From Ritual to Shortcut: Chaach Isn’t What It Used to Be
Recently, I was at a friend’s house for lunch and the spread was near perfect. The table was laid out with soft chapatis, a simple pyaaz ki sabzi, tadka dahi, fried khichiya, and salad. Everything was light, and familiar. But as we sat down to eat, I realised that given the time and place, a hot May day in Rajasthan, there was one more thing that would really take it all up a notch, a tall cold glass of chaach… When I asked, my friend said we don't have any at the moment, but if I could wait ten minutes, she could just use a whisk to thin down some dahi. I was a little confused because I had no idea that that’s what people often drink in the name of chaach.
For me, buttermilk, as it is rightly called in Indian English, was always the product of the traditional process of bilona, the method of churning curd until the butter rises to the top. What’s left behind, the “milk,” is the chaach. The name Chaas or Chaach itself comes from the Sanskrit word Chacchika (छच्छिका), meaning churned yogurt from which butter has been removed. It’s a process that takes time, effort, and a strong set of hands to work the wooden churn. Since India is a land of jugaad inventions, now many households use motorised machines that mimic the same technique of bilona. The essence remains the same, it's not instant, and it's not improvised. Because, when we resort to simply thinning and whisking dahi, it may be convenient and still nutritious, but it’s also heavier, unskimmed, and lacks any real depth of flavour. It’s also made with a different probiotic culture, resulting in a drink that may look similar, but tastes, and feels, entirely different.
Not All Chaach is the Same
Although it might sound like an exaggeration, chaach to me is truly such a feeling in itself, a proper and full process. And as my mother likes to say, once summers begin, nothing feels quite as right in the heat as some moli (mild) chaa.
A bowl full of chaach with leftover roti is often a complete meal in itself. It cools the body, aids digestion, and offers enough nourishment without weighing you down. In many households, especially in the dry, scorching summers of western India, chaach is a medicine, a natural probiotic, a digestive, and even a simple home remedy for heatstroke.
Across different parts of the country, buttermilk takes on its own regional character. In Rajasthan, for example, fresh bilone ki chaach is enjoyed just as it is. Mild, creamy, and so full of flavour, sometimes one doesn’t even need to add salt to it. But once in a while, we like to go a step further and prepare dhungar – a beautiful technique where the chaach is infused with smoke. A hot piece of coal from the chulha is placed on the ground or a plate, and a spoonful of ghee, often made at home, is added to release fragrant smoke. A glass is then quickly put on the coal, and the rich earthy smoke is trapped in it. The glass is lifted up and chaach is poured in, infusing all that rich, smoky aroma within the liquid. It’s quite a ritual, but one that adds a whole new dimension to the drink. Rajasthani khatiyo or khato is another regional favourite with its own unique twist on buttermilk. It is made like kadhi but often much more tangy and masaledar.
Masala chaach is another popular variation, some version of it being prepared across India. In Maharashtra, a drink called taak is made using fresh buttermilk. It starts with curd and water, usually two cups of water for every cup of curd, whisked together until light and frothy. Then, grated ginger, chopped green chillies, roasted cumin powder, and salt are added for flavour. Finally, fresh coriander leaves are mixed in. A quick tempering of cumin seeds and curry leaves in hot oil is poured over the chilled taak to finish. In southern Indian states, a similar masala chaach by the name neer mor is quite popular.
A Probiotic Powerhouse
Jau ki rabdi, is a wholesome, probiotic-rich preparation made using jau ka daliya (cracked barley). The process is simple: you start by cooking the barley in chaach-water with a little salt on a low flame until it fully cooks and thickens. Once cooled completely, fresh chaach is mixed in until the consistency is smooth and lump-free. Then come the flavours, roasted jeera, chopped mint, black salt, crushed black pepper, green chillies, coriander leaves, and a few ice cubes. Barley, naturally low in gluten and high in fibre, is known for its cooling properties. So, the result is a refreshing, lightly spiced, and incredibly satisfying dish that’s as good for the gut as it is for the soul.
In the southern parts of India, especially Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh, buttermilk also becomes a soaking agent for leftover rice. Known as pazhaya saadham or saddha bhat, this dish is a morning ritual and a form of zero-waste living. Leftover rice is soaked overnight in water or chaach, then eaten cold the next morning, often with raw onion, green chillies, or a bit of pickle on the side.
But as with many traditional practices, the place of chaach in everyday life is slowly changing. With the industrial rise of packet curd, probiotic drinks, and processed dairy, convenience has taken precedence over slow, thoughtful preparation. Packet dahi is used to mimic chaach, and factory-made "probiotic" drinks are sold as gut health solutions. But these often come loaded with added sugars, stabilisers, and artificial cultures, far from the natural, living probiotic that say a bilona chaach would provide.
So, how can you make better choices? For the sake of your own health and wellbeing, the next time you reach for something cold in the summer, try asking an elder in your house how they made chaach. Better yet, ask them to show you. You might find you’re not just learning to make a drink, you’re learning to remember.
