Description
Refreshing homemade Peach Sweet Tea, made with a flavorful peach simple syrup and brewed black tea. Perfect for summer!
Ingredients
Scale
- 8 cups water, divided
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 6 black tea bags
- 4 ripe peaches, pitted and sliced
- 1/4 cup lemon juice, freshly squeezed
- Ice, for serving
- Peach slices and mint sprigs, for garnish (optional)
Instructions
- Combine water and sugar: In a medium saucepan, combine 1 cup of water and the granulated sugar.
- Heat and dissolve: Place the saucepan over medium heat. Stir constantly until the sugar is completely dissolved.
- Add the peaches: Add the sliced peaches to the saucepan.
- Simmer: Bring the mixture to a gentle simmer. Reduce the heat to low and let it simmer for about 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Mash the peaches (optional): For a more intense peach flavor, gently mash the peaches with a potato masher or the back of a spoon while they are simmering.
- Strain the syrup: Remove the saucepan from the heat. Place a fine-mesh sieve over a heat-proof bowl. Carefully pour the peach mixture through the sieve, pressing down on the peaches with a spoon to extract as much syrup as possible. Discard the peach solids.
- Cool the syrup: Let the peach simple syrup cool completely before using it. Transfer the syrup to an airtight container and store it in the refrigerator. It will keep for up to a week.
- Boil water: Bring 7 cups of water to a rolling boil in a kettle or saucepan.
- Steep the tea bags: Place the black tea bags in a heat-proof pitcher or large bowl. Pour the boiling water over the tea bags.
- Steep for 5-7 minutes: Let the tea steep for 5-7 minutes, depending on your desired strength.
- Remove tea bags: After steeping, carefully remove the tea bags and discard them.
- Cool the tea: Allow the brewed tea to cool to room temperature.
- Combine tea and syrup: In a large pitcher, combine the cooled black tea and the cooled peach simple syrup.
- Add lemon juice: Stir in the freshly squeezed lemon juice.
- Adjust sweetness (optional): Taste the tea and adjust the sweetness to your liking. Add more peach simple syrup for a sweeter tea, or more water/lemon juice for a less sweet tea.
- Chill: Refrigerate the Peach Sweet Tea for at least 30 minutes to allow the flavors to meld together and for the tea to become thoroughly chilled.
- Serve: Fill glasses with ice. Pour the Peach Sweet Tea over the ice.
- Garnish (optional): Garnish with peach slices and mint sprigs, if desired.
Notes
- Experiment with other types of tea, such as green tea or white tea.
- Use ripe, juicy peaches for the best flavor. Freestone peaches are easier to pit and slice. You can also use frozen peach slices if fresh peaches are not available. Just be sure to thaw them before using.
- For a fizzy twist, top off each glass of Peach Sweet Tea with sparkling water or club soda before serving.
- For an even more intense peach flavor, you can add a few tablespoons of peach puree to the tea. Simply blend a peeled and pitted peach until smooth.
- Add a cinnamon stick or a few cloves to the saucepan while simmering the peach simple syrup for a warm, spiced flavor.
- If you prefer a different sweetener, you can substitute the granulated sugar with honey, agave nectar, or maple syrup. Adjust the amount to your liking.
- You can make the peach simple syrup and brew the tea ahead of time and store them separately in the refrigerator. When you’re ready to serve, simply combine them and add the lemon juice.
- Pour the Peach Sweet Tea into popsicle molds and freeze for a refreshing summer treat.
- Store any leftover Peach Sweet Tea in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes