Perfectly sweet and packed with tropical flavors, this tropical iced tea is so easy to make and always a refreshing treat!
We’re giving a classic summer drink the easiest, yet most game-changer makeover today!
Everyone loves a good iced tea, but did you know it’s SO easy to spruce up this southern drink classic? Enter, all the tropical flavors.
A little fresh orange, lemon, and pineapple juice take this tea to new levels and transform it into an incredible summer drink that no one will be able to get enough of!
No one will believe that you made it from scratch either because it tastes like one of those specialty iced teas you would pay $5 a bottle for.
It’ll be our little secret that this tea is actually the most simple drink ever to make at home for super cheap.
This Iced Tea features…
- A smooth and refreshing tea flavor
- Lots of fresh citrus and pineapple juice
- Minutes to make and easy to make big batches
Making the Iced Tea
(scroll down to the bottom of the post for the full recipe)
Ingredients You Will Need
- Black tea
- Granulated sugar
- Orange
- Lemon
- Pineapple juice
- Mint
Choosing Your Tea
We recommend choosing a black tea for this recipe. We found that a variety of black teas work great, but they will vary depending on the flavor profile you’re going for.
For a light and fruity tea flavor, we love an earl grey black tea. This pairs especially well with the fruit juice flavors in the iced tea.
If you’re going for a floral flavor, oolong tea is also another favorite and pairs great with the citrus in this recipe.
Tips for Perfect Iced Tea
- Make tea concentrate – to make the concentrate, you’re going to pour boiling water over all your tea bags and allow to steep 3-5 minutes.
- Add sugar to concentrate – this will help the sugar dissolve into the tea perfectly.
- Use a heat-proof container for concentrate – because you’re pouring boiling water to steep the tea, it’s important to use a heat-proof container to prevent melting or cracking.
- Use fresh lemon and orange – you can’t beat the fresh flavors this citrus provides.
- Sweeten tea to taste – we recommend starting with 1/3 cup sugar for the 6 (8 oz) servings this recipe yields, but you can easily scale this up if you like your tea sweeter.
Recipe Variations
Try these ideas for a different twist on this recipe!
- Try different citrus – grapefruit or lime in place of the orange and lemon would be great in this tea.
- Use another tropical fruit juice – mango, guava, or passionfruit nectar would be a delicious replacement for the pineapple juice.
Storing Iced Tea
This tea will store great in the refrigerator for about 1 week. We recommend storing it in mason jars and then serving over ice with fresh mint and orange/lemon slices for serving.
Tea lover or not, you’re absolutely going to adore this tropical twist on iced tea! It’s so refreshing and sort of tastes like an upscale version of an Arnold Palmer tea.
But obviously SO much better and refreshing as heck!
Save this recipe using the ‘save to recipe box’ button below. If you make it, please let us know! Leave a comment + star rating below, or take a photo and tag it on Instagram with #wholeandheavenlyoven.
Watch this iced tea made step-by-step on Google web stories.
More refreshing summertime drinks to try next!
Tropical Iced Tea
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Ingredients
- 6 bags black tea
- 1/3-1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 5 cups water, divided
- Juice from 1 orange
- Juice from 1 lemon
- 1 cup pineapple juice
- Fresh mint and additional orange/lemon slices for serving, optional
Instructions
- Place tea bags and 1/3 cup sugar in a heat-proof container. Bring 3 cups water to a boil and pour over tea. Allow to steep 3-5 minutes, then remove tea bags and stir tea well to dissolve sugar. Allow tea to cool.
- Combine tea, remaining 2 cups cold water, orange juice, lemon juice, and pineapple juice in a pitcher and stir well. Sweeten tea with additional sugar to taste if desired.
- To serve, pour tea over ice and top with fresh mint and citrus slices if desired. Enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
This post was updated with new recipe adjustments and photos on 8/18/23.
Kathy @ Olives & Garlic says
I am actually both a coffee drinker and a tea drinker. And this iced tea sounds just right. So refreshing.
Melanie @ Carmel Moments says
I’ll take iced tea almost any way you give it to me but this one looks really yummy!
Have a marvelous day!
