A viscerally warming blend of turmeric & traditional spices makes this golden milk spiced chai a soothing, comforting latte style tea with healing benefits

Ask a room full of herbalists what the first anti-inflammatory herb that comes to their mind is, and invariably you will hear the world “turmeric” among the replies.  In fact, I attended an herbal conference where the session speaker asked just that.  Nearly everybody in the room responded with a collective “turmeric”.  Well, somebody said Curcuma longa.

It might have been me.

Not confirming or denying.

So while it is no great secret that turmeric has some great anti-inflammatory potential, the knowledge of how we can reap the benefits of this ocher herb is a little more elusive. While a daily curry meal may be appetizing to some and not others – a golden milk spiced chai has a nearly universal appeal.

This is to say, I have not served this to a single person without them loving it.

Very well, then.

Turmeric Bio-availability

Turmeric (Curcuma longa) has long been recognized in Ayurvedic tradition as an extraordinary healing herb.  So profound is the anti-inflammatory potential of turmeric, even the most conventional of MDs seem to be aware of its benefits.  That said, the active constituent of turmeric called curcumin is notoriously “unavailable”, biologically speaking.  Figuratively speaking, turmeric is just not that into you.  Real-world translation: popping a capsule full of turmeric powder just isn’t going to do the trick.

So what’s an herbalist to do?

Make a Golden Milk Spiced Chai, actually.

In order to make curcumin more biologically available, we need to bring a few things to the picture.  In this case, we will use fat, heat and black pepper.  Heat tends to volatilize stubborn constituents, and fat helps to emulsify the goods, essentially.  Black pepper brings the spicy piperine to the party, potentially increasing the absorption rate by an astounding 2000% in humans (see the case study here).  So, in the process of slowing simmering this golden milk spiced chai in a full-fat milk of your choice, you are greatly increasing the nutrient availability and the healing benefits of turmeric.

FDA Disclosure

I am a trained herbalist with a degree in Complementary and Alternative Medicine, I am not, however, a doctor. Posts in this blog are for informational purposes only and should not be construed as medical advice. Before using any herbs, check for appropriate dosage, drug interactions, and contraindications. Information contained herein is not intended to treat, diagnose, cure or prescribe. Please consult your primary care physician regarding your specific health concerns.

Turmeric Herbal Energetics

Turmeric is a somewhat spicy, pungent warming herb with an astringent, slightly drying quality.  Teamed up with other warming spices like ginger, black pepper, cardamom and cinnamon, this golden milk spiced chai is like a visceral campfire, spreading comforting warmth throughout the body. The type of warmth that loosens stiff, cold joints and aching muscles. Additionally, these spices, along with star anise and sweet fennel seed, offer great stomach soothing benefits, and antispasmodic action on the reproductive organs and lower gastrointestinal tract.  If this wasn’t encouraging enough, turmeric offers astounding liver supporting action, helping to facilitate both phases of the liver’s natural detoxification process.  People with colder constitutions will find this golden milk spiced chai especially nourishing and comforting.

Golden Milk Spiced Chai includes organic black tea for gentle stimulating benefits.  Although I have never found black tea’s natural caffeine to be a problem if I decided to have a cup at night,  you might prefer a decaffeinated variety of black tea or an herbal variation such as honeybush or red rooibos.  I purposely kept the ginger and black pepper content in the below recipe modest to make it crowd-pleasing.  Spices can be adjusted or substituted to your preference. Personally, I like it SPICY, adding roughly double the ginger and black pepper than I indicate in the recipe. I formulate this tea in larger particle form (as opposed to powdered herbs), then strain through a tea strainer before serving.  A sweetener was not included in this recipe so people can adjust the chai to their personal taste.

Looking for more turmeric recipes? Try this golden curry powder blend!

Interested in learning more about 50 common wild medicinal plants?  Check out my new book The Backyard Herbal Apothecary!

Golden Milk Spiced Chai Recipe