Our easy Chai Tea Latte has the best flavor and can be made right in your own kitchen! No more paying those high coffee shop prices. Make this homemade chai latte with simple ingredients!
The Best Chai Tea Latte Recipe
For years we have been going to our local Starbucks coffee house to buy our favorite hot chai tea lattes! We knew we had to replicate the Starbucks chai latte by making a homemade chai tea latte recipe, so that we can easily enjoy this hot tea at home and for a fraction of the cost. The warm chai spices are perfect for warming the soul on a cold day. This homemade version is definitely the best way to wake-up in the morning or enjoy in the afternoon for a little afternoon treat, the next time you need one!
Looking for another hot tea recipe? You have to try a London Fog (made with Earl Grey tea)!
Why You Will Love This Recipe
- Chai: who doesn’t love those warming spices of a chai latte recipe – love that flavor!
- Afternoon Treat: a hot latte is great for an afternoon pick-me-up!
- Dairy-Free: we suggest using an almond milk or even a coconut milk, but if you like using regular milk, that work too – do what is best for you!
What You Will Need
- hot water – this is what your tea bag will steep in.
- chai tea bags – just pick-up your favorite tea bags from your local grocery stores.
- vanilla extract – adds a tiny bit of sweetness and that lovely vanilla flavor.
- maple syrup – a great option as our sweetener of choice. Feel free to omit or use something else if you prefer!
- coconut milk – coconut milk has a higher fat content than most dairy-free milks and, as a result, froths a lot better.
- unsweetened almond milk – used to think out the coconut milk, but a regular dairy milk would work too!
How To Make A Chai Tea Latte
The first steps to making this easy recipe are to steep the chai tea bag in hot water for about 5 minutes. This can be done in a small pan on the stovetop over high heat or warm a mug in the microwave. Remove the tea bag and mix in the vanilla extract and maple syrup to the tea mixture. Add coconut milk and milk of choice to a milk frother. Pour the sweetened tea into a coffee mug and then add the steamed milk on top. Enjoy!
What Is A Chai Tea Latte
A chai tea latte is a cup off chai tea (made with a tea bag or with a homemade chai spice mix) that is usually mixed with a sweetener of your choice and then a frothed milk poured on top.
Recipe FAQ
No, not for this latte recipe! We love keeping it simple with a chai tea bag, but we also love this homemade chai spice mix.
We recommend a combination of coconut milk + unsweetened almond milk because that has the best results when frothing. But, if you frequently use another kind of milk (non-dairy or otherwise), feel free to use that! Other plant-based milk we have found to work are: oat milk, cashew milk or soy milk!
In the recipe card we used maple syrup, but honey or date syrup would be nice too! If you are looking to add a topping or garnish, we recommend a whipped almond milk, whipped cream, cinnamon sticks, star anise, or a sprinkling of ground cinnamon.
Made this delicious recipe and loved it?! We would love it if you would take a minute and leave a star rating and review – it is also helpful if you made any substitutions or changes to the recipe to share that as well. THANK YOU!
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Other Recipes You Might Like
Chai Tea Latte
- Prep Time: 2 minutes
- Cook Time: 5 minutes
- Total Time: 7 minutes
- Yield: 1 latte 1x
- Category: Tea
- Method: Stove Top
- Cuisine: American
Description
Our Chai Tea Latte recipe is perfect for a morning pick me up or a sweet afternoon treat! Tastes just like Starbucks!
Ingredients
- 1 cup hot water
- 1 chai tea bag (feel free to use a homemade spice blend if you prefer)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1–2 tablespoons real maple syrup
- 3/4 cup coconut milk*
- 2–3 tablespoons unsweetened almond milk
Instructions
- Add water to a small saucepan. Bring to a simmer, then remove from heat, and add tea bag. Let steep for 5 minutes.
- Remove the tea bag and add in vanilla extract and maple syrup. Stir to combine.
- Meanwhile, add coconut milk and unsweetened almond milk to a milk frother and froth.
- Pour tea into your favorite mug and pour the frothed milk on top.
- Enjoy!
Notes
- Skip the Saucepan: you can obviously make the cup of tea however you want – I personally prefer heating my water up in a small pot – but if you want to warm up your water in the microwave or using a Keurig or similar device, that works too!
- *Coconut milk: you can really use any non-dairy milk that you have success frothing – this coconut milk works amazing – it is perfectly thick and froths up so nicely! And of course, if you aren’t dairy-free, then feel free to use regular milk (whole milk works best).
- Unsweetened Almond Milk – I add this to water down the coconut milk just a tiny bit – you can also use oat milk here or cashew milk too!
- Maple Syrup: feel free to omit the sweetener if you want. You could also sub in honey or any other sweetener you prefer.
- Frother: we love this one, but if you have a handheld milk frother, that will work too!
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cup
- Calories: 193
- Sugar: 15.6 g
- Sodium: 47.3 mg
- Fat: 12.6 g
- Carbohydrates: 17.3 g
- Protein: 0.3 g
- Cholesterol: 0 mg
Penny Thomas says
I can’t wait to try this recipe! What is it that you have sprinkled on top that makes it look so pretty? Is it a combination of cinnamon and nutmeg?
Erin says
Hi Penny! Yup – you can do cinnamon and/or nutmeg! Enjoy!
Penny Thomas says
Thank you so much. So the Chai Spice Mix you provided a link to is to actually make your own chai tea? You just put it in a fold-over tea bag along with the Tazo tea bag or with any kind of tea bag?
Erin says
Yup so if you decide to make your own chai spice mix then you wouldn’t need to use a Tazo tea bag – the homemade spice mix would be instead of that. But the homemade spice isn’t sweetened so you would add the remaining ingredients and follow the rest of the directions. Hope that helps!
Penny Thomas says
Gotcha! Thanks!
Sabrina says
This sounds so good!! I’ve been wanting to drink iced chai tea lattes often this spring and need to find a healthier alternative!! What brand chat tea do you buy? I love Starbucks’ and usually do a 1/3 ratio so it isn’t quite as sweet, but it also means it isn’t quite as flavorful. I do not like Caribou’s (loyal Starbucks fan here), but I guess that means I’m picky! I’m in MPLS too, so whatever recommendations you have I’d love to try!
Erin says
Hi, Sabrina!! For this recipe I used the Tazo brand and I LOVED it! You can find them at Target! You could easily make this an iced version by simply pouring it over ice and I bet it would be amazing – actually I think I might try that as the weather is really warming up around here!!