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southern sweet tea

JaneEllen avatar
Recipe by
Jane Smith
@JaneEllen
Corona, CA

In my 54 years in SC, GA and VA, I've never had tea that tasted like syrup the way so many recipes call for today. Hardees, Carl's Jr. and Chick Fil A have taught people that it's the way tea should taste, but people don't realize that they make it so strong because the ice melts and dilutes it. The colder the beverage, the sweeter it must be because the cold makes it taste less sweet. Lipton tea is my favorite brand. Luzianne is good. Sometimes you can find gallon-sized tea bags. Use three family-sized bags. With the individual size, you can experiment by adding more or less until it tastes

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prep time 10 Min
method Stove Top

Ingredients For southern sweet tea

  • 1 gal
    water
  • 9 bag
    individual tea bags
  • 1/2 c
    sugar

How To Make southern sweet tea

  • 1
    Boil 1/2 gallon of water in a boiler that has a lid. Turn off the heat after it comes to a boil. My tap water makes the tea cloudy, so I buy Crystal Geyser in a gallon container. Well water works fine, but treated water always makes poor tea. It won't taste right and it gets cloudy. Stick with water from an aquifer.
  • 2
    Add the sugar and stir. Tie together 9 small tea bags and hang them over the side with the tags on the outisde. Place the lid on top and allow the tea to steep until you have time to make it.
  • 3
    Pour the steeped tea into the clear water and stir. I like it warm in a cup. Store in the refrigerator until it's cool and won't melt ice which will dilute it. Try it this way, and if it's not sweet enough, you can add more sugar.
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