Photos by the writer
Kashmir is not only known for its unrivalled natural beauty — snow-covered mountain peaks, blue rivers and rich culture — but also for its mouthwatering traditional food like rogan josh, dum olav, matschgand, goshtaba, modur pulav, aab gosht and many more. To wash all the lovely food down, the Kashmiris have a special pink-coloured tea called noon chai which has a creamy, buttery and slightly thick consistency but is thin enough to sip gently.
The word noon means salt in Kashmiri and several other Indo-Aryan languages such as Bengali, Rajasthani and Nepali. That’s why one can easily guess that traditional Kashmiri noon chai will be salty. Yes, if tea can be sugarless then why not salty? However, sugar can be added if one prefers their chai sweet.
The popularity of noon chai across the South Asia region can be guaged by the many names it is known by. Noon chai is also served in many parts of Pakistan as Kashmiri chai, often with sugar and nuts at special occasions, weddings, and during the winter months. Kashmiri people in Pakistan also call it sabz chai. It is also served in Afghanistan, where it is known as shor chai. Pink tea and sheer chai are also Kashmiri chais by another name.
Making a cup of Kashmiri chai takes time and effort but the taste is worth the labour of love
The origins of Kashmiri tea are unknown though it most likely emerged in the area — the green tea leaves used to make it are found in abundance in Himalayan regions such as China, Pakistan, Nepal, India and Bhutan.
There is no specific season or time for enjoying a cup of noon tea, though it is associated with cold weather because of its warming ingredients. It is an integral part of Kashmiri tradition and is consumed at least two to three times daily with accompaniments such as kulchas, sheermaal, Kashmiri breads, kandir tchot and baqarkhanis.