My recipe is simple: Put as much ginger as you can in a small pot. Don’t chop it, crush it, and add the peels that you have left over from cooking. (Whenever I have some leftover, I wash them and put them in the freezer.) Start with nice water — in Bangkok, I use bottled. The calculation is to start with double the amount you want to drink. Slowly boil the water and add 3 or 4 crushed green cardamom pods. Boil under reduced by about 40%, then add the worst tea ever: English Breakfast. Bad, dark, bitter. Don’t use good tea! The British gave us the worst tea, and we made the best tea out of it. At the same time, add as much milk as you like — whatever your milk of choice is. Reduce the heat to the lowest possible setting, and when it comes to a boil, strain the tea and add your sweetner. That’s masala chai.