The Best Way To Brew Stronger Iced Tea Without That Bitter Flavor

If you love to order delicious, sweet iced tea at fast food joints but find your homemade attempts fall flat, we're here to validate you. It turns out that making iced tea just right is pretty tricky. But tea expert Jordan G.L. Hardin, Director of Food & Beverage for Alfred, has some tips to help you ensure your tea is flavorful and smooth, just like at your favorite restaurant, every time.

Brewing your tea to perfection will depend on many factors, ranging from the size of the tea leaves to the method of brewing to the temperature of the water you brew your tea in. If you're using tea bags, the good news is that you can typically follow the brewing instructions on the box specifically listed for iced tea, or even buy tea that's intended to be brewed cold. If you're using loose-leaf tea, Hardin says you'll want about 4 tablespoons of tea — but that it varies. "There are teas where that wouldn't be enough because the leaves are so large, and there are teas where that would be far too much because the leaves are very small, or rolled up tightly," Hardin said. "So weighing [10-15 grams of loose tea] is a foolproof method."

If that's not enough flavor, and you want stronger iced tea? Add more tea to your cup rather than steeping it longer to get more flavor without the bitterness introduced by increased steeping time.

There are three main ways you can make iced tea. First, you can steep tea hot, and then put it in the fridge until it's cold before you pour it over ice. Second, you can flash chill your tea, according to Hardin, by using twice as much tea in half the total amount of water you want, steeping it hot, and then straining it over as much ice as you need to create the total quantity of water desired. Third, you can use cold water and steep your tea in the fridge overnight. The last method offers an easy path to stronger iced tea via steeping time since the cold water makes the bitterness develop much slower. "The time [to steep cold brewed tea] is far more forgiving and best accomplished overnight, anywhere from 8-18 hours — and drinkable and delicious all along that spectrum," Hardin says.

So why is it, then, that if you're brewing your tea hot, it's better to use more tea bags rather than more time to achieve a strong tea? Well, when you steep tea, it releases something called tannins that, while healthy and delicious, are also bitter. The more time the leaves spend in the water, the more tannins are extracted, and the more bitter your tea becomes. More tea leaves allow the flavor to seep into the tea faster before too much bitterness joins it. With some practice, you'll be absolutely capable of making a strong cup of the perfect simple iced tea.