Gulf-Malabari connection, Sulaimani is one of the most refreshing and rejuvenating infusions sans milk one can prepare at home. Though the choice of ingredients may vary with the individual, Sulaimani is known to be a mix of spice, citrus and sweet.
Ingredients & Method
Water, black tea, ginger, cinnamon, cardamom, lemon, mint (optional). Grind the spices and add to water, bring to a boil. Add tea, lemon, mint leaves and allow to steep.