How to Make Iced Green Tea

When it is hot, all we reach for is a glass of something cold. This something could be anything like a soft drink, an aerated drink, a milk shake, a smoothie or an iced tea. Make the iced tea an iced green tea and you will definitely enjoy it better. However, making iced green tea can be tricky if you want to make a huge batch.

Recipe 1

Ingredients

• Tea Bags 6 bags
• Boiling Water 3 cups
• Honey or Sweetener 6 spoonfuls
• Lemon Juice 5 spoonfuls
• Cold Water 3 cups
• Mint Leaves and Lemon Wedges for garnishing

Method

• In a teapot, pour boiling water and the tea bags. Boil it for some time.
• Turn off the heat and allow the tea to steep into the water for about 5 to 6 minutes.
• Remove the tea bags and let the tea cool.
• Once the tea has reached room temperature, add the honey or the other sweetener in it.
• While stirring add the lemon juice into the tea.
• Add the cold water and refrigerate the tea for some time.
• Fill tall glasses with ice cubes and put in the lemon wedges and mint leaves.
• Pour the cold tea and enjoy the refreshing drink.

Recipe 2

Ingredients

• Water 6 cups
• Ground Ginger 2 tsp
• Sugar cup
• Green Tea Bags 5 bags
• Mint Leaves 1 cup
• Lemon Rind 1 tsp
• Lemon Juice 3 tbsp
• Honey 1 cup

Method

• In a sauce pan, take the water, the ginger as well as the sugar and bring the mixture to a boil.
• Once the water reaches 100 degrees Fahrenheit, lower the heat and continue to boil the water for about 10 minutes.
• Remove from heat and pour into a pot. Add the tea bags and the mint leaves. Add the rind of the lemon.
• Cover the tea and allow the tea bags and the flavors to steep into the water for about 15 minutes.
• Stir occasionally to allow the tea to steep better into the water.
• Remove the tea bags and store the tea into the fridge.
• Once the tea becomes cold, add some lemon juice and honey into it and stir till it all blends well.
• Chill and serve in tall glasses with ice.

Benefits of Iced Green Tea

• The calories in green tea are zero. Need I say anything more than that?
• Green tea is rich in epigallocatechin-3-gallate, a flavonoid, which makes green tea a great antioxidant.
• Green tea is rich in polyphenols. Polyphenols help in getting rid of the bad cholesterol, the low density lipoprotein, which get stored in the arteries of the heart. This helps to avoid heart blockages and heart attacks.
• Green tea also has anticancer properties. Experts have researched and found that those who drank green tea regularly reduced the chances of cancer and those who already were detected by cancer were benefited with the reduction of the cancerous cells.
• When applied topically to the skin, green tea extract is said to have helped in curing skin cancer.
• Green tea helps in destroying the bacteria that causes tooth decay and other tooth problems.
• Green tea and weight loss are related as green tea promotes weight loss. Now, isn't this one of the great green tea benefits?
• Green tea helps in thinning the blood. Blood clots are also prevented by drinking green tea regularly.
• The blood circulation improves by regular consumption of green tea.

As you can see from the above, the health benefits are many and green tea also tastes yummy. With so many flavors of green tea to choose from, isn't it better to go on a green tea diet rather than reaching for the bottle of soda?