Sweet Tea Question

[Carl]

I'm diabetic, so I'm lucky that here in Houston the restaurants serve the ice tea unsweetened. In fact, I believe that Disneyworld also serves it that way, so I guess that is common in Florida also. Anyway, even when we make tea at home we just use a coffeemaker to heat the water and then put in the tea bags. I add Equal or Splenda to it to sweeten it.

 

[ilovepcot]

I'm diabetic, so I'm lucky that here in Houston the restaurants serve the ice tea unsweetened. In fact, I believe that Disneyworld also serves it that way, so I guess that is common in Florida also. Anyway, even when we make tea at home we just use a coffeemaker to heat the water and then put in the tea bags. I add Equal or Splenda to it to sweeten it.

Oh yeah, I'd forgotten about using the coffeemaker. It makes *great* tea and you don't have all that heat in the kitchen from boiling water. Won't matter much to a "Yankee" perhaps, but the less heat in a FL kitchen the better!

 

[Micca]

Does "sweet tea" taste different from regular iced tea that you could add sugar or sweetner to at the table? Why???

 

[lisajl]

I'm a northern girl and just love sweet tea. I use Luzianne tea. I have never put the sugar in right away. That would be why it does not taste as good!!
Thanks for the "recipe"!

 

[LuvN~Travel]

For mine i use about a cup and a half of sugar to a gallon, but i make it pretty much like anyone else here. If you let it refrigerate for a day, it also tastes better to me too. It especially makes it sweeter.
As for adding the sugar when the tea is already on the table, it just doesn't work! lol The sugar does definitely need to be put in while the tea is being made.
I would just look for the tea bags in the store. Lipton and Luzianne are the two best in my opinion for sweet tea. You may not find Luzianne up north though.
Good luck with your tea!
Kim

 

[Blondie]

Here is how we make tea

7 small tea bags (I like Lipton) for a gallon

boil water in a pot- turn burner off
put tea bags in the water and let sit 20-30 minutes
In your tea pitcher fill it up about 1/4 with hot water
Put in 2 cups of sugar so it will melt
Once the tea bags are ready pour into the sugar water and refrigerate

Then enjoy!!!

This is how I make mine as well, only I add lots of fresh squeezed lemon too.

 

[clarabelle]

Does "sweet tea" taste different from regular iced tea that you could add sugar or sweetner to at the table? Why???

Sugar does not really dissolve in cold (especially icy water) so it never really gets very sweet. The flavors don't really merge.
My grandmother made tea so sweet you could stand a spoon up in it.

By the way.. I am a Tetley girl myself.

 

[magiccouple2004]

i am originally from the north as well so sweet tea was rare when i moved south i loved it but when i lived in the north we made sweet tea by putting 6-7 tea bags(lipton) in a pickle like jar and put it in the sun- hence sun tea, and once it was ready then we added 2 cups of sugar and it tastes sweet like but there is no sweet tea better than chik fila

 

[lucyanna girl]

I use Community Tea Bags (2 family size and 1 1/2 to 1/3/4 cups of sugar) and I also put my sugar in the hot tea to disolve it. By the way, I saw that "y'all" in your post, OP. I'm glad we taught you that as well.

 

[arminnie]

This is my question, why don't we have sweet tea? Is there some sweet tea history that I am not privy to.

Mostly because you didn't have any kind of iced tea in the north until fairly recent history (past 25 years or so) unless you had a relative from the South. Well maybe in the summer, but never in the winter.

My dad was from Detroit so my mother always made unsweetened tea. You could add sugar if you wanted to. I never did because it is just about impossible to dissolve sugar in iced tea.

For decades my relatives always made a pitcher of unsweetened tea for me and my dad (and sister). I never had the heart to tell them that I liked it sweet okay just was too lazy to add it myself if it wasn't already in there.

Sweet tea is served far less often in homes now in the South because everyone my age is using Splenda. I really really like sweet things (see my tag), but I often order my tea half and half as it can just be too sweet to handle.

 

[figment52]

I had that recently when I was down south..I thought I was going to go into shock from how sweet it was!! Give me nice old northern iced tea anytime LOL...

