Southern Sweet Tea Recipe - The Domestic Diva (2024)

FAQs

What is the difference between sweet tea and Southern style sweet tea? ›

Sweet tea is much more than iced tea with a spoonful of sugar stirred in. Southern style sweet tea is, generally, made in big batches by boiling water and stirring in sugar until it's dissolved…. sort of like a less sweet form of simple syrup.

Adding a little baking soda to your tea will clear away any cloudiness left from the mixing process, and it's also thought to cut down on any lingering bitter tastes from the steeping tea bags, leaving your tea clarified and smooth and providing your get-together with one fantastic pitcher of tea.

Still, there's a balance to the flavor—the tea is brewed long and strong, so it gets an astringency that can only be countered by lots of the sweet stuff. Southerners, of course, have a taste for sugar that is demonstrably stronger than what you find up North.

Southern sweet tea is made by steeping tea leaves in hot water, then adding sugar while the tea is still hot so that it dissolves completely. This gives the tea a very sweet taste, which is characteristic of the southern United States. Other types of iced tea may not be as sweet or may not use sugar at all.

Plant feed: Used tea bags double as a handy fertilizer because of their tannic acid, which in turn foster increased nitrogen levels. Many plants, including roses and potted plants, will benefit from the elevated levels, so mix or spread those steeped tea leaves right onto the soil.

It always ended up on the bottom of the glass. Why is it that almost nowhere North of Kentucky serves real sweet tea? One of two reasons: They have no idea how refreshing it is during really hot weather, or they know that sweet tea is invariably cloyingly too sweet.

Traditional Texas Sweet Tea Recipe

In a saucepan, heat 1 cup of water until boiling. Add 1 cup of sugar and stir to dissolve. Add 8 cups of cold water and stir to combine. Pour the sweet tea mixture into a pitcher and add 6-8 cups of cold water, depending on how sweet you want your tea.

Baking soda, or sodium bicarbonate, is a natural substance that neutralizes acids and bases. When used in your toilet tank, it eliminates odors by balancing the pH level. In addition, its mild abrasive nature helps scrub away stains without damaging the tank's surface.

Over-steeping causes tea to turn bitter

Over-steeping tea means that you let it soak in the water for too long. The result of over-steeping is a darker than usual tea liquid as well as a sharp, bitter flavor.

Why do people in the Southern United States take their tea with so much sugar in it? 'Sweet tea' in the US South is a black tea mixed with so much sugar, it is at the point of saturation. No more sugar can be added, or sugar will settle out of the tea.

Which state drinks the most sweet tea? ›

Which States Have Sweet Tea? It's believed that the states in which sweet tea is most popular and most widely consumed are Alabama, Arkansas, Virginia, Louisiana, Mississippi, Indiana, Kentucky, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee and Georgia.

Iced tea is lower in sugar, can help you stay hydrated, contains antioxidants, and is often lower in calories than soft drinks. Whether you enjoy it sweetened or unsweetened, iced tea is the perfect summer beverage for those who want to stay healthy and refreshed.

Southern-style sweet tea is freshly brewed black tea that's sweetened with sugar while hot, chilled until cold, and served over ice.

For 1 gallon, boil 1 quart water (32 ounces or 4 cups). Remove from heat and pour over 1 Luzianne Gallon Size Iced Tea bag (or 4 Family Size or 16 Individual Cup Iced Tea bags). Brew 3-5 minutes and sweeten to taste.

There's more than one size of tea bag, and the “family size” bags sold in the US are supposed to make a quart per bag so if you have that size you would only need four to make a gallon.

Make the tea: Put 4 to 8 tea bags into a clean 2 quart or gallon glass container (4 teabags for a 2-quart container, 8 tea bags for a gallon container). Fill with water and cap.