Like most of the Indian population, I've grown up drinking and absolutely loving chai with my favorite biscuits. It's that one thing I need to kick start my morning, after a hectic and irritating day, and each time that I catch a cold. For me, chai isn't just a beverage, it's an emotion.
India is the second largest producer of tea. Indian tea, popularly known as chai has a lot of variations: masala chai, kadak chai, Ronga Sah and a lot more. It is found everywhere, from every Indian household where it's prepared with ginger and other Indian spices to small roadside stalls (called tapri), where it is popularly known as cutting chai.
Even though chai is the most accessible beverage in the country, it takes the knowledge of the exact proportions to make a perfect cup of chai. A chai lover like me would want their "perfect cup of chai" to be not too milky, with just the right amount of sugar, tea leaves and ginger, taking on that beautiful brown colour that makes us want to grab a cup almost instantly.
The tea is good enough, but what makes the experience even more spectacular are the biscuits that go with it. I cannot fathom a world where I would have tea without my favourite biscuits. As a fitting tribute to the most heavenly beverage, I've ranked the top nine Indian biscuits that go well with the Indian chai using three broad parameters: taste, price and popularity.
9. Nice Time
Manufactured by Britannia, a renowned brand in the country, Nice Time is a sweet, rectangular shaped, coconut flavored biscuit sprinkled with sugar crystals. It is decently priced at INR 25 ($0.36) for a packet of 150 gm. For someone (including me) who doesn't like sweet biscuits with tea, I would recommend not having Nice time because 100 gm of this product includes 30 gm of sugar.
This isn't suitable for people who are diabetic and therefore, I've ranked Nice time at number 9 because of its limited character. After all, not everyone can enjoy this biscuit.
8. Krack Jack
Parle's Krack Jack has been in the market since 1972 and has a very mild sweet and salty taste. Priced at INR 5 ($0.7) for a 37.8 gm. packet, this is an ideal choice if you're looking for a biscuit that strikes the ideal balance between sweet and salty.
7. Mom's Magic
If you're someone who's living away from home, then this biscuit will surely revive all your tea-time memories you have of time spent with your mother (well that's what the advertisement claims). Sunfeast's Mom's Magic is made of dry fruits, butter, milk and has the perfect crisp that you might want with your morning tea. Available for INR 10 ($0.15) for 58 gm and INR 30 ($0.44) per 150 gm, the market has six flavours: Cashew and Almond; Rich Butter; Fruit and Milk; Chocolate Chip; Nut Biscotti; and Nuts and Raisin.
6. Good Day
Good Day is similar to Mom's Magic, except for the fact that it is available in a wider range of flavours. With a smiley design and tagline “Har cookie mein kayi Smiles", Good Day is available in Cashew, Butter, Nuts Cookie, Choco-Chunkies, Choco-Nuts, Berries-Nuts, and Butter Almonds.
The starting price for these biscuits is INR 10 ($0.15) for a 58 gm packet.
5. Britannia Choice 50-50
Britannia's 50-50 are small bite-sized crackers available in 5 flavours: Sweet and Salty, Maska-Chaska, Time Pass, Top and Mathri-Masti. If you're looking for something different, go for 50-50 Mathri Masti which is a delightful blend of Indian spices (will also remind you of the days when you used to enjoy mathris with achaar). You can buy a 50 gm packet of 50-50 for INR 10 ($0.15).
4. Nutri Choice
Another option from Britannia, Nutri Choice is essentially a range of biscuits made from healthy ingredients. Their range of "power packed" biscuits are enough to help you forget your Monday blues with ingredients like oats, honey, cranberries, banana, and so on. Nutri Choice Oat cookies, Wholesome Digestive, 5 grain Digestive, Cracker, Heavens, Essentials are the types up for grabs.
These biscuits are high in fibre with 0% added sugar and 0% trans fat, making them suitable for diabetic patients. The starting price is INR 20 ($0.29) for a 100 gm packet of Nutri Choice Digestive and can go up to INR 55 ($0.80) for a 150 gm carton of Nutri Choice essentials.
The price isn't overrated considering the health benefits, ingredients and variety it has to offer. The packaging is also attractive and convenient, which is an added bonus for the consumer.
3. Marie Gold
Marie Gold is everything you can expect from a biscuit- it is light and crisp, has low fat and zero cholesterol and is full of vitamins and minerals. The best part about this biscuit is that it is neither sweet nor salty, which makes it ideal for people suffering from diabetes or heart issues.
A 250 gm packet of Marie Gold is available for INR 30 ($0.44).
2. Britannia Rusk
This might not be classified as a biscuit, but we cannot talk of chai without the mention of rusk. Earlier sold as Britannia Premium Bake, it is now available in new packaging for INR 40 ($0.58) for 300 gm. Made of wheat flour and infused with cardamom flavour, you can dip rusk in your tea or enjoy it with butter or cheese for a delectable snack.
1. Parle-G
Every kid in India has grown up having packets after packets of Parle-G. This biscuit has been around since 1939 and true to its style, there hasn't been any deprivation or change in either quality or taste. According to a Nielsen survey of 2011, it is the best-selling brand of biscuits in the world. This is one of the cheapest biscuits in the country, 70 gm packet for INR 5 ($0.7), which makes it even more deserving to top the ranking of biscuits to have with chai.
This was my ranking of Indian biscuits to make your next chai-drinking experience truly heavenly. Happy tea-time everyone!