Kat's Kitchen

Words cannot express what I wouldn’t give to be able to reach through the phone or computer screen to give you a sip of this Cinnamon Pecan Dirty Chai. It is SO GOOD! And while we don’t currently have the technology to share drinks straight through screens, I hope this recipe post is enough.

If you love chai and fall flavors, you are going to absolutely love this recipe. Its sweet, spicy, cinnamony, and packs a pleasant punch of caffeine! I’ll quit stalling and get on with the recipe because I know you’re gonna fall in love with it too! First things first, what the heck is a dirty chai?

What The Heck is a Dirty Chai?

A dirty chai refers to a chai latte that has espresso in it, making it “dirty.” A chai latte is typically made up of a chai concentrate or a chai powder mix, and then combined with milk to make a chai latte.

Adding 1-2 shots of espresso give the drink a higher caffeine amount while adding a delicious coffee flavored complexity to the drink. The espresso can also offset the milkiness and the sweetness of the drink since it adds a bolder coffee flavor.

You can absolutely skip the espresso in this recipe, but if you are open to giving it a try, I very much recommend it!

Ingredients Needed To Make This Cinnamon Pecan Dirty Chai

CHAI TEA OR CHAI CONCENTRATE: Since this is a chai latte, we need the chai component. There are lots of different teas/products/concentrates on the market that you can use to make this drink yourself at home. Personally, I like using a chai concentrate since they require no additional steps or assembly, you just add the concentrate into a cup, straight from the container. You can make your own chai spice mix or steep chai tea bags in water. I will share various chai options later in the recipe!

MILK: This recipe uses 2% milk, but you can absolutely use whatever milk you like best! Oat milk, whole milk, soy milk, and almond milk would all be fabulous in this recipe.

PECAN SYRUP: I have been loving all things pecan lately, and my Homemade Pecan Syrup is absolutely heavenly in this recipe! The nutty pecan flavors pairs so nicely with the spiciness of the cinnamon and the chai. You could also use the Torani Butter Pecan Syrup if you don’t want to make your own, or other syrup options you could use include the Torani Brown Sugar Cinnamon Syrup, Torani Vanilla Syrup, or maple syrup!

ESPRESSO: Like I mentioned above, this is a Dirty Chai recipe, meaning the chai latte has a shot (or two) of espresso added to it! See my 5 Ways To Make Espresso at Home blog post for five different ways you can make espresso at home, with or without a machine!

GROUND CINNAMON: This is a Cinnamon Pecan Dirty Chai, so you will need ground cinnamon to add on top of the drink. If you’re not a cinnamon fan, skip it entirely, or opt for nutmeg, ground ginger, or ground cloves instead.

ICE: If you want to make an iced version of this drink, you will need ice. Note, ice is not needed for a hot Cinnamon Pecan Dirty Chai.

Now let’s discuss all the different methods for making a chai latte.

Various Chai Latte Methods

Super Chai Concentrate + Milk

A SUPER chai concentrate is a very highly concentrated mixture where you need a lot less of the concentrate, and a lot more milk. For this method, I would add 3-4 pumps chai concentrate for every 8 ounces of milk. Use cold milk and ice for an iced version, and steamed milk (and no ice) for a hot chai latte.

Regular Chai Concentrate + Milk

A regular chai concentrate is what you would typically find in the tea section at any grocery store. Popular brands include Tazo, Oregon Chai, and Sherpa Chai. These concentrates are usually a 1:1 or a 1:2 ratio of concentrate to milk. Add equal parts (or 1:2 parts depending on the brand) chai concentrate and milk in a cup. Use cold milk and ice for an iced version, and steamed milk (and no ice) for a hot chai latte.

Chai Tea Bags + Milk

Chai is a type of tea with flavor notes of ginger, cardamom, cloves, and more. You can find chai tea bags at any grocery store, and then you can make your own concentrate or tea to use in your chai lattes.

Steep 2 chai tea bags in 4 ounces of hot water to create your own unsweetened chai concentrate at home. Steep for 30 minutes, and then squeeze out any extra liquid from the tea bags, and discard them. Sweeten the chai concentrate with my Homemade Pecan Syrup (or your choice of sweetener: sugar, maple syrup, honey, stevia, vanilla syrup, brown sugar, etc), and then add 4 ounces of milk.

Note, I recommend 2 tea bags for every 4 ounces of water. For a larger chai latte, do 4 tea bags with 8 ounces of hot water, or 6 tea bags with 12 ounces of hot water, and so on!

I like to do a 1:1 ratio of chai concentrate to milk with this method, but feel free to modify based on your preference.

Chai Tea Latte Mix + Hot Water

Chai Tea Latte Mixes are increasing in popularity and you can find a ton of different options online or in stores.

Simply pour the contents of the chai tea latte mix into a cup, and pour 8 ounces of hot water over the top (this amount could differ depending on the brand/product). Stir to fully saturate all the powder, and let the mixture steep for 5 minutes. After 5 minutes, stir again, and then sift/strain the mixture to separate the powdered mix from the latte, and enjoy!

This option is great if you don’t have any milk on hand, or if you’re looking for a non concentrate option. I like the taste of the Kola Goodies Masala Chai Latte Mix, but there are many others on the market!

Homemade Chai Mix

You can absolutely make your own chai mix from scratch. This is not my area of expertise, but it is an option for those who are interested. You can find an abundance of recipes online.

Once you have decided on your preferred chai latte method we can begin creating our Cinnamon Pecan Dirty Chai recipe at home! For a hot version, you will need steamed milk. Here are a few different ways to get steamed milk at home.

