The weekly “little of this, little of that” feature here at Like Mother, Like Daughter!
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I do really love my iced tea.
I will tell you how I make it.
Put about six teabags, from which you have removed the paper tags, in a container — tempered glass (like a quart mason jar), enamel, or plastic. Do not attempt to make your iced tea in a normal glass pitcher, because it will break; do not think you can make good iced tea without boiling water.
I do love PG Tips or Barry's for my cup of regular hot tea; I enjoy Upton Tea for a special pot (try the rose congou for a real treat; the Chief loves his Temple of Heaven Gunpowder green tea).
But for iced tea, I admit I really just find Lipton — normal old Lipton — to give the best balance of very strong but not bitter. Sometimes I put some Barry's in with the Lipton, but I'm telling you: all snobbery aside, Lipton makes the best iced tea.
Okay, pour about a quart of boiling — really boiling, not almost boiling, not previously boiling — water over your tea bags. Let them steep in there for as long as you like! Many times I just leave the bags in.
It's best if you can let it cool before fixing yourself your drink, but if you must have it immediately, just make sure your glass (also tempered — I swear by these Duralex glasses (affiliate link) — I've had them for ages, and they stack) is full, completely full of ice.
Regardless, you need much more ice in your glass than you think you do. These are the two pitfalls that leave people lukewarm about iced tea:
1. their tea is not strong enough to start with and
2. it doesn't end up cold enough.
If you've left your container of tea to steep until it's at least cool or maybe you've even popped it in the fridge and it's cold, you can add water to dilute it, as the initial concentration is… concentrated. Maybe another cup of water will do the trick. If it's hot, the ice that melts will dilute it — so pour it just below the top level of your ice.
The fatal thing is to have a few pathetic slivers of ice in a watery pool of weak tea.
So, strong tea and lots of ice!
I like mine sweet — either I put sugar in the container as I'm making it or I add my spoonful to my glass and stir vigorously.
It's definitely the best drink ever. Every drink wishes it were iced tea and is sad it's not.
On to our links:
- I've never read a critique of a poem quite like this one: How T.S. Eliot Predicted the Coming of Male Millennials
- Our friend Patricia recommends, for fun listening for the children, an old-fashioned series from a radio program: She says: “Lil' Orley and …
…the Cricket
…the Haunted House
…the Bubble Gum
…the Happy Bird
…the Barn Dance
…the Adventure with the Cloud
…Adventures with the Parade
… and, as the ads say, so much more! You can find a lot of them on YouTube.”
Here's one:
From the archives:
- Our audio book recommendations (good ones in the comments too!).
- My secret to cleaning cast iron pans — and believe me, getting stainless steel pads will change your life, scrubbing-pots-in-general-wise — you will be released from the dumb plastic-scrubber-of-futility fate.
Today is the feast of St. Clare. We went to Assisi and walked in the little cold convent where she lived in complete poverty, following St. Francis — and where she struggled out, ill, bearing the Host that caused the attacking Saracens to take flight. If you can ever go there, go!
We’d like to be clear that, when we direct you to a site via one of our links, we’re not necessarily endorsing the whole site, but rather just referring you to the individual post in question (unless we state otherwise).
Mary says
Good Morning, Leila! THIS Southern girl loves her sweet tea. A good while back (childhood?), I learned to make simple syrup and have it ready to go when the tea was ready. That way I don’t have to stir and stir and stir, hoping the sugar will melt. If there’s a pitcher of tea in the refrigerator, then you can bet there’s a jar of simple syrup on hand, too.
Thank you for all your posts. I don’t regularly comment. (Who needs to read, “You got that right” or “Yes, meeee, tooo! for each of your enlightening posts?) I do particularly appreciate the Bits and Pieces posts. God bless you and yours!
Melissa D says
Another Southern girl voting for simple syrup! Because putting things in little pitchers is so fun!
Anel says
I. Loved… the ice tea instructions.
Rooibos tea is indigenous/endemic to South Africa and is caffeine free. Babies (and children and adults) here have been growing up on rooibos ice tea for generations! We make it exactly like you do your English tea (as we call it here)… and when the baby is old enough for honey… you sweeten it with honey. The taste is absolutely complimentary.
If you ever feel inclined… I don’t want to rock the boat for your favourite drink… just.. just try it… 🌷
GramiePamie says
I have a box languishing on my shelf – and never knew that honey was the perfect addition. Thanks!!
Jenny says
I am sorry to inform you that the best iced tea is made with Luzianne, and the sugar must be added while the water is still hot. You can stir that sugar in while the bags are in there steeping. Sugar added after the tea is cooled is wrong. Also dropping a sprig or two of mint in to steep is not terrible either. 😀 😀
Mary says
I agree, Jenny. Luzianne is the best! However, in a pinch, good ol’ Lipton is quite tasty. God bless.
