It’s only May, but it’s already hot here in sunny South Florida. Iced tea is the defacto summer drink in my house, but plain iced tea can get boring. I’m always on the lookout for ways to mix it up, and this Ginger and Lemongrass Iced Tea recipe does that in every way. Not only is it infused with ginger and lemongrass, but it also uses rooibos tea, something I’ve never tried. Until now, that is.
A refreshing ginger and lemongrass iced tea recipe.
The Ingredients
I wasn’t worried about the cost or difficulty finding most of the ingredients for this iced tea recipe, except for the lemongrass stalk and the tea. Not that the lemongrass was difficult to find, but I did have to make a special trip to Whole Foods to get it. Actually, I tried Fresh Market first since it’s closer, but they don’t carry it. Grrr. So it was off to Whole Foods and dealing with the crazy traffic around that store to get it. The tea was my biggest worry, but good old Publix had it in stock. No worry was needed.
The author does mention that this recipe can be adjusted to taste. For my first batch, I used a 6-inch stalk of lemongrass, 3 tablespoons of sliced ginger, and 3 tablespoons of honey. My husband thought it was a bit strong, so I halved the ginger and lemongrass for the second batch. It’s a tough call to choose a favorite, but I think I have to go with the first version.
The Process
Making this iced tea was simple and straightforward and there wasn’t much extra work involved. The recipe lists the total time at 5 minutes, but the instructions include more details on the times. Here’s how my time broke down:
- 5 minutes to prep
- 12 minutes to boil and steep
- 2 hours to cool
- 1 minute to strain
- 2 hours 18 minutes total
Looking back, I think the prep work could have been cut down by a minute or two if I had skipped peeling the ginger. It’s strained away anyway, so there really wasn’t a need to peel it. I suppose it’s just a habit for me.
The only thing that confused me was that lime slices are listed in the ingredients but never mentioned in the instructions. I threw them in as a garnish without squeezing them. I think they could be skipped entirely unless you want a garnish. The same goes for the mint, but it is pretty.
