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Argentine · Uruguayan · Paraguayan · Brazilian

Mate (yerba mate in a gourd)

Vegetarian

Mate

Dried yerba mate leaves packed into a gourd and refilled again and again with hot, never boiling, water, sipped through a metal filter straw and passed around the group.

Mate (yerba mate in a gourd) is an Argentine hot drink, ready in about 10 minutes and made with yerba mate. It serves 1 and is rated easy to cook.

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A detailed view of a traditional yerba mate drink with a straw in a metal cup.
Photo: Lars Probst / Pexels · Pexels License
Prep
5 min
Cook
5 min
Total
10 min
Serves
1
Level
Easy
Calories
0

Then refilled and shared for as long as the leaves last (30–60 minutes).

Ingredients

1 gourd (shared round)

Equipment

Method

  1. Step 1

    Heat the water to 70–80 °C — small bubbles, never a rolling boil — and keep it in a thermos.

    Boiling water 'burns' the yerba and makes it harsh.

  2. Step 2

    Fill the gourd two-thirds with yerba (opens in a new tab). Cover the mouth with your palm, turn it upside down and shake gently to bring the fine dust to the top, then tilt it so the leaves slope to one side.

    • 1 min

  3. Step 3

    Pour a little cool water into the low side to moisten the leaves and wait a minute, then push the bombilla (filter straw) into the wet side, covering the filter end with your thumb.

    • 1 min

  4. Step 4

    Pour hot water into the same hole, beside the bombilla, until it nearly reaches the dry top. The server (cebador) drinks the first, most bitter mate (opens in a new tab), sipping until it gurgles.

    • 1 min

  5. Step 5

    Refill and pass the gourd to each person in turn; they drink it all and hand it back. Continue until the mate (opens in a new tab) is washed out (lavado) and tastes flat.

    About this dish

    Origin
    Guaraní lands of present-day Paraguay, north-east Argentina and southern Brazil · Well documentedFirst drunk by the Guaraní; now a daily ritual in Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay and southern Brazil.Also popular in Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay, Brazil, Chile, Syria, Lebanon
    Dish
    Breakfast · Snack · Hot drinks
    Cooking method
    Boiled
    Taste
    bitter, herby, earthy
    Diet
    Vegan · No gluten ingredients · Dairy-free · No nut ingredients · Low-carb
    All labelsVegan · Plant-based · Vegetarian (lacto-ovo) · Eggetarian · Lacto-vegetarian · Ovo-vegetarian · Pescatarian · Flexitarian-friendly · No gluten ingredients · Dairy-free · Egg-free · No nut ingredients · Alcohol-free · Pork-free · Beef-free · Low-carb · Low-fat · Low-sodium
    Without the optional extras: Whole-food focused, Paleo-style, No added sugarWorked out from the ingredients. How labels work
    Good for
    Everyday · Portable / lunchbox
    Cook more with
    Yerba mate
    Techniques
    Boiling

    Allergens

    None of the 14 major allergens appear in the listed ingredients.

    Based on typical versions of these ingredients and not verified allergen-free. Brands differ and cross-contact happens, so always check labels. For severe allergies, follow your clinician’s advice.

    Nutrition

    0 kcal per serving

    Estimated

    1 serving ≈ 600 g · recipe makes 1

    Where the energy comes from

    • Protein 0%
    • Carbohydrate 0%
    • Fat 0%
    Nutrition per serving and per 100 g
    NutrientPer servingPer 100 g*
    Energy0 kcal0 kcal
    Protein0 g0 g
    Carbohydrate0 g0 g
    Net carbohydrate0 g0 g
    Sugars0 g0 g
    Added sugars0 g0 g
    Fibre0 g0 g
    Fat0 g0 g
    Saturated fat0 g0 g
    Trans fat0 g0 g
    Cholesterol0 mg0 mg
    Sodium12 mg2 mg
    Salt equivalent0 g0 g
    Vitamins & minerals per serving
    Potassium
    0 mg
    Calcium
    60 mg
    Iron
    0 mg
    Magnesium
    12 mg
    Vitamin A (RAE)
    0 µg
    Vitamin C
    0 mg
    Vitamin D
    0 µg
    Vitamin B12
    0 µg
    Folate (DFE)
    0 µg

    How these numbers were made

    • Calculated from USDA FoodData Central (SR Legacy) per-100 g values and the listed quantities.
    • *Per 100 g of combined raw ingredients; the cooked dish may weigh more or less.
    • Optional ingredients are not included: sugar.
    • Not counted (tiny amounts or “to taste”): yerba mate.
    • “—” means the value isn’t known for enough of the ingredients; it is never zero by default.
    • Values are estimates for guidance, not for medical dosing. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. fdc.nal.usda.gov.

    Good to know

    Tips

    • Do not stir with the bombilla — it clogs the filter.
    • Saying 'gracias' means you have had enough and will be skipped next round.

    Common mistakes

    • Moving or stirring the bombilla, which clogs the filter and floods the mate with dust.

    Food safety

    • Very hot drinks (above about 65 °C) are classed by the WHO's cancer agency as probably carcinogenic to the oesophagus; let them cool a little before sipping.

    Storage

    • Prepared for immediate sharing. Keep dry yerba airtight; discard the wet leaves after the session.

    Variations

    • Chimarrão (Brazil): Southern Brazilian mate made with bright-green, finely powdered yerba in a large gourd.
    • Mate cocido (Argentina): Yerba simmered or steeped like tea (or in bags), often with milk and sugar.

    Original editorial recipe · FriendsPantry editorial · Not yet independently reviewed · Added · Updated

    Recipe DNA

    How this dish is built

    Customise in Sip & Blend

    Grouped by each ingredient’s role in the dish. Each band’s width is its share of the dish by weight. Choose a component to see what it does.

    The body of the dish

    Gravy, sauce & base

    Used in steps 1, 2, 5

    Less sweet, dairy-free, caffeine-free or for more people — the original stays as it is.

    Customise in Sip & Blend

    Reviews & corrections

    Reviews come from signed-in cooks and appear after a moderator checks them. We never show made-up ratings.

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