"Class Favorite" Yogi Tea
Makes 2 gallons of “raw” Yogi Tea.
Ingredients:
16 sticks of cinnamon [the 3" long kind]
1 heaping TBSP of black peppercorns- bruised or cracked
2 level tsp of whole cloves
3 level TBSP of green cardamom pods, or decorticated cardamom seeds
2 and 2/3 cups of fresh ginger, chopped small
2 tablespoons chyawanprash* - optional
A small palm-full of black or Red tea like English Breakfast, African Rooibos, or jasmine, or 6 favorite herbal tea bags (caffeine or no caffeine , our choice)
Recipe:
Bring 2 gallons + 1 quart of water to a boil in a stainless steel pot.
When at boil, put in the cinnamon sticks, cloves, peppercorns, and ginger. The mixture will stop boiling. Keep the heat on high until it boils again and then lower the heat to a very slow rolling boil and cover the pot.
Boil for 1¼ to 1½ hours. Remove from the flame and let the tea sit for 1½ hours at least, but not more than 3 hours.
Strain the spices out.
Throw in the tea leaves, bring up to heat and steep for 10 minutes, stirring as you like.
Strain the tea leaves out.
This beautiful yogi tea liquid, called “raw” yogi tea, is them mixed to taste with milk. I recommend whole milk for better body. Raw cow milk is a favorite treat. Use a ratio of 50% tea, 50% milk, but some of you may like it stronger. You may use cow milk, soy milk, rice milk. This recipe, though, creates a more potent raw tea than other recipes, so you may find diluting it 50/50 is fine indeed. After adding milk, bring the mixed tea back up to a near boil. Sweeten with honey or stevia. Use 1/3 cup honey per gallon of mixed Yogi tea. For a special touch, add 1-2 tsp of vanilla extract per gallon of mixed tea.
The raw Yogi tea will last 2 weeks in the refrigerator, but once it is mixed, it has a life equal to that of milk, so mix only what you'll use in the next few days, or do what we do in our home, mix it by the mug serving.
*Chyawanprash is complex herbal formula that has a jam-like consistency and a history of use as a tonic and strong rejuvenator for more than 2,000 years. The combination of the 36 selected herbs and fruits along with four food ingredients in this nutritionally rich tonic has traditionally been used to enhance general health, increase mental and physical energy, and support the body's natural resistance to disease. The principle herb in Chyawanprash, Amla fruit (Amalaki) is one of the world's most concentrated sources of naturally occurring Vitamin C, and works synergistically with the other carefully selected ingredients to create a powerful and effective rejuvenating tonic and antioxidant. Regular consumption of Chyawanprash is believed to rejuvenate and fortify both the mind and body and is beneficial to people of all ages and constitutions.We love it in yogi tea! Santokh buys hers at Himalayan Institute Store.
Comments from Santokh:
I do the additional step of peeling the ginger, which gives it a
“smoothness” that will really gratify. One principle I believe in is the
instruction to keep the pot at a low rolling boil and covered. The
rolling boil distributes the ginger and spices continuously, and
keeping it covered keeps the spice essences in the tea, rather than
getting lost into the air.The entire house still smells heavenly !
Do not neglect the final part of the recipe,
steeping tea leaves or tea bags in the brew. The small amount of
caffeine added is an essential part of the ayurvedic formula that makes this tea health promoting as well as delicious. For eveving yoga classes, I do not use
caffeine, because some students do not use caffeine in evening and we enjoy the tea our post sivasana tea without milk.