There are numerous recipes for making delicious iced tea, but the use of baking soda may surprise some. Baking soda will yield the sweetest and clearest iced tea.

Tannins, a naturally occurring polyphenol found in black tea leaves, can give your iced tea an acidic or bitter flavor

and a cloudy appearance.

An alkaline substance like baking soda helps counteract bitterness and eliminate cloudiness in iced tea. Try adding a pinch of baking soda to your pitcher of iced tea.

Baking soda won't change the flavor of the iced tea because it just needs a small amount—no more than ⅛ teaspoon—to perform its magic.