4 Ways To Make a Turmeric Chai Latte

A Turmeric Chai Latte, often known as a Golden Chai Latte, is a comforting and cozy drink that combines the soothing flavors of chai with the vibrant color and health benefits of turmeric. It's our new favorite way to warm up on cold days!

Something about this time of year always has me in the mood for a detox. Perhaps it’s the changing season, or maybe it’s just one too many pieces of pie, but cold weather makes me want to hunker down and take care of myself a little better.

And one of my favorite ways to kick off the season is by switching out my daily cup of coffee in favor of a warm, cleansing turmeric latte.

What Is a Turmeric Latte?

Turmeric lattes, often referred to as golden milk or turmeric tea, are a caffeine-free drink made from warm, frothed nut or soy milk and turmeric. They can either be made plain with just nut milk and turmeric or “dirty” with added ginger, cinnamon, and black pepper.

Benefits of a Turmeric Latte

I often turn to turmeric lattes to help lessen the effects of those seasonal sugary indulgences. Not only is turmeric completely festive—thanks to its rich, golden color—but it's perfect for detoxing the body, balancing blood sugar, and mediating some of the inflammatory effects of a high-fat diet [source] (always a must after holiday festivities).

And while you're enjoying a warm, soothing latte why not try a turmeric face mask?

Turmeric aids in detoxification

Turmeric works as a well-known liver cleanser, helping to purify and tone the liver so it can better expel chemicals from the body and lessen the load on the body's other detoxification pathways. Some recent evidence indicates that increased turmeric intake has anti-cancer effects [source], especially for bladder, stomach, cervical [source], colon cancers [source].

Turmeric calms chronic inflammation

Turmeric has long been touted as a potent anti-inflammatory, helping to calm the chronic inflammation at the root of everything from cancer to asthma to diabetes [source]. Thanks to the active ingredient curcumin, turmeric lattes offer a healthy alternative to coffee that can help reduce the inflammatory effects of sugar and junk food.

Turmeric heals digestion

Not only does turmeric decrease inflammation in the digestive tract, but it also encourages the gallbladder to produce more bile, which helps with the digestion of food [source]. Additionally, it increases vitamin and mineral absorption in the intestines and promotes healthy gut flora.

Turmeric Ginger Chai Latte Ingredients

• 2 cups of water
• 2 cups of milk (whole milk, almond milk, or any milk of your choice)
• 2 black tea bags or 2 tablespoons of loose black tea leaves
• 2-inch piece of fresh ginger, sliced
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 4-6 green cardamom pods, crushed
• 4-6 whole cloves
• 1-2 teaspoons of ground turmeric (adjust to taste)
• 2-3 teaspoons of honey or sweetener of your choice (adjust to taste)
• Pinch of black pepper

For the Frothed Milk:

• 1 cup of milk (your choice)
• ½ teaspoon of honey (optional)

Besides using fresh turmeric root whenever possible, another tip is to take your turmeric with a little fat, which increases the availability of the curcumin for use by the body. We love coconut oil for making a rich, frothy latte.

Instructions

In a saucepan, combine the water and milk. Add the black tea bags or loose tea leaves, ginger, cinnamon stick, cardamom pods, and cloves. Bring the mixture to a simmer over medium heat.

Once the mixture comes to a simmer, reduce the heat to low and let it gently simmer for about 10-15 minutes, allowing the flavors to infuse.

Add ground turmeric and a pinch of black pepper to the mixture, and continue to simmer for an additional 5 minutes. Remove the saucepan from the heat, and then add honey or sweetener to taste. Stir to dissolve the sweetener. Using a fine-mesh strainer or a tea infuser, strain the chai into your serving mugs to remove the tea leaves and spices.

In a separate small saucepan, heat the 1 cup of milk for frothing. You can also use a milk frother if you have one. Add honey if desired.

Froth the milk until it becomes creamy and has a nice foam on top.

Pour the frothed milk over the strained chai base in your mugs. Garnish with a sprinkle of ground turmeric or a cinnamon stick.

Turmeric Chai Latte Recipe Variations

1. Use Pre-Made or Make Your Own Chai Spice

Add a dash of chai spice mix plus a heaping teaspoon of turmeric powder to get the chai latte flavor but with the healing benefits of turmeric.

—1 cup unsweetened plant milk
—1 teaspoon organic ground turmeric
—½ teaspoon chai spice mix
—1 teaspoon honey
—Pinch of black pepper

To make your own chai spice mix, combine 1 teaspoon each cardamom, allspice, and ground cloves with 2 teaspoons cinnamon and 3 teaspoons powdered ginger in a glass jar. Give it a good shake to mix everything together.

Combine the milk with 1 teaspoon of turmeric powder and ½ teaspoon of chai spice mix. Let the mixture simmer until the milk is hot, and then whisk until the milk becomes nice and frothy.

