Best Iced Tea recipe

[LPBeier]

I still make ice tea the way my Mom did every summer for as long as I can remember. She would just make a pot of tea, but instead of using 2 tea bags, she would use 4 and steep it twice as long. Then she would pour it into a glass pitcher we had that was only used for ice tea that was filled to the brim with ice. The hot tea would melt the ice and get cold. We would drink it straight, with no sugar and sometimes a lemon squeeze. To this day I can't drink sweetened tea and love it this way.

 

[Wyogal]

That's pretty much how our local coffee house serves iced tea, they brew it fresh per order, then pour over ice. I had Chinese gunpowder last night.

 

[babetoo]

patty , i think the reason is bacteria can grow in the tea as the sun heats it up. i am not sure. i did it forever and never made anyone sick. just not really set up here for it. no sun on the porch and really don't want to do out in the yard.

 

[Wyogal]

snopes.com: Bacteria in Sun Tea Risk

 

[MostlyWater]

You can get pretty much the same results in a safe way by putting tea bags in the pitcher of water and letting it sit in the refrigerator over night.

Barbara

That's what i do. I prepare it in the afternoon, for the next day as i like to drink it at work instead of coffee some mornings. I take a a large water bottle, put in a green tea bag and a fruit flavored one, with some hot water, and then I let it steep for a couple of minutes (usually I got to the bathroom in the meantime) and I add a packet of sugar - or not. Before it goes in the fridge, I fill the bottle with cold spring water and let it steep until I drink it.

 

[spork]

I don't know... I suppose I should boil my water and steep my tea in the frig, but there will always be advocates of more extreme measures of safety than your own sense of extreme precaution, and I'd rather not live with the paranoia of bacteria in my tap water and cupboard tableware.

I'm not a hot tea connoisseur, but I know that different loose teas have different recommended brewing temps, some are steeped in boiling water while others are optimally steeped at body temp, etc. Safety is one consideration determining temperature; so is taste.

Yesterday, I saw a gallon of tea pasted with Arnold Palmer's face on the shelves at my local CVS store and realized what it was thanks to this DC thread.

The wiki for roasted barley tea: Roasted barley tea - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

[Wyogal]

I know that snopes mentioned the bacteria that may be found in water, but I think it has more to do with things that can grow on the tea itself.
oh yeah, DC it TOTALLY responsible for Arnold Palmers...

 

[spork]

I had Chinese gunpowder last night.

What is that?

I've tried several times to make Thai iced tea with coconut milk, unsatisfactorily. If anyone knows how, I'd love to see recipe/tips.

 

[Wyogal]

It's a type of tea.
chinese gunpowder tea - Google Search

 

[babetoo]

i learn so much interesting stuff here on d.c.

was watching iron chef last night. the ingredient was sea urchins. was curious to goggled it. watched people break them open and eat them raw. not a pretty sight. would not eat myself but it was interesting. one never knows where knowledge might be

 

[bakechef]

I like my tea sweet, Luzianne is my favorite for iced tea. I can only drink unsweet if it is really good tea, it has to be made perfectly and with really good filtered water or I can't drink it.

 

[mexican mama]

This one is easy...a pitcher flavored iced tea(twinnings) then a bit of sugar and a jigger(depending on how sweet you want it) of Grenadine syrup.You can also add mint leaves for garnish.

 

[JamesS]

I like my tea sweet, Luzianne is my favorite for iced tea. I can only drink unsweet if it is really good tea, it has to be made perfectly and with really good filtered water or I can't drink it.

Luzianne has been my tea of choice for iced tea lately too. I used to make it ahead and keep it in the refrigerator, but just can't seem to find room these days.

I take a single (normal sized...not iced tea sized) bag and add hot water from the water cooler to it in a small coffee mug. Let it steep for a minute or so with a little dunking, fill a 24oz bar glass with ice to the top, drop a few of the cubes into the hot tea (to temper it so the glass won't break in the next step), and then dump all of it over the ice. Stir and enjoy!