Sweet TeaEasy

Lemon Sweet Tea

The simplest, most iconic sweet tea variation — classic Southern sweet tea brightened with a generous squeeze of fresh lemon. Tart, sweet, and deeply refreshing. If you only ever make one sweet tea, make this one.

20 min
Easy
Serves 6
Video preview
Lemon Sweet Tea

Instructions

  1. 1

    Steep the tea bags in boiling water for 5 minutes. Remove bags without squeezing — squeezing releases bitter tannins.

  2. 2

    Stir in the sugar while the tea is still hot until completely dissolved. This is the key step — sugar will not dissolve properly in cold tea.

  3. 3

    Add the cold water and lemon juice. Stir well and taste — adjust lemon or sugar to your preference.

  4. 4

    Refrigerate until cold. Serve over ice with a lemon slice.

Pro tip

Fresh lemon juice makes a noticeable difference over bottled — the flavour is brighter and less flat. Add the lemon juice after the tea has cooled slightly; adding it while very hot can make it slightly bitter. For a more intense lemon flavour, add a few strips of lemon zest to the tea while it steeps, then remove with the bags.

#lemon#sweet tea#southern#classic#simple#refreshing
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