How do you make Iced Tea?

[Vermilion]

Idiot's guide please - never made it, never drunk it - haven't a clue about it. What's the best way to go about it?
x
V

 

[MarshAlien]

Idiot's guide please - never made it, never drunk it - haven't a clue about it. What's the best way to go about it?
x
V

Basically, you just make tea, dilute it a bit with more water, and add ice; serve with lemon and sugar.

Have you been running yet, or are you just going to post all day long?

 

[Handprints]

My favourite subject, at last!

Make a pot of really strong tea and let it cool (the web will give you endless advice on the best way to do this, if you don't already drink tea.) In my view, it's best to use a tea with some bergamot in it, such as Earl Grey, or one that's relatively uncomplicated-tasting, such as Orange Pekoe.

As in the hot stuff, quality makes a huge difference: you're unlikely to enjoy cheap supermarket tea any more cold than hot.

Once the tea is cold, you can sweeten it a bit if you don't like straight tea, or add some lemon for more zing. Make the additions when the tea is cool, not hot: things taste sweeter as they get colder and what's just right hot will be saccharine cold.

Finally, add as much ice as the pitcher will hold, swirl and enjoy.

H

 

[Vermilion]

Basically, you just make tea, dilute it a bit with more water, and add ice; serve with lemon and sugar.

Have you been running yet, or are you just going to post all day long?

My stomach started hurting, I'm waiting for it to stop before I try going running. I may be determined, but I'm sensible enough to know when to cut my losses.
x
V

 

[carsonshepherd]

If you're going to sweeten the tea (and I would beg you not to) it's best to do it while it's still hot. Sugar or honey won't dissolve in cold tea. Pour the hot tea over a pitcher of ice, making sure it's fresh ice because old ice gives it a blah taste, and let it melt, diluting and cooling the tea at the same time. Put it in the fridge right away. If you let it sit on the counter to cool, it will develop a scum. Then, when it's a nice deep amber that lets light through, pour it over ice.

 

[Misty_Morning]

Holy shit!!!

Apparently some of the folks posting in this thread are NOT from the Southeastern US. The home of true Ice Tea.


Folks up north and out west have NO fucking clue how to make Ice Tea. Sorry, but it's true.



OK.....Misty's Ice Tea:

I tend to use Luzianne ot Lipton tea. Theses teas are made of orange and black pekoe which are preferred for making iced tea. I use the family sized bags which is about 7 grams of tea per bag.


I usually make a gallon of tea at a time. So 4 bags, sometimes 5.


Boil about a 1.5 quarts of COLD water (about 1.5 liters) in a sauce pan. Bring to a rolling boil.

Remove from heat. Add the tea bags and allow to steep (brew) about 5 to ten minutes.

In a gallon container (about 4 liters) add anywhere from 1 to 1and a third cups of granulated sugar (about 230 to 300 grams). I also put a few ice cubes in the container as not to crack the container if its glass when you pour the hot tea in, which has happened a few times. Remove the tea bags first.


Stir this mixture until the sugar is dissolved. Add more cold water to bring to a gallon and stir.


Serve in a tall glass over ice. Slice of lemon is optional served in the glass. (I don't like lemon in my Ice Tea)

Taa-Daa! Ice Tea.


If your ice tea gets cloudy don't freak out, it's just the tannins from the tea precipitating out. It DOES NOT affect the taste of the tea. if you want, just add a little boiling water and stir...the cloudiness goes away.


If you're trying to avoid sugar, make the tea the same way without the sugar...you can use something like splenda or Sweet and Low when you pour a glass and that stuff readily dissolves in ice Tea.


Some folks drink it unsweetened too.....go figure.

 

[cloudy]

Holy shit!!!

Apparently some of the folks posting in this thread are NOT from the Southeastern US. The home of true Ice Tea.


Folks up north and out west have NO fucking clue how to make Ice Tea. Sorry, but it's true.



