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Suja (Butter Tea)

Name: Suja (Butter Tea)
Total time: 15 min
Yield: Serves 2
Cuisine: Bhutan
Ingredients: 2 tbsp Black tea leaves; 400ml Water; 2 tbsp Unsalted butter; 1/2 tsp Salt; 2 tbsp Milk

Drink

⏱ 15 min

👥 Serves 2

Difficulty ⭐⭐

Tea leaves, salt, and butter boiled and whipped together — more soup than tea.

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📖 The Story Behind This Dish

A butter tea widely enjoyed across the Tibetan cultural sphere, known in Bhutan as "suja." The traditional method involves boiling brick tea (compressed tea leaves) and then whipping in salt and butter. Salty with a faint hint of animal-fat richness, it stands in stark contrast to sweet milk tea, and it's the drink invariably offered to welcome guests.

🌆 Where it's eaten: Visit a home and you'll be greeted almost as a matter of course with "Would you like some suja?" It's such a heartfelt gesture of hospitality that even a full stomach won't stop the cup from being refilled the moment it's empty.

🥕 Ingredients (serves 2)

Black tea leaves 2 tbsp
Water 400ml
Unsalted butter 2 tbsp
Salt 1/2 tsp
Milk 2 tbsp

👩‍🍳 Instructions

Combine the water and tea leaves in a pot and simmer about 5 minutes until a strong color develops.
Strain out the leaves, transferring just the tea into a separate pot or container.
Add the butter and salt.
Whisk vigorously with a whisk or blender until pale and frothy.
Add a splash of milk if desired.
Pour into cups while still warm and serve.

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