How To Make Sun Tea

One of my favorite memories growing up is my mom making sun tea in our backyard. She always added in fresh mint that she had grown in our garden. I remember one day I wanted the tea to be made “faster”, so I walked up to the jar that was sitting in the sun in the garden, opened the lid, and started ripping open all of the tea bags. To me, it just made sense! Luckily I’ve learned a thing or two about tea since that day, and today I want to share the steps for making sun tea. It’s very simple — and it’s so gratifying to know that you used the sun’s natural rays to help produce a deliciously refreshing drink!

What you need:

A glass jar with a lid (I used 24-oz. mason jars)
Lemons
Tea of your choice
Fresh mint
Distilled water

Sun tea ingredients

What you do:

1. Sterilize your jar by washing thoroughly with soap and water. Making sun tea provides an ideal situation for bacteria growth, so this step is very important!

2. Cut a lemon into slices. Add a few lemon slices and some mint to your jar.

Lemons and mint in jars

3.  Add some tea bags to your jar, and fill to the top with distilled water. I made three types of tea: three mint, chamomile, and jasmine green tea. When it comes to the amount of tea bags, it’s better to use more than less. You can always water your tea down later if it’s too strong. I used 3 tea bags for each 24-oz. jar, and I felt that I could have definitely used another!

How to make sun tea

4. Set your jar outside in direct sunlight for at least 2 hours. The higher the temperature and brighter the sun, the faster your tea will be done.

Making sun tea in mason jars

5. Check your jar after a few hours. The darker the color, the stronger the tea will be. I left mine out in about 70-degree weather for about 5 hours, and the tea was the perfect strength for me.

Homemade sun tea in mason jars

You can store your tea in the fridge for about 3-5 days. Add a little sugar or honey if you so desire. Enjoy!

Photos by Brigette.

More healthy recipes from the BLDG 25 Blog.

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Mariel
10 years ago

Perfect! :)

10 years ago

Love this! I’m obsessed with tea!!

Jessica
10 years ago

Ooh! I think I’ll make some with mint and fresh peaches! Thanks for the post!

10 years ago

Thank you for this post! I can’t wait to try this.

Meg
10 years ago

I wish I liked tea!

http://happinessiscreating.com/

10 years ago

really great idea! never thought about using the sun for this!
xx
~Taylor
http://forsurejadore.com

Haley
10 years ago

When I was younger someone was camping out at my great grandparent’s place and they made sun tea. I have wanted to try it ever since but I never knew how! Thank you!!!

Jacqueline
10 years ago

Do you strain the mint and lemons after it’s ‘brewed’?

noa
10 years ago

why distilled water and not regular water? what’s the difference? :)

Mik
10 years ago

Hello all, this is cool.

Rachael
10 years ago

I made this recipe for Memorial Day and it was a hit! Thank you so much for sharing! :)

Leochick93
10 years ago

Sun Tea is a southern staple. my mom makes this all the time. we used to make in for the arabs when we lived overseas. toss in peaches, berries, even rosemary & honey is wonderful

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