OK.....Misty's Ice Tea:

I tend to use Luzianne ot Lipton tea. Theses teas are made of orange and black pekoe which are preferred for making iced tea. I use the family sized bags which is about 7 grams of tea per bag.


I usually make a gallon of tea at a time. So 4 bags, sometimes 5.


Boil about a 1.5 quarts of COLD water (about 1.5 liters) in a sauce pan. Bring to a rolling boil.

Remove from heat. Add the tea bags and allow to steep (brew) about 5 to ten minutes.

In a gallon container (about 4 liters) add anywhere from 1 to 1and a third cups of granulated sugar (about 230 to 300 grams). I also put a few ice cubes in the container as not to crack the container if its glass when you pour the hot tea in, which has happened a few times. Remove the tea bags first.


Stir this mixture until the sugar is dissolved. Add more cold water to bring to a gallon and stir.


Serve in a tall glass over ice. Slice of lemon is optional served in the glass. (I don't like lemon in my Ice Tea)

Taa-Daa! Ice Tea.


If your ice tea gets cloudy don't freak out, it's just the tannins from the tea precipitating out. It DOES NOT affect the taste of the tea. if you want, just add a little boiling water and stir...the cloudiness goes away.


If you're trying to avoid sugar, make the tea the same way without the sugar...you can use something like splenda or Sweet and Low when you pour a glass and that stuff readily dissolves in ice Tea.


Some folks drink it unsweetened too.....go figure.

What Misty said. True southern sweet tea.

 

[Chantilyvamp]

What Misty said. True southern sweet tea.

What they said, but i cant have it sweet anymore but yummmmmmmmmmmm. Lots of ice

 

[Misty_Morning]

Ya know what I like?


When the ice tea is still just a leeettle bit warm when you pour it in a glass over the ice and drink it.

Ya know, the way the tea seems to dance on your taste buds as the warm and cold mixes.

 

[buxxxom]

What Misty said. True southern sweet tea.

Seconded. Only a southerner knows how to make sweet tea. It flows through our veins.

 

[MarshAlien]

You should go ahead and try it anyway, though, mils. Maybe you'll get lucky, and it'll come out close enough to be drinkable. As a northerner, I have made what I consider to be acceptable iced tea, although perhaps not "ice tea" or "sweet tea." Although as a northerner, of course, I have suspect taste buds.

 

[galaxygoddess]

Holy shit!!!

Apparently some of the folks posting in this thread are NOT from the Southeastern US. The home of true Ice Tea.


Folks up north and out west have NO fucking clue how to make Ice Tea. Sorry, but it's true.



OK.....Misty's Ice Tea:

I tend to use Luzianne ot Lipton tea. Theses teas are made of orange and black pekoe which are preferred for making iced tea. I use the family sized bags which is about 7 grams of tea per bag.


I usually make a gallon of tea at a time. So 4 bags, sometimes 5.


Boil about a 1.5 quarts of COLD water (about 1.5 liters) in a sauce pan. Bring to a rolling boil.

Remove from heat. Add the tea bags and allow to steep (brew) about 5 to ten minutes.

In a gallon container (about 4 liters) add anywhere from 1 to 1and a third cups of granulated sugar (about 230 to 300 grams). I also put a few ice cubes in the container as not to crack the container if its glass when you pour the hot tea in, which has happened a few times. Remove the tea bags first.


Stir this mixture until the sugar is dissolved. Add more cold water to bring to a gallon and stir.


Serve in a tall glass over ice. Slice of lemon is optional served in the glass. (I don't like lemon in my Ice Tea)

Taa-Daa! Ice Tea.


If your ice tea gets cloudy don't freak out, it's just the tannins from the tea precipitating out. It DOES NOT affect the taste of the tea. if you want, just add a little boiling water and stir...the cloudiness goes away.


