Mate is a tea growing in popularity due to health benefits and bold, rich flavor. Tradition holds that mate tea infuses in hot water and drinks from a gourd. The gourd passes around communally and constantly refills with water. The bombilla straw sips mate while keeping leaves in the gourd. Tereré refers to the cold mate infusion – similar to mate, except iced and served cold.
Paraguay’s Ache Guayaki tribe has sipped mate from gourds for hundreds of years for its rejuvenating qualities. The Pasteur Institute concluded mate equals few plants in nutritional value with 24 vitamins and minerals, 15 amino acids and antioxidants.
Preparing Mate
To make mate taste good: Prepare mate by adding one teaspoon into a mug or gourd and add boiling hot water around 4 ounces per teaspoon of mate. Let steep 2-3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Sweeteners like raw sugar, honey or agave nectar provide subtle sweetness and richness. A squeeze of citrus juice gives an invigorating zing!
Brew mate by adding 1-2 tablespoons to a French press or strainer. Moisten with cool water. Add 8 oz of 170°F water. Steep for 5 minutes then strain. Adjust flavor as desired.
The traditional way to prepare mate is with hot (not boiling) water. Milk or juice can also be used. To make at home, warm a teapot with hot water. Add mate and hot water. Cover and steep for 5 minutes. Strain solids then pour into a teacup.
With a French press, adjust mate strength by using more or less tea and steeping 1-3 minutes. An electric kettle with infuser also works well. Never use boiling water, which makes the tea bitter.
Mate (mah-teh) is a drink made by steeping dried leaves from the yerba mate plant in hot water. It tastes somewhat like green tea, with hints of tobacco and oak. The simplest method for many is to treat mate like any other loose tea; steep it in hot water and then filter out the leaves before drinking. Use fresh, pure, cold filtered water. Spring water is best.
Never use boiling water to brew your mate, because that will make the resulting brew much more bitter. The ideal brewing temperature for mate is approximately 170°F(77°C). Room-temperature water isn’t hot enough for optimal extraction, so more time needs to be allowed for steeping. The ideal temperature for making mate is between 160°F and 176°F (70°C and 80°C).
Reddit Questions
What temperature should mate water be reddit?
What temperature should mate water be? It is generally recommended to use 80°C or 70°C water for mate, and to drink it almost immediately. However, I can’t drink a liquid comfortably at that temperature. Any tips on how to avoid this problem? Letting it cool down for a few minutes before drinking is not an option because then it would become too strong and bitter.
Whether making it hot or cold, mate is a great herbal alternative to coffee. Hot mate tea in a glass mug. Enter your email below and get it sent straight to your inbox. Plus, get recipes & tips every week! If your mate came with specific recommendations for brewing, use those. But using about 2 grams of loose leaf herb per 8 oz. cup of water is a safe bet. Taste your mate after the recommended infusion time and then decide if you’d like it to go a little longer.