Sun Tea – Dandelion “Raw Food” Drink
Dandelion Sun Tea is a popular way to brew tea, a drinkable form of enjoying fabulously famous healthy raw foods. You get the great benefits that dandelion tea offers for cleansing your system, without heating your kitchen! A nifty method to harness the energy of the sun and make a zero-calorie beverage:
Dandelion Sun Tea
(Sunlight is not necessary… you can make this tea in the refrigerator, too!)
4-6 dandelion tea bags (or loose tea, or clean fresh plants)
1 quart water
Select a 2-quart glass container scrubbed in warm, soapy water. [As an extra precaution against bacteria found in tap water that can turn up in sun tea, dip the container into a weak solution of 1½ teaspoons (or up to 1 tablespoon) bleach to a gallon of water.] Add the water and the dandelion tea bags (or, loose tea); cover. Put in a place where sunlight will shine on the container 3 hours—4 maximum—moving the container if necessary to keep it in the sun. When the tea reaches the strength and flavor you like, it is ready (as it is not steaming hot, you may like it iced). Refrigerate leftovers, with or without removing the tea bags — as you like. Drink within a day.
You may find the taste of sun tea more mellow than tea steeped in water brought to a boil: boiling affects water acidity, and slow seeping coaxes out a slightly different flavor. You might garnish with a sprig of fresh mint, maybe sweeten.
It is possible gentle warmth may brew more than sun tea: warm tap water can facilitate a marvelous medium for microbes (Alcaligenes viscolactis). Discard cloudy, thick, or syrupy sun-brewed tea; bacteria tendrils form ropy strands.
Add a cinnamon stick, whole cloves, and perhaps pepper, if you please, at the start; dandelion properties also provide awesome anti-bacterial power, including inhibiting bacteria growth. With Dandelion Chai – Spiced Dandelion Root Tea you get your wonderful health benefits and a welcome chai spice flavor.
If using fresh plants, see How to Pick Dandelions for Dandelion Tea.
