Chai ya Maziwa (Kenyan Milk Tea)
Chai ya maziwa
About
Chai ya maziwa is the everyday Kenyan tea most households drink at breakfast and throughout the day - black tea brewed together with milk (rather than added afterward), usually with sugar and sometimes spices like ginger or cardamom. It is the standard accompaniment to mandazi, chapati, and bread.
Sourced from the Kenya Food Composition Tables (2018), Kenya's official government food composition database (KFCT code 15081), reviewed by our nutrition team.
About
Chai ya maziwa is the everyday Kenyan tea most households drink at breakfast and throughout the day - black tea brewed together with milk (rather than added afterward), usually with sugar and sometimes spices like ginger or cardamom. It is the standard accompaniment to mandazi, chapati, and bread.
Sourced from the Kenya Food Composition Tables (2018), Kenya's official government food composition database (KFCT code 15081), reviewed by our nutrition team.
Nutrition Facts
*Source: Mixed Dishes, Table 15, code 15081 - Chai ya Maziwa (Mixed tea with milk)
*data cleaned & organised by Fit Savanna
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© Fit Savanna
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Frequently asked questions
How many calories are in a cup of Kenyan chai?
A small 150ml cup of chai ya maziwa contains about 54 kcal, while a standard 200ml mug comes to around 72 kcal. Adding extra sugar or using full-cream milk will push this higher.
Is chai ya maziwa healthy?
In moderation, yes - it contributes some calcium, B12 and protein from the milk. The main things to watch are added sugar and how much milk is used, since both directly affect the calorie count. Drinking several sweetened mugs a day can add up meaningfully over a week.
How much sugar is in Kenyan chai?
The KFCT figures above are for tea brewed with milk before any sugar is stirred in separately at the table, so actual sugar content depends on how much you add. If sugar is boiled into the tea (a common method), it is already reflected in the 5.4g of carbohydrate per 100g shown here.
Does chai ya maziwa have caffeine?
Yes. Because it uses black tea leaves, chai ya maziwa contains caffeine, generally less per cup than coffee but still enough to have a mild stimulant effect, especially across multiple cups in a day.