Southern Sweet Tea Recipe
This Southern Sweet Tea recipe is smooth, sweet, and delicious! It includes tried-and-true tips for how to make sweet tea that everyone loves! I've also included instructions on how to make and serve Sweet Tea Concentrate!
Servings: 1 gallon
Ingredients
- 4-5 family-size tea bags
- 1 1/2 - 2 cups sugar
- 1 pinch baking soda (optional)
- water
Instructions
- Boil. Bring 1 quart of water to boil in a medium saucepan or tea kettle set over medium heat. Remove from the heat and add the tea bags. Allow to steep for about 15 minutes. Do not allow the tea to become cold.
- Sweeten. In a gallon pitcher, add the sugar and pour in about 1/2 of the warm tea. Stir to dissolve the sugar. Pour in the remainder of the brewed tea, being careful not to drop in tea bags.
- Stir. Add baking soda and stir to combine. If serving immediately baking soda may not be needed.
- Serve. Fill the pitcher with cold water and serve over ice. Great with a wedge of lemon, lime, orange or a sprig of mint.
Sweet Tea Concentrate
- Boil. Bring 1 quart of water to a boil in a medium saucepan set over medium heat. Remove the pan from the heat and drop in tea bags.
- Sweeten. Add sugar to a 1-quart, wide-mouthed Mason jar or similar container. Remove the tea bags, carefully pressing the bags against the side of the saucepan before discarding them. Pour a little of the tea over the sugar, stirring until completely dissolved. Pour in the remaining tea.
- Stir. Stir in the baking soda and stir to combine.
- Store. Tighten the lid of the container and store in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.
- Serve. To serve a single serving, add 1/4 cup concentrate to a glass and top with ice and 3/4 cup water. Stir to combine. To serve a gallon, add all of the concentrate to a gallon pitcher and top with water. Stir to combine.
Notes
Tips for the Best Southern Sweet Tea:
- Use tea specially blended for iced tea. Southern sweet tea is an iced tea, meaning that it is tea made to be served over ice. Red Diamond, Luzianne, Lipton, and Tetley are a few preferred brands for iced tea. Look for markings on the package to say it is specially made for iced tea.
- Don't burn your tea. Here's what that means. You should bring your water to a boil, remove it from the heat, and then add your tea bags. This prevents the tea from burning and becoming bitter.
- Steeping matters. Allow your tea to steep for 15 minutes.
- Add a little baking soda. This can be controversial. But hear me out. The baking soda prevents the tea from becoming cloudy and bitter. You can skip the baking soda if you know you will drink a gallon of tea in one day. If you think you'll have some left over to refrigerate, try it with the baking soda. It makes all the difference.
Nutrition
Serving: 8ounces | Calories: 73.8kcal | Carbohydrates: 19.5g | Potassium: 49.7mg
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