Tara Born and raised in the South, Sweet Tea was served at every meal. There was this unspoken understanding that everyone wanted tea--so there was never any need to ask your family members or guests what they wanted to drink with their meal. Sweet tea was what I knew to be the beverage of choice, and it has remained so throughout my life.
I learned to make tea at an early age, due to how often this task had to be done. After moving off to college, I continued my weekly tea making. To my surprise, not everyone knew how to make sweet tea! So, just in case your tea making skills are a little rusty, here are a few tips on making perfect, southern sweet tea.
The first, and possibly most important, tip is in choosing the right tea bag. We believe in using Lipton tea bags, they just taste the best! You can purchase one gallon tea bags or family size tea bags--either will work fine!
Now that you have the main ingredient, let's make sure you have the most important: sugar! In our opinion, perfectly southern sweet tea takes two, yes TWO, cups of white granulated sugar.
Now, boil water on the stove in a tea kettle or pot. Measure out two cups of sugar and go ahead and put that into your gallon-sized tea pitcher. Once your water is boiling, turn it off and immediately pour it into your pitcher along with EITHER one gallon tea bag or two family size tea bags. Give your pitcher a stir dissolving the sugar and let it sit for 15 minutes. Remove your tea bags and finish filling up your pitcher with cold water. Give it a good stir again and place your tea in the refrigerator until cold. Serve over ice with the option of fresh cut lemons!
**Helpful Tip: If you are a busy bee like me, I have a convenient alternative to the normal tea making process. You will need a large microwave safe measuring cup, mine holds 8 cups. Fill with water and your two family size tea bags. Pop it in the microwave for 7 minutes--and wallah! You can let the tea sit up to 20 minutes in the microwave before mixing up your tea and sugar. This works well for me when I am doing chores all over the house and not necessarily in the kitchen to watch for the water boiling on the stove. When you are ready, pull out your freshly steeped tea and mix in a gallon-sized pitcher with two cups of sugar. Once the sugar is dissolved, finish filling the pitcher with cold water.
Now, boil water on the stove in a tea kettle or pot. Measure out two cups of sugar and go ahead and put that into your gallon-sized tea pitcher. Once your water is boiling, turn it off and immediately pour it into your pitcher along with EITHER one gallon tea bag or two family size tea bags. Give your pitcher a stir dissolving the sugar and let it sit for 15 minutes. Remove your tea bags and finish filling up your pitcher with cold water. Give it a good stir again and place your tea in the refrigerator until cold. Serve over ice with the option of fresh cut lemons!
**Helpful Tip: If you are a busy bee like me, I have a convenient alternative to the normal tea making process. You will need a large microwave safe measuring cup, mine holds 8 cups. Fill with water and your two family size tea bags. Pop it in the microwave for 7 minutes--and wallah! You can let the tea sit up to 20 minutes in the microwave before mixing up your tea and sugar. This works well for me when I am doing chores all over the house and not necessarily in the kitchen to watch for the water boiling on the stove. When you are ready, pull out your freshly steeped tea and mix in a gallon-sized pitcher with two cups of sugar. Once the sugar is dissolved, finish filling the pitcher with cold water.
Don't you love the mid century mod glasses in the photographs? We have two sets available in the store! Click HERE to take a look!
Shop our favorite Sweet Tea themed products below!
Shop our favorite Sweet Tea themed products below!
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