When I think of iced tea, one of my oldest memories is having it at McDonald’s (a place I have not been to in a very long time). For my childhood palate, it was just the right balance of brewed tea and lemon (with no sweetener). Back then having caffeine didn’t affect my sleep.
For most of my adult life, if I wanted to have iced tea, I had to make it at home as it’s rare to find decaffeinated traditional iced tea. In the 1990s, I had an iced tea maker made by Mr. Coffee that heated the water and brewed the tea into a pitcher which you partially filled with ice. Thank you to Pam B for responding to my random question and confirming this memory. Did anyone else have one of these?
Over the years I have tried various methods but landed on this one as it’s quite simple. Boil water, steep tea bags, add cold water and chill. All you need is a bit of patience for it to cool down. For me there’s nothing worse than adding ice to warm tea with the hopes of making it ‘iced’ when all you’re really doing is diluting it.
I started using a half-gallon Mason jar which conveniently has measurements on the jar, so there’s not even a need for a measuring cup. I keep two Mason Jars in rotation and add a flip cap (I love all the different lids that you can add to a Mason jar) to the one that we’re pouring from.
Ed’s favorite black tea is decaffeinated PG Tips from the UK (we get it on Amazon) which works perfectly for iced tea. Go with your black tea of choice whether it be caffeinated or not.
I like a bit of mint in my tea and although I grow mint, I find it easier to use mint tea instead. I use Bigelow’s Mint Medley Herbal Tea which contains peppermint leaves, spearmint leaves, rose hips, lemon peel, hibiscus (and no tea!) and is easy to find. It adds just the right amount of mint flavor.
While I prefer the black tea and mint tea combination, you can adapt this recipe to match your iced tea preferences.
We recently had lunch with good friends Hope and Payton D at the Terrain Cafe in Devon, Pennsylvania. I was pleasantly surprised to find that their Iced Tea of the Day was a lovely ginger herbal tea (so no caffeine). Hope, Ed and I all enjoyed it. It turns out that on rare occasions, I can enjoy iced tea outside of our house.
| Mint Iced Tea | | Print |
- 4 regular black tea bags (regular or decaffeinated) (see Notes)
- 2 mint tea bags (see Notes)
- 2-1/2 cups boiling water
- 6 cups cold water
- Garnish with fresh mint
- Using a 64 ounce (half gallon) pitcher or Mason jar (see Notes), add tea bags and boiling water.
- Steep tea for 15 minutes.
- Do not squeeze the tea bags when you remove them (it makes the tea a bit too strong). Tip: I use tongs to remove the tea bags.
- Add cold water and stir.
- Cover and refrigerate until cold.
- Garnish with fresh mint when serving.
* If your pitcher isn’t heat-proof, steep the tea and boiling water in a 4-cup measuring cup and add to the pitcher with cold water.
* If you’re using a 64 ounce Mason jar, you can use the measurements on the side of the jar for the hot water. Then fill to the top with cold water after you’ve removed the tea bag. There’s no need for a measuring cup.
Those old Mr. Coffee tea makers! I had forgotten about those! We like to make Sun Tea in the summer and then put it over ice. I like the balance of the black tea and mint in your recipe here, I can almost taste it!
Spenser – I love that you knew about the Mr. Coffee tea maker as well. My friend, Pam, and I enjoyed reminiscing about it. Yes, I recall making Sun Tea as well.
Yum!!! Beautiful photo!
Mimi – Thank you so much! A chance to show off some mint from my garden!
How Funny, I also use mint tea bags (Bigelow Plantation Mint) though I grow mint as well (for peas and mint sauce). There was a great Mexican restaurant in Houston that has mint lemonade… which is heaven on a hot day (and with fish tacos). I’ve tried to duplicate it… adding mint to simple syrup… but it’s never the same! Apricot tea is another way to perk up black ice tea…. I add a couple teaspoons of sugar to ice tea while it is hot…. enhances the flavor a bit. Cheers
David – Lovely food memories and suggestions – thank you! I’m not sure I’ve ever had Apricot tea – I will have to look for it.
I had the Mr. Coffee Iced Tea maker too!! I loved it and was actually thinking of trying to find another one recently! Thanks for this recipe! I’m going to find a couple of 1/2 gallon Mason Jars and give it a try! Thank you for our brunch at the Terrain Cafe – the company, the food and the tea were all fabulous!
Hope – How fitting since you (and Payton) figured into my post! We were so glad you visited and that we could enjoy some tasty meals together.