How To Make Espresso At Home

There are five ways to make espresso at home:

• Instant Espresso Powder
• Nespresso Machine
• Moka Pot
• Aeropress
• Espresso Machine

See my 5 Ways To Make Espresso At Home blog post for step by step instructions of each espresso making method!

Once you establish which method you want to use for making espresso, then we can decide on exactly which coffee products to buy!

What’s The Best Coffee to Use For Espresso?

If you are using an espresso machine, a Moka Pot, or an Aeropress to make espresso, these are my recommended coffees:

• Laka Java Wahine Blonde Roast Espresso (Use code: katerinafaith for 10% off)
• Press Coffee Twitch Espresso Beans
• Blue Bottle Coffee Espresso Beans

If you are using a Nespresso machine, these are my recommended espresso pods:

• Orafio (single shot pods)
• Peru Organic (single shot pods)
• Double Espresso Dolce (double shot pods)
• Double Espresso Chairo (double shot pods)

If you are using instant espresso, these are my recommended espresso powders:

• Nescafe Gold Instant Espresso (light/blonde roast)
• Cafe Bustelo Instant Espresso (dark roast)

Note for instant espresso, I like to follow the following ratios:

• Single shot: 1/4 tablespoon instant espresso + 1.25 ounces warm water
• Double shot: 1/2 tablespoon instant espresso + 2.5 ounces warm water
• Triple shot: 3/4 tablespoon instant espresso + 3.75 ounces warm water
• Quad shot: 1 tablespoon instant espresso + 5 ounces warm water

What is a “Shot” of Espresso?

A common espresso term you’ll see a lot is a “shot” of espresso. When you brew espresso using an espresso machine, the liquid that comes out of the machine is considered a shot, since the machine pushes out the liquid at high pressure.

• A single shot or one shot of espresso is roughly 1.25 ounces of liquid.
• A double shot is roughly 2.5 ounces of liquid.
• A triple shot is roughly 3.75 ounces of liquid.
• A quad shot is roughly 5 ounces of liquid.

Feel free to use as many shots of espresso as you’d like to make your dirty chai latte!

How To Steam Milk For a Hot Chai Latte

All hot lattes require steamed milk as one of the ingredients. To steam milk at home, you have a few options:

1. Steam Wand: If you have an espresso machine with a steam wand attached to it, watch this Milk Steaming Video Tutorial for how to steam milk! You simply add milk to a milk frothing pitcher, insert the tip of the steam wand into the milk, and create air bubbles, heat and texture to create perfect, velvety steamed milk at home!
2. Electric Milk Frother: Add your milk to an electric milk frother, and select the hot setting. The milk frother will heat the milk as well as create a thick and foamy texture. The texture will be a little different than a typical steam wand, but it’s very similar and pleasant, and a great option if you don’t have an espresso machine with a steam wand.
3. Handheld Milk Frother: Add cold milk to a large coffee mug and place the mug in the microwave for 60 seconds. Alternatively, you can heat up milk in a pot on the stove until warm, just make sure to constantly stir it so it doesn’t burn. Once your milk is warm, insert a handheld milk frother into the warm milk. Froth the mixture until the milk doubles in size and becomes bubbly and frothy, and you have steamed milk for your hot latte!

Note, for an iced chai latte, you do not need to warm or steam the milk. Simply skip this step, and use cold milk straight from the fridge.

We have our pecan syrup, our chai, our espresso, and our steamed milk (for a hot chai latte), now let’s put it all together!

How To Make a Hot Cinnamon Pecan Dirty Chai

1. Add the Homemade Pecan Syrup to a mug, along with the chai concentrate.
2. Steam your milk, and then add the steamed milk to the pecan + chai mixture.
3. Brew your espresso shot (or shots), and pour over the top of the hot chai latte.
4. Top with a sprinkle of cinnamon and enjoy!

How To Make an Iced Cinnamon Pecan Dirty Chai

1. Add the Homemade Pecan Syrup to a cup, along with the chai concentrate, milk, and ice.
2. Brew your espresso shot (or shots), and pour over the top of the iced chai latte.
3. Top with a sprinkle of cinnamon and enjoy!

How Can I Make This Lower Sugar?

For a lower sugar or sugar free chai latte at home:

• Use a low sugar or zero sugar chai concentrate option.
• Use a sugar substitute like stevia in the Homemade Pecan Syrup recipe
• Steep chai tea bags in hot water and then add your choice of low calorie/low sugar sweetener, or skip the sweetener altogether.
• Use unsweetened almond milk.
• Use a lower sugar chai latte mix like this one by Kola Goodies.

Shop My Favorite Cups and Tools

• My favorite cups for coffee and tea
• My kitchen essentials
• Pumpkin JavaSok Sleeves

Fall JavaSoks

More Chai Recipes To Try!

• Starbucks Pumpkin Cream Chai
• Protein Banana Chai Muffins
• Iced Apple Crisp Nondairy Cream Chai
• Blended Chai Kefir Latte
• Starbucks Chai Latte
  

More Pecan Syrup Recipes To Try!

• Starbucks Salted Pecan Cream Cold Foam
• Homemade Pecan Syrup
• Starbucks Pecan Crunch Oatmilk Latte

And there you have it – the Cinnamon Pecan Dirty Chai that I wish I could hand you through the screen! Whether you choose to make it hot or iced, this recipe will deliver all the cozy, nutty, and spicy fall vibes you’re craving. The combination of chai, pecan syrup, and espresso creates a flavor experience that’s cozy, comforting, and perfectly balanced.

I hope this recipe brings as much warmth to your day as it does to mine. If you try it, let me know how it turns out! Cheers to enjoying every sip of this delicious fall treat from the comfort of your own home.