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Tibetan butter tea
Po cha (酥油茶 / བོད་ཇ་): strong black tea churned with butter and salt into a rich, savoury drink
On the cold Tibetan plateau, people drink many cups a day of this salty, buttery tea, and a host keeps topping up a guest's bowl as soon as a sip is taken. Traditionally, brick tea is boiled for a long time, then churned with yak butter and salt in a tall wooden cylinder called a chandong. At home, a blender gives the same creamy, frothy result. It tastes more like a light broth than a sweet tea. Chef's tip: boil the tea hard and long; it needs to be very strong to stand up to the butter.
- Total time
- 14 min
- Difficulty
- easy
- Serves
- 4
Ingredients
Method
0/4 doneStep 1: Put 2 tbsp Pu'er brick tea or strong black tea leaves and 3 ¼ cups water in a pan, bring to the boil and simmer for 10 minutes, until the tea is a dark reddish-brown and smells strong.
10 minStep 2: Strain into a blender jug. Add 1 oz unsalted butter, ½ cup whole milk and ½ tsp salt.
Step 3: Hold the lid down with a folded towel and blend for 30 seconds, until pale, creamy and frothy, with no streaks of butter floating. Common mistake: just stirring the butter in; it floats as a greasy layer instead of becoming part of the tea.
Step 4: Pour into bowls or cups and drink hot, topping up as you go. Re-blend briefly if it separates.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 90 kcal
- Protein
- 1 g
- Carbs
- 3 g
- Fat
- 8 g
- Fibre
- 0 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does tibetan butter tea take?
- About 14 minutes in total: 2 minutes to prepare and 12 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 4 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegetarian?
- Yes. It has no meat or fish.
- Is it gluten free?
- Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
- What can I use instead of unsalted butter?
- The same weight of ghee or coconut oil (for frying and most baking).
- What can I use instead of whole milk?
- Semi-skimmed milk with 1 tbsp cream per 240ml (1 cup).
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