Noon Chai is a traditional tea

Tea

Tea is an aromatic beverage prepared by adding cured leaves of the Camellia sinensis plant to hot water. The term also refers to the plant itself. After water, tea is the most widely consumed beverage in the world...

 beverage made in Kashmir

Kashmir

Kashmir is the northwestern region of the Indian subcontinent. Until the mid-19th century, the term Kashmir geographically denoted only the valley between the Great Himalayas and the Pir Panjal mountain range...

. It is made from special tea leaves, milk and salt. A pinch of baking soda is added to give it a pink color. It is prepared with pistachios and cardamom

Cardamom

Cardamom refers to several plants of the genera Elettaria and Amomum in the ginger family Zingiberaceae. Both genera are native to India and Bhutan; they are recognised by their small seed pod, triangular in cross-section and spindle-shaped, with a thin papery outer shell and small black seeds...

 and is consumed primarily at special occasions, weddings, and during the winter months when it is sold in many kiosks.

Etymology

Noon is the Kashmiri (Koshur) word for Salt. Kashmiri Muslims

Kashmiri Muslims

Kashmiri Muslims are Kashmiri people who are Muslims, currently living in Kashmir or those originally with Kashmiri kinship and descent living in Pakistan. Kashmiris are ethinically and culturally closer to central asian culture than Indian or Pakistani culture with significant influence of the...

 refer to this particular tea as "noon chai," whereas Kashmiri Pandits use the Central Asian (Afghan) term by calling it as "Sheer Chai." The origins of this type of tea is most likely from Central Asia or Northern China (Xinjiang

Xinjiang

Xinjiang is an autonomous region of the People's Republic of China. It is the largest Chinese administrative division and spans over 1.6 million km2...

).