Finally - someone I can relate to. I drink tea to get away from the sweet drinks

 

[Becky2005]

Oh, Just make some tea and put some sugar in it. (I prefer Lipton!) Now, the only trick is to make sure you add the sugar while it's still hot. That make it alll disolve better.

Good luck.

OK...I know I'm from Illinois but I've *always* added sugar to my tea (iced or hot, plus milk to the hot - I know I'm weird). Anyway - I thought sweet tea just meant tea that had sugar in it. Is there something else to it???

I just always took the sugar packets and added it to the iced tea I was served at places.

Then again, my aunt makes sweet tea for her church functions. but hey, they grew up in Anna so it's considered South.

I honestly had no idea it was such a regional difference (good thing I always taste my ice tea just to be sure before adding sugar - that could be interesting to add sugar to tea that was already sweetened ). I always just thought it was like coffee - you know, it comes black and you can add your own mixture of sugar/creamer to the what you like.

 

[tinkerbell1967]

Count me in as a yankee who loves sweet tea!! I take my Ice tea maker and fill the water to the first line, then put in one cup of sugar, and use 4 of the Lipton Iced Tea Brew Tea Bags. Aftter it brews I put water in up to the next line. My friend and I both use this same recipe and it is the closest we have found to the sweet tea we get when we visit the Charlotte area!!

 

[DisneyDotty]

Sweet tea is one very fine contribution to the world by Southerners. Thanks, y'all!

 

[jaycns]

I am back in the Northeast where we poor unfortunates do not have access to sweet tea like y'all do in the South.. This is my question, why don't we have sweet tea? Is there some sweet tea history that I am not privy to.

I am addicted to it now (husband too) and short of making it myself, I will not get again until I go South. This is another part of my question and how come only certain parts of the South have sweet tea...

Anyhow, if any of you Southerners want to take pity on this Northerner who cannot get sweet tea anywhere and have a good recipe, would you pretty please post it so I can make my own..

Sign me sweet tea deprived and knows it. *sigh*

I cannot help but laugh...I am a yankee transplanted to the south to the land of horse racing and bourbon and EXTRA SWEET tea and my dearest love is plain old unsweet tea. My eighty year old neighbor told me "Honey you just add sugar to the hot tea and mix it up...when you think you have enough sugar, add some more, mix some more, add some ice cubes and then it's ready, sometimes I add sliced peaches or mint leaves".

 

[dixipixi]

As for the history of it, it's really pretty simple...we grow the sugar here!!!

It is very uncommon to find a local restaurant in Louisiana that does not serve sweet tea. No unsweetened tea at all. You can get some pretty funny looks if you ask for it. You can tell that they are thinking, WHY DO YOU WANT THAT ?!?! Drives my MIL crazy...she's always on a diet and doesn't drink anything sweet.

I honestly think it has a lot to do with the availability of the sugar. Nowadays everyone can get it...but that wasn't the case 100 years ago.

 

[LindsayDunn228]

Ok, here's a sweet tea lesson, Southern Style:

Sweet tea- tea made with sugar. Properly prounced: sweettea. One word.

Tea made with Splenda, Equal, Sweet 'n Low, etc.: This is called unsweet tea made with Spenda et al. IT IS NOT SWEET TEA!!

We thank you for your support

 

[mickeysgal]

Does "sweet tea" taste different from regular iced tea that you could add sugar or sweetner to at the table? Why???

There is a huge taste difference between sweet tea and iced tea. Sweet tea is high octane stuff. It takes a while to get used to it, especially if you've never had it before, but you get hooked on it.

 

[DVC Sadie]

As far as using SPLENDA as you asked, well....I'm a true southener and I always sweeten my tea and coffee with Splenda. Can't tell a difference!

I was afraid to post that I too use Splenda now for my sweet tea! My mother would be horrified.

 

[Tiggeroo]

I'm another northerner who loves sweet tea. The first glass or two when i'm in the south is like, eww too sweet. Then I'm hooked. They come around to your table all nice saying, Hon do you want more sweet tea, how bout some more sweet tea hon.
I have made it here and love it. But for my health's sake I don't do that anymore. I only drink it when I go south or to Texas Roadhouse.