Mint Sweet Tea Recipe

If there could be a beverage to define a life, sweet tea would be mine. We didn’t move to Texas until I was 13, but every time we’d cross the Kentucky border en route to Florida, my Mom would make a beeline for any fast food chain so she could order a sweet tea. If you’re in the southern states, you know how much of a staple it is. There are some BBQ restaurants where its served in jugs like water. There is something so refined about a good glass of sweet tea, and its really the biggest shame that people in Indiana don’t appreciate it as much. I can only say, with great relief, that McAlister’s Delis exist here as well, so I’ve been able to get my fix in a pinch these past five years.

I say this with great sadness: I cannot stomach the thought of sweet tea in the winter. It’s like a slap in the face when I’m shivering inside of my own house because the relentless negative temperatures are seeping through the brick and mortar, to remember the way a Ball jar collects sweaty beads of perspiration when I hold it in my hand, freshly filled to the brim with sweet tea. Sweet tea, I’ve decided is the nectar of summer time and I cannot enjoy it when its below 30 degrees outside. (And no, hot tea is not the same as sweet tea. I do not drink hot tea. It’s like a desecration to sweet tea).

But anyway, one time in Texas our neighbor dropped off mint sugar water, made with mint from her own garden. Now, in our house, we brew our tea and then add a tablespoon or so of a concentrated sugar/water mixture we keep in a jar on the counter. That way you can sweeten it to your own taste, and in my brother’s case, you can have a little tea with your sugar. Until that point, we hadn’t realized you could add flavors to your sugar water. Thanks to that neighbor, mint sugar water is very much in vogue in our family.

In an effort to bring Texas to our little northern state, I planted mint in my garden. If any of y’all are gardeners, you know what a cruel joke it is to plant mint. It’s a weed, and it has escaped into every possible corner of our backyard ever since. We have tried removing it, and it just will not leave us alone. So we make mint sugar water for our sweet tea, and I begrudgingly weed it out every couple of weeks before it destroys any semblance of prettiness our garden might have had.

To make a batch of  mint sweet tea, I use my tea maker. It’s so fast and convenient, you just pour water into one side, fill the jar with ice, and put three family sized tea bags in the center and press a button. Five minutes later, perfectly brewed sweet tea. But if you don’t have a tea maker, (and on days when I’m feeling particularly leisurely) you can make mint sweet tea on the stove…

Mint Sweet Tea Recipe

Stove Top-Brewed Iced Tea Recipe

2 1/2 cups water

7 regular sized black tea bags (I love Luzianne, but Lipton is nice too and they make a blend for McAlister’s Deli)

1/4 tsp baking soda (I know it sounds crazy, but it takes the bitter bite out of the tea, trust me)

4 cups cool water

Ice

First, boil the 2 1/2 cups water on the stove. Once boiling, remove it from the heat and add the tea bags and baking soda. Allow the tea to steep, covered for at least 15-17 minutes. Then, add the cool water and ice and refrigerate it until its nice and cool. You can add less cool water if you like your tea more stout, or more water if you like it less strong.

Mint Sugar Water

This is the basic sugar water recipe our family uses, and although I’m making it mint-flavored, I’ve added peaches to make peach sugar water, and I’m sure there are a million other flavors you could add to yours to make your tea whatever kind you’d like!

3 Cups Water

4 Cups Sugar

15-20 Mint Leaves (removes from stems)

Boil the water and sugar together until the sugar is dissolved, stir frequently. Once boiling, remove it from heat and add the mint leaves. After cooling, remove the leaves with a slotted spoon and store the sugar water in a glass jar.

I like to pour my sugar water in a glass on top of the ice until I see about a half of an inch on the bottom of my glass, then add the tea and stir. Fancy sweet tea, perfect for breezy days when the sun is shining and you’re feeling particularly southern. Enjoy, y’all!

Do you like mint sweet tea?

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