Tea and/or coffee

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It had been a busy day, and I was making myself a cup of coffee. I got a call from work, and while speaking about some economic whatchamacallit, extracted a teabag from the cupboard and dropped it in my cup of coffee.

Disaster? I was aghast. The idea of tea and coffee? *Puke*

I was listening to the Real Food podcast (strongly recommend) earlier this morning, and discovered that in Mumbai a mix of tea and coffee in a 3:1 ratio was sold under the name of ‘market’. I'm not sure if 'market' is still being sold. The name has interesting origins too. It started when someone ordered chai but “coffee maarke” (with a dash of coffee). ‘Maarke’ soon evolved into ‘market’.

The concept of a mix of tea and coffee is not unique to Mumbai. In Hong Kong, milky-tea and coffee, in a 7:3 ratio, is served under the name of Yuanyang. The name, which refers to mandarin ducks, is a symbol of conjugal love in Chinese culture. In China, at least, mixing tea and coffee isn’t as ghastly as I imagine it to be. I think the same drink is called ‘Kopi Cham’ in Malaysia.

With some more internet searching, I’ve also discovered the concept of a dirty chai which is a cup of masala chai with a single shot of espresso. While the yuanyang is served cold and the ‘market’ is served hot, a dirty chai can be served either hot or cold.

So, this morning’s incident may not be universally perceived as a small-scale disaster after all.


It tasted vile though. 


Photo courtesy One Shot via Pexel.


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