How To Make Sun Tea - Simply Recipes

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How To Make Sun Tea

The power of the sun to makes refreshing sun tea, with barely any work!

By Elise Bauer Elise Bauer Elise founded Simply Recipes in 2003 and led the site until 2019. She has an MA in Food Research from Stanford University. Learn about Simply Recipes' Editorial Process Updated June 09, 2025 10 Ratings Save Print Close

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As the mercury breaks 100°F on these hot summer days (or 38°C for those of you on a metric system), a great way to make some tea without heating up your kitchen is to use the power of the sun to make sun tea.

The Best Tea Bags for Sun Tea

This recipe calls for regular teabags—the kind you would use to make a single cup of tea. Use 4 bags if you're using 2 quarts of water; 8 bags if you're using a gallon of water. The sun tea method also works with larger tea bags that are meant to make iced tea. Simply use the recommended amount of water per large tea bag that's on the box's directions.

Black tea is commonly used to make sun tea, but you can make sun tea from any flavor of tea you'd like. To get the strength you want, you may need to experiment with the number of tea bags if using a more mildly flavored tea.

Containers for Brewing Sun Tea

Glass is preferable over plastic for brewing sun tea because the heat from the sun can cause the plastic to alter the flavor of the tea and possibly leach some chemicals into it. If using plastic, make sure the container is BPA free.

A Word of Caution

For many people, making sun tea is a much-loved summer tradition. That said, according to the FDA, the water does not get hot enough to kill any potential bacteria that could be in the tea bags, and the long brewing time could hold the liquid in the "danger zone" that bacteria thrive in.

Cool Off With These Refreshing Drink Recipes

• Blended Whole Lemon Lemonade
• Agua de Jamaica (Hibiscus Iced Tea)
• Pear Ginger Shrub
• Limeade with Mint
• Raspberry Lime Rickey
• Watermelon Batido

From the Editors Of Simply Recipes Print Save

How To Make Sun Tea

Prep Time 5 mins Steep 3 hrs Total Time 3 hrs 5 mins Servings 6 to 8 servings Yield 1 gallon

I usually make sun tea with various forms of herbal tea. Sometimes you can put in a few sprigs of fresh mint as well.

Keep Screen Awake

• 4 to 8 regular tea bags

1. Make the tea:

   Put 4 to 8 tea bags into a clean 2 quart or gallon glass container (4 teabags for a 2-quart container, 8 tea bags for a gallon container). Fill with water and cap.

2. Place in the sun:

   Place outside where the sunlight can strike the container for about 3 to 5 hours. Move the container if necessary to keep it in the sun. When the tea has reached its desired strength, remove it from the sun and put it in the refrigerator. You may or may not want to remove the tea bags at this point. I usually don't.

3. Store the tea:

   The tea will probably taste more mellow than what you are used to from using boiling water. The slow steeping has a way of bringing out a slightly different flavor from the tea. Also, because you didn't use boiling water, you should refrigerate the tea and drink it up pretty quickly—a day or two. It will not keep as well as iced tea made from boiling water.

   Did you enjoy this recipe? Let us know with a rating and review!

• 4th of July
• 4th of July

Nutrition Facts (per serving)
5	Calories
0g	Fat
1g	Carbs
0g	Protein

Show Full Nutrition Label ×

Nutrition Facts
Servings: 6 to 8
Amount per serving
Calories	5
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 0g	0%
Saturated Fat 0g	0%
Cholesterol 0mg	0%
Sodium 0mg	0%
Total Carbohydrate 1g	1%
Dietary Fiber 0g	0%
Protein 0g
Vitamin C 0mg	0%
Calcium 0mg	0%
Iron 0mg	0%
Potassium 100mg	2%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.

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