Amy says
It can be difficult for us to find Luzianne. ;(
James Anderson says
Hi, here is a link to a website about a Religious order for women with Down’s syndrome that your readers might appreciate: https://www.ucatholic.com/blog/this-beautiful-religious-order-is-for-women-with-down-syndrome/.
Lauren says
I have been waiting for this instructional for so long! Whenever I would make iced tea I would be wondering ‘…I wonder how Auntie Leila does this…’. Not sure why I never asked. Thank you!!
BridgetAnn says
Tip from my waitressing days re: pouring boiling hot beverage into a glass with ice: Make sure the piping hot liquid hits the ice cube first. A spoon inserted will help too, for whatever reason, so that your glass doesn’t break from the two drastically different temperatures.
Lynn Marie says
We love our ice tea too and make it the same way. Thank you for a great post. I usually use Lipton too but when we went to visit my parents and I wanted to make ice tea the only black tea they had was the Trader Joe’s English Breakfast. It made a delicious ice tea and I bought some when I got home!
carlynb says
I have lived all my life in the South, where everyone has a pitcher of tea in the fridge at all times of the year. Making the tea was one of the first things I ever learned how to do in the kitchen. Drinking a cup of hot tea was an exotic activity that I only read about in books.
My paternal grandmother made the best tea I have ever had in my life. Nobody could figure out what made her tea taste so good. My mother thought it was because she made her tea with loose tea leaves instead of tea bags. My uncle made my aunt find a stoneware pitcher for their iced tea because that’s what he thought made Grandmother’s tea so delicious. Now I wonder if it was the well water she used that made the difference. I have never had any other iced tea that tasted just like it.
Jamie says
I am with you on the Lipton tea. I like my tea sweetened though I’ve gone to using Stevia now and it’s not too bad. The very best in my opinion is summer sun tea though. You need a big covered gallon jar. Fill with the cool water and place a giant lipton tea bag in that’s made just for this…OR just add several regualr sized tea bags. Place in the hot summer sun for several hours. Nothing can beat sun tea!
Jamie says
Also I love the simple syrup and agree it’s superior to just adding sugar, but when some in the family like their tea unsweetened it becomes more complicated.
Stephanie says
Hi Auntie Leila!
I recently joined Instagram to be able to follow family and friends (after I realized just how many of them were using it!) and was wondering if the LMLD blog has its own Instagram account.
Either way, thank you, as always, for your pretty and informative blog posts! 🙂
Leila says
Stephanie, we don’t have an LMLD Instagram account. But you can click on those links to follow all of us! Thanks!
Thrift at Home says
I do really adore when you explain how you do everyday tasks!! I don’t sweeten our tea – just keep simple syrup in the fridge for those who like it. I really like a slice of lemon or lime in mine. AND, I picked up a fantastic tip for tea somewhere – just add the tiniest pinch of baking soda when you’re making black tea and want to keep it lightly sweetened or unsweetened. The baking soda mellows out the bitterness and makes it so smoooooooth.
My afternoon iced tea is usually an iced oolong with whole milk and sugar. SO GOOD.
Anne Marie says
Thank you for recommending the glasses- in your opinion, would they be reasonably durable in the hands of, let’s say, a five year old boy and two year old girl?
Jamie says
So I bought the glasses and don’t think they make them up to the same par that they must have been when Auntie Leila purchased hers. Several of mine have broken and they shatter like crazy!
Leila says
Jamie, if they shattered like that then there is something wrong with the batch. Yes, they will shatter when broken, because they are tempered glass (which is meant to shatter and not make sharp shards — think of your windshield). But they are not supposed to break! Unless you are whacking them against tiles or something, they should be sturdy.
I have some from a long time ago but a lot are from a few years ago. They just don’t break under normal use. I would write to the company! (They aren’t cheap!!)
Mignon says
Thanks for the iced tea tutorial! I’ve been hooked on chai tea lately—- the tea bags, not the Tazo chai tea that comes already made in the box. I steep it nice and strong and then add honey and milk. Pour over ice for the cold variety! Stash is my favorite brand, when I can find it!
As for Lipton’s, who can sing its praises highly enough/. It was a staple in my grandmother’s house for years and years for her “afternoon pick-me-up” drink!
Liz Swift says
I use Salada tea bags for mine and make it in a Pampered Chef 2 quart measuring cup. I only put a,quart of boiling water in and then when the tea has steeped full it with cold water followed by the ice once the temperature has dropped a bit. No sweetener at all here.