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Homemade Sweet Tea Recipe

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  • Author: admin
  • Prep Time: 10 minutes
  • Cook Time: 10 minutes
  • Total Time: 20 minutes
  • Yield: 8 to 8 servings
  • Category: Beverages
  • Method: Stovetop
  • Cuisine: Southern American

Description

This Homemade Sweet Tea recipe offers a refreshing and perfectly balanced classic Southern-style tea, sweetened to your liking. Made using brewed tea bags and simple ingredients, it’s ideal for hot days or anytime you crave a cool, naturally sweetened beverage.


Ingredients

Scale

Tea Base

  • 1 cup water
  • 7-8 cups water
  • 2-3 family-size cold brew tea bags

Sweetener

  • 1 cup sugar (granulated, super-fine, organic, coconut, or brown sugar)


Instructions

  1. Boil Water: Bring 1 cup of water to a boil in a saucepan or kettle, preparing to dissolve the sugar.
  2. Dissolve Sugar: Add 1 cup of sugar to the boiling water and stir continuously until fully dissolved, creating a simple syrup base for your sweet tea.
  3. Brew Tea and Combine: In a large pitcher, add 7 to 8 cups of cold water and steep 2 to 3 family-size cold brew tea bags in the water for about 5 to 10 minutes or until desired strength is reached. Remove the tea bags, then pour in your prepared simple syrup. Stir well to combine and refrigerate until chilled before serving.

Notes

  • You can adjust the amount of sugar to taste or use alternative sweeteners like honey or agave nectar.
  • Using family-size tea bags helps achieve a strong tea concentrate for a rich flavor.
  • Steeping longer gives stronger tea, but avoid excessively long steeping to prevent bitterness.
  • Serve over ice with lemon slices or fresh mint for added zest.