🇹 Ethiopian · Traditional Drinks
🫖 Ethiopian Spiced Tea
ሻይ — Shai
Ethiopian Spiced Tea — black tea brewed with cardamom, cinnamon, ginger, and cloves, served with sugar and optionally with milk. Ethiopia's spiced tea tradition — less elaborate than the coffee ceremony but equally important in Muslim-majority areas where tea is preferred.
Ethiopian spiced tea (shai) is the daily drink of the country's Muslim communities and increasingly popular across the entire country. Made with black tea and the Ethiopian spice tradition, it produces a warming, aromatic brew that rivals chai in complexity.
Ingredients
Equipment: Small saucepan
- 4 cups water
- 4 tsp loose black tea (or 4 tea bags)
- 3 green cardamom pods — bruised
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 3 cloves
- 1 tsp fresh ginger — sliced
- Sugar to taste
Optional: 1 cup milk for masala chai style
Method
- Bring water to a boil.
- Add cardamom, cinnamon, cloves, and ginger.
- Simmer 3 minutes.
- Add tea. Steep off the heat 3—4 minutes.
- Strain into cups.
- Add milk if using. Sweeten to taste.
Chef Tips
- Bruise the cardamom pods before adding — releases more flavour.
- Do not over-steep the tea — bitter.
- Ethiopian shai is often lighter in colour than Indian chai — adjust steeping time.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Over-steeping — bitter.
The Science
See TZA221 for spiced tea science.
Nutrition (per serving)
Health Benefits
- Black tea antioxidants.
- Ginger anti-nausea.
- Cardamom digestive.
- Cinnamon blood sugar support.
Cultural Note
Ethiopian spiced tea is the Muslim community's daily ritual equivalent to the coffee ceremony — the warm, spiced cup that marks the beginning of the day, the breaking of Ramadan fast, and every social gathering. In Harar and Dire Dawa, spiced tea houses are as central to social life as coffee shops in the Christian highlands.
Storage & Serving
Storage: Drink immediately.
Reheating: Reheat gently.
Serve with: With Dabo Kolo (ETH162), With Sweet Bread (ETH169), At iftar alongside Sambusa (ETH161)