If you're trying to avoid sugar, make the tea the same way without the sugar...you can use something like splenda or Sweet and Low when you pour a glass and that stuff readily dissolves in ice Tea.


Some folks drink it unsweetened too.....go figure.

QFT!!!!


Some of you people make me nauseous. Unsweetened tea? Are you mad??

Ugh! You guys have been SERIOUSLY missing out!

We southerns know how to enjoy GOOD tea tyvm!

 

[cloudy]

Sweet tea and banana pudding are definitely best made by southerners.

 

[Guest]

When living in the American Southwest, we'd make Sun Tea. Take a gallon sized glass jug, fill with water, throw in like five tea bags, set in sun for the entire day.

Made a good tea as I recall.

 

[galaxygoddess]

Sweet tea and banana pudding are definitely best made by southerners.

Oh I know it. Anything else is a half-assed attempt, and anything close to it was southern influenced

 

[SensualCealy]

Can you guys tell me why, when I travel south they always ask, sweet or unsweetened tea if its so frigging bad?

I prefer the unsweetened tea, probably since I drink regular tea straight up.

I happen to make SUN TEA.

I have a huge relish jar from a restaurant that I toss in 5 tea bags, I happen to like Cranberry and Lemon mixed together. I then pour in NOT QUITE boiling hot water (if you have any English blood in you, you know you never BOIL your water for tea) fill it to the top, put on the lid and set it in the sun for 24 hours.

For those who like sweetened tea, listen to Carson, add the sugar or honey while the water is warm or it will never ever disolve properly.

Save adding the sugar and have something sweet to eat while drinking it to cut the sweetness of the treat.

C

 

[SensualCealy]

Oh I know it. Anything else is a half-assed attempt, and anything close to it was southern influenced

Dont forget that quite a few southerners originated in Canada!! Did you forget that many thousands of Quebequois, Newfoundlanders, and NewBrunswick's were banished and took up residence in Louisianna!! Hmmmm, guess we were taught too much American History in school!
LMAO
C

 

[Misty_Morning]

Remember Mils, when we are talking about using 4 or 5 tea bags we mean the BIG tea bags. If you don't have those you need to use alot more.

A family sized tea bag has about 7 grams of tea in it. And we use about 4 or 5 bags per gallon.


So figure out how much tea is in your tea bags and use the appropriate number.


Folks in the south like their iced tea very strong and very sweet. Just like the people in the south.

 

[cloudy]

Dont forget that quite a few southerners originated in Canada!! Did you forget that many thousands of Quebequois, Newfoundlanders, and NewBrunswick's were banished and took up residence in Louisianna!! Hmmmm, guess we were taught too much American History in school!
LMAO
C

True enough, but those are Cajuns, and a people unto themselves.

 

[SensualCealy]

True enough, but those are Cajuns, and a people unto themselves.

They are still southerners and Im sure they know how to make Iced Tea, its not really rocket science now is it!?

Is this how the war between the North and South started? lol

All in good fun!
C

 

[buxxxom]

In my family, tea was to be made daily. My grandmother would make just enough for one day, then start over the next day. Hers had so much sugar in it, that if kept overnight in the fridge, it would almost be syrup.

 

[Lisa Denton]

Like Misty said but make sure to get the lipton ICE TEA family size bags. It will say ICE TEA really big on the freakin box. This is the best for ice tea and has nothing to do with that wierd hot tea crap.

Now, you don't really have to measure nothing, just boil some water and throw in 4 bags, let them boil a minute, then turn off heat and leave it sitting, steeping, while you fill a gallon jug. Just leave enough room for however much water you boiled.

Now, don't take out the tea bags of the boiled, steeped, sitting, water. When you pour it in your one gallon jug use a spoon to stop the bags from going in, then mash the bags on the side of the pan with your spoon while holding it over your jug to get out all the tea juice (waste not, want not) and then let the tea bags cool before throwing away. Hot tea bags will melt your trash bag and you will leave a trail of crap when you take out the trash.

