Southern Sweet Tea
The house wine of the South: strong black tea sweetened while hot, chilled and poured over lots of ice with a slice of lemon.
Ingredients
- 500 ml boiling water
- 8 black tea bags
- 1 pinch Bicarbonate of soda (optional)
- 150 g sugar, or to taste
- 1.5 l cold water
- 1 Lemon, sliced
- 4 sprigs Mint (optional)
- plenty of ice
Method
- Pour the boiling water over the tea bags and baking soda in a large heatproof jug. Leave to steep for 5 min, then lift out the bags without squeezing them.
- Stir in the sugar while the tea is hot until it dissolves completely.
- Add the cold water, stir, and leave to cool, then chill for at least 2 hours.
- Fill tall glasses with ice and pour over the tea. Add a lemon slice and a sprig of mint to each.
Tips
- The pinch of baking soda is an old Southern trick that smooths out bitterness and keeps the tea from turning cloudy.
- Squeezing the bags or steeping much longer makes the tea bitter.
Sources
Written in our own words after cross-checking these recipes:
Open Southern Sweet Tea in Nouns Cooking