2. No-Time-To-Simmer Turmeric Chai Latte

Give your latte a boost of caffeine with black tea, which is traditionally used when making chai tea.

—½ cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk
—1 cup water + 1 black tea bag
—1 teaspoon organic ground turmeric
—½ teaspoon chai spice mix
—2 teaspoon turbinado sugar
—Pinch of black pepper

Simmer the water and 1 black tea bag with the remaining ingredients until hot. Whisk the milk until frothy, and then spoon it over the drink.

3. Turmeric Matcha Latte

You can also add a touch of turmeric to your daily matcha latte by combining matcha powder and ground turmeric.

—1 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk
—2 teaspoon matcha powder
—1 teaspoon organic ground turmeric
—½ teaspoon chai spice mix
—1 tablespoon honey
—Pinch of black pepper

Simmer ½ cup of milk and the remaining ingredients until hot. Whisk the remaining milk until frothy, and then spoon it over the drink.

Bonus: you can try this Cardamom Vanilla Cashew Milk if you don't feel like turmeric! 

📖 Recipe

Print Recipe

3 votes

Turmeric Chai Latte Recipes

Say good-bye to PSLs, because these healthy turmeric lattes will not only calm your cravings, but they'll also elevate your mood.

Prep Time5 minutes mins

Cook Time5 minutes mins

Total Time10 minutes mins

Course: Drinks

Cuisine: Indian

Keyword: turmeric

Servings: 1 person

Author: Stephanie Gerber

Cost: $2

Equipment

• saucepan

Ingredients

Turmeric Ginger Chai Latte

• 2 cups of water
• 2 cups of milk whole milk, almond milk, or any milk of your choice
• 2 black tea bags or 2 tablespoons of loose black tea leaves
• 2- inch piece of fresh ginger sliced
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 4-6 green cardamom pods crushed
• 4-6 whole cloves
• 1-2 teaspoons of ground turmeric adjust to taste
• 2-3 teaspoons of honey or sweetener of your choice adjust to taste
• Pinch of black pepper
• 1 cup of milk your choice (for the frothed milk)
• ½ teaspoon of honey optional (for the frothed milk)

DIY Chai Spice

• 1 cup unsweetened plant milk
• 1 teaspoon organic ground turmeric
• ½ teaspoon chai spice mix
• 1 teaspoon honey
• Pinch of black pepper

No-Time-To-Simmer Turmeric Chai Latte

• ½ cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk
• 1 cup water + 1 black tea bag
• 1 teaspoon organic ground turmeric
• ½ teaspoon chai spice mix
• 2 teaspoon turbinado sugar
• Pinch of black pepper

Turmeric Matcha Latte

• 1 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk
• 2 teaspoon matcha powder
• 1 teaspoon organic ground turmeric
• ½ teaspoon chai spice mix
• 1 tablespoon honey
• Pinch of black pepper

Instructions

Turmeric Ginger Chai Latte

• In a saucepan, combine the water and milk. Add the black tea bags or loose tea leaves, ginger, cinnamon stick, cardamom pods, and cloves. Bring the mixture to a simmer over medium heat.
• Once the mixture comes to a simmer, reduce the heat to low and let it gently simmer for about 10-15 minutes, allowing the flavors to infuse.
• Add ground turmeric and a pinch of black pepper to the mixture, and continue to simmer for an additional 5 minutes. Remove the saucepan from the heat, and then add honey or sweetener to taste. Stir to dissolve the sweetener.
• Using a fine-mesh strainer or a tea infuser, strain the chai into your serving mugs to remove the tea leaves and spices.
• In a separate small saucepan, heat the 1 cup of milk for frothing. You can also use a milk frother if you have one. Add honey if desired.
• Froth the milk until it becomes creamy and has a nice foam on top.
• Pour the frothed milk over the strained chai base in your mugs. Garnish with a sprinkle of ground turmeric or a cinnamon stick.

DIY Chai Spice

• To make your own chai spice mix, combine 1 teaspoon each cardamom, allspice, and ground cloves with 2 teaspoons cinnamon and 3 teaspoons powdered ginger in a glass jar. Give it a good shake to mix everything together.
• Combine the milk with 1 teaspoon of turmeric powder and ½ teaspoon of chai spice mix. Let the mixture simmer until the milk is hot, and then whisk until the milk becomes nice and frothy.

No-Time-To-Simmer Turmeric Chai Latte

• Simmer the water and 1 black tea bag with the remaining ingredients until hot. Whisk the milk until frothy, and then spoon it over the drink.

Turmeric Matcha Latte

• Simmer ½ cup of milk and the remaining ingredients until hot. Whisk the remaining milk until frothy, and then spoon it over the drink.

Notes

Besides using fresh turmeric root whenever possible, another tip is to take your turmeric with a little fat, which increases the availability of the curcumin for use by the body. We love coconut oil for making a rich, frothy latte.