DON"T ADD NO SUGAR!!! It will make the tea go cloudy and shit (no offense meant to Cloudy and I got a lil lost thinkin about kissin her to show I didn't mean nothing by it) wherethefuck was I? Oh yea. Put the gallon jug in your frigearator and sweeten it each time you get a glass. You can squeeze some lemon or lime, or both, in each glass if you want to pucker up ...... and kiss me for THE BEST SOUTHERN ICE TEA ever made in texas.

I drink ice tea constantly, except for when drinkin coffee in the morning, and know about ice tea. Mine is a lil stong, because I drink it all the time and the ice is melting, diluting it. Thats how I like it, you might want to just use 3 bags.

ENJOY!!!

 

[Chantilyvamp]

The thing is Mils wont have access to the big ice tea bags so she'll have to wing it with the weight of the bags like what was said earlier. And some of the teas may not ever come up to quite what we had in the states, north or south but I bet with enough playing around you can come close or in my case...beg another southern lady to send ya tea bags!

Sweetened or unsweetened for whatever reason is good either way. Just shows not everyone likes the same things.

God help the hubby if his work does bring us back to the states this year. There wont be many clothes in the suitcase

 

[galaxygoddess]

Ok, I've never had cloudy tea, and I've always put the sugar in while I'm making it.



Here's exactly what i do.

I get a good sized pan put some water in it and then set it to boil. While that's doing it's thing I go ahead and wash out my tea jug. ALWAYS wash out the tea jug with BOILING hot water. My whole pitcher gets really hot and I make sure I clean out any left over tea or dust or anything similar. Dry well and put my sugar in it.

If I am making tea for my family, I use 4 quart size bags and 1 cup of sugar. My husband however likes me to use 5 quart size bags and 2 cups of sugar (I call it overkill but, hell it likes his eggs burnt so whatever)

Then after my water is a rolling boil, I turn off the stove and drop in the tea bags. I let it set for 5-10 minutes. Then I pull out the tea bags and squeeze them out. Sometimes I use tongs but if it's cooled enough I use my hands so I know I get a good squeeze (if you let it cool too much, squeeze the bag and reheat the water on the stove)

Then I pour my scalding hot water in my sugar. I mix it up right there. I add no extra water yet. I mix it fairly well and then I add a 1/4 of the pitcher of scalding hot water and mix it (a wooden spoon works best imo) until all of the sugar is dissolved. (if your water gets cool, and it shouldn't, you can micro it for 3 minutes and it will boil and dissolve your sugar).

Then I add the rest of the pitcher in cold water and put int he fridge until my tea is nice and cold. Often I'll wind up serving it kinda hot if someone wants a glass immediately, and a couple of ice cubes are all you need.



Even if your tea gets "cloudy" why does that even matter?

 

[christabelll]

All RIght All Right -
Sweet tea is the bomb - but too sweet and it ruins the tea!
I prefer to use honey - not sugar
and perish the thought of me using splenda (it turns into a tri-chloride in the blood stream), or sweet n low or equal (slow poisons that may please the sugar monster but raise your insulin level anyway)
if you dont want to use FAKE sweeteners use Stevia extract or powder - but be careful its sweeter than you think!

I make it by bringing just off boil about 1/2 gallon of water

I have prepped the tea bags 4 - 6 bags as I like STRONG tea (usually lemon lift, or yogi chai, or Lady Grey) (LIPTON is the bitterest worst tea!!!) by pulling off the tags and tying them together.
I pour the water over the tea in the container I will server from...
I let it steep no less than 20 minutes.
I add additional water to bring to top of container then add my honey and yeah in a pinch sugar about 2 over overflowing tables spoons per pint.... stir to dissolve...
THen refigerate

I get a tall glass - fill it with ice - the pour it over and Voila - Great tea!

However if its Chai Tea? I pour cream in too... Just Yum...