Iced Tea Recipe

Boil water

Bring 6 cups of fresh water to a rolling boil in a kettle or saucepan.

Steep tea

Place 6 black tea bags (or 6 teaspoons loose-leaf black tea in an infuser) into a heatproof pitcher. Pour the boiling water over the tea, cover, and let steep for 5 minutes for a balanced strength or up to 7 minutes for a stronger flavor. Avoid steeping longer than 7 minutes to prevent excessive bitterness.

Remove tea leaves

Remove and discard the tea bags (or remove the infuser). If using loose tea without an infuser, strain the tea through a fine-mesh sieve into a clean pitcher to remove leaves.

If you want sweet tea, make a simple syrup: combine 1 cup granulated sugar and 1 cup hot water in a heatproof container, stirring until the sugar fully dissolves. While the tea is still warm, stir in the simple syrup to taste — start with 1/2 cup syrup, taste, and add more if desired. Mixing syrup with warm tea ensures it incorporates evenly without graininess.

Let the sweetened or unsweetened tea cool at room temperature for 15–20 minutes, then refrigerate until cold, about 1–2 hours. For quicker cooling, place the pitcher in an ice bath or add 1 cup of ice and then top up later to avoid over-dilution.

To serve, fill glasses with ice (about 1 cup ice per 12-16 oz glass). Pour chilled tea over the ice. Squeeze in a wedge of fresh lemon from the 1 lemon if desired and drop the wedge into the glass. Garnish with a mint sprig.

Adjust sweetness and citrus to taste, and enjoy immediately.