Sarah says
Thanks, Melanie! You have an awesome day as well! 🙂
Christin@SpicySouthernKitchen says
What a refreshing drink! It would disappear in a flash at our house. Love the tropical flavors. Have a wonderful Monday 🙂
Sarah says
Oh, this tea always vanishes SO fast around here. My fam loves it. 😉
Arpita@ TheGastronomicBong says
WOW.. Amazing flavours… I can gulp down 2 glasses of this chilled iced tea right away…. so good.. so refreshing.. 😀
Sarah says
I can do the same thing, Arpita! 😉 So, so good.
Natalie @ Tastes Lovely says
I am just like you, and LOVE iced tea! I have a glass every day with lunch. It’s the perfect amount of caffeine to get me thru the rest of the day. Coffee makes me too jittery. I love this tropical version! Can’t wait to give it a try : )
Sarah says
Coffee has the same effect on me in the afternoon, so this iced tea is the PERFECT substitute. You’ve gotta try this tea, Natalie! You would love it. 🙂
Medha @ Whisk & Shout says
You’re right, this color is sooo pretty! Orange is just a summer, tropical color 🙂 Yum!
Sarah says
It definitely looks just as delicious as it tastes! Thanks, Medha! 🙂
Kelly @ The Pretty Bee: Cooking + Creating says
This looks really refreshing, Sarah! Yum!
Sarah says
Thanks, Kelly! 🙂
Jessica @ Jessiker Bakes says
Haha I agree, with do have to stay hydrated! This is the perfect hydration – and LOVE the tropical style of the iced tea Sarah!
Sarah says
YES. This is the absolute perfect way to stay hydrated. LOL. Thanks, girl! 😉
Rachael | Spache the Spatula says
This is freaking perfect, Sarah! I want to drink tis all Summer long! Annnnd maybe add in some rum 😉
P.S.—just got an email saying your copy of the Flavor Bible has finally shipped!
Sarah says
I’m totally on board with sneaking some rum into this iced tea. Um, YUM!
Oh,and thanks for letting me know, Rachael! I can’t wait to get my hands on that book! 🙂
Kelly says
I love iced tea and this one looks so refreshing! I love the tropical flavors you added too – a big jug of this sounds like the perfect drink to cool down with!
Sarah says
It’s the perfect cool-down, Kelly! You may just end up drinking the entire batch in one day! LOL.
Danielle says
I love tea, I just can’t do coffee it always upsets my stomach for some reason. But tea.. now I can drink that! I’m from the South too, so it’s mandatory. I love the tropical twist on this one!
Sarah says
Oooh, you Southerners do like your iced tea don’t you! You would love this tropical version, Danielle! 😉
Sherri@The Well Floured Kitchen says
haha, I’m writing this as a sip my steaming hot coffee this morning- the hotter the better! However it doesn’t get steamy hot in the mornings here. But by afternoon- I am totally ready for something iced! Love the tropical twist on this tea, looks super refreshing 🙂
Sarah says
I’m fine with hot coffee as long as it’s semi-cool outside, but after that iced all the way! 😉 Thanks, Sherri!
Tina @ Tina's Chic Corner says
Love love love making iced tea and do it all the time! I’m really digging this tropical version. Looks super easy and I already have the ingredients. 🙂
Sarah says
Yea! You should definitely make this iced tea as soon as possible then, Tina! 😀
Olivia - Primavera Kitchen says
So refreshing, Sarah. I don’t drink coffee so tea is always my option. It is summer so iced tea tastes even better. Thanks for sharing 😉
Sarah says
This tea sounds perfect for you, Olivia! And I love how we’re both on icy-cold drink kicks this week. 😀
Dannii @ Hungry Healthy Happy says
You can’t beat ice tea – especially when it is as warm as it is at the moment.
Sarah says
I know right? The heat is evil, but the good news is that we have iced tea to make it better! LOL. 😉
Isadora @ she likes food says
I’m from the south where everyone drinks sweet tea, which I happen to hate, but I love the regular iced tea. I love all the tropical flavors you added to this! I think I need to sit outside with a huge glass of this tea and pretend that I’m on a tropical beach!
Sarah says
I don’t really enjoy sweet tea either—it’s basically just sugar water with a little flavoring. Yuck! And YES. This tea takes you to that tropical happy place that we all love. 😀