Recipe: Green Mint Iced Tea

by Debbie Sullivan July 23, 2020 1 Comment

It's only the middle of July, and we've already had some significant heat waves here in Montreal this year, so I've been swapping out my normal afternoon pick-me-up of a hot black tea for iced tea instead. I've recently discovered this simple method for making my iced tea using green tea instead of black and I've been making it so often that I thought I'd share the recipe!

This recipe has been working particularly well for me for a couple of reasons. First, I have a ton of green tea that I always forget to drink, so this is a great way to use it up! Second, we have a couple of patches of mint growing in the backyard, so that's also easily available whenever I need it. And last but not least, I've been brewing it right in large mason jars so that I can easily make several jars at once and store them in the fridge to drink throughout the week. (Oh, wait - it's also delicious and refreshing! That's probably another reason I've been making it so often...)

I usually use 2 tea bags or 2-3 tsp loose tea per 1L mason jar. I'm finally getting around to using some of the tea that Elizabeth brought back for me from her trip to Hong Kong two summers ago! For me, the trick to brewing green tea is to set a timer. It goes bitter quickly if you oversteep it, and I have a tendency to get distracted and leave it too long if I don't have a reminder.

Once the tea is brewed and the bags or tea leaves removed, I'll add honey to taste (it's easiest to dissolve while the tea is hot), and a few sprigs of mint. I usually keep the mint leaves on the stem, which makes them easier to remove from the jar later.

After the mint has gone into the tea I just put the lid on and chill it in the fridge. Once it's cold, I pour it over ice to serve (and maybe garnish with an extra mint leaf or two if I'm feeling fancy). We'll usually drink a full jar's worth in a day or two, but if I'm making a larger batch to last through the week I like to leave the mint leaves in the jar overnight to develop the flavour and then remove them the next day.

Ingredients

• 1 litre (4 cups) hot water
• Green tea (2 bags or 2-3 tsp loose tea)
• Fresh mint leaves
• 2-3 tsp honey (or other sweetener to taste)

Directions:

1. Place your tea bags or loose tea in a teapot or 1L mason jar.
2. Boil the water, and let it sit to cool for a couple of minutes before pouring it over the tea.
3. Let tea steep for 2-3 minutes. Don't oversteep or it may become bitter.
4. Remove tea bags or strain out loose tea.
5. Stir in honey or other sweetener to taste and add a few sprigs of mint.
6. Chill in the refrigerator. Remove mint leaves after 24 hours if storing longer than a day or two.
7. Serve over ice.

Makes approximately 4 cups of iced tea, which can be diluted with cold water if you prefer a milder drink.

A glass of iced tea is the perfect accompaniment to my summertime knitting!

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