Inner Mongolian Milk Tea (Nai Cha) Tradition
Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, China
Suutei tsai — salted milk tea — is the daily staple beverage of Inner Mongolia, made by simmering compressed green or black tea in water, straining, then simmering again with fresh milk and salt. Consumed three or more times daily, often with millet, dried meat, and deep-fried dough sticks (boortsog). The saltiness balances the fat-rich pastoral diet.