Tereré

History

Originally consumed by the Guaraní, its use was adopted during the Guaraní-Jesuit Missions time in the area of their missions. Tereré was spread by the emigrants, and has been a social beverage for centuries. People usually prepare one jar of water and a guampa (or mate, or porongo) (Spanish) or cuia (Portuguese) with a bombilla (Spanish) or bomba (Portuguese) which is shared among the group of people. The area of the Guaraní-Jesuit Missions has a fairly hot climate and this drink is believed to refresh the body and can be a very low-calorie, non-alcoholic beverage. Additionally, it is an important ritual signifying trust and communion.

Many people drink tereré with added herbs, both medicinal and refreshing. In northeastern Argentina it is commonly prepared either with water, medicinal herbs and ice cubes (called tereré de agua (tereré prepared with water)) or citrus, as in south-western Brazil, with fruit juices like lemon, lime, orange, or pineapple. This practice varies depending on the region, for example, in the Formosa Province (Argentina), as well in the majority of Paraguay, it is normally prepared with medicinal herbs. In Southern Paraguay it is often prepared with citrus juice. Mixing fruit juices with tereré is commonly called tereré de jugo (tereré with juice)—in northeastern Argentina—or tereré ruso (Russian tereré)—more common in Paraguay—because this practice is more common with Slavic immigrants in the northeast of Argentina and southern Paraguay.

Guampas are containers that can be made from animal horns, commonly made from cattle horns, stainless steel, wood, mate porongo (a kind of cucurbit native from South America), or silver. Metal guampas are often covered with leather. New guampas or those not used for some time need to be wet before use, because the lower part is usually capped with a round piece of wood, which expands and prevents leaks after being filled with water.

A bombilla is a metal straw with a filter at one end that is placed into the yerba.} Water is added to the guampa and sucked through the bombilla producing a clear, green liquid.

Preparation

Most preparations of tereré begin by filling a guampa to full of yerba mate. Then, ice cubes are added to water and usually stored in a vacuum flask. If herbs or juice are part of the preparation, they are added to the water at this point. When consuming, the water is poured over the yerba held in the guampa and extracted from the yerba with a metallic straw (with a filter included on it) called "bombilla". The liquid is refilled as desired.

Local customs

In Argentina, tereré is usually prepared with citrus juice and its consumption is increasing throughout the country, especially during the summer months, especially among younger millennials.

Tereré is part of the diet of native peoples of Argentina, such as the Qom people, who consume it within their diet based on stews and torta fritas or chipá cuerito. An investigation revealed that more than 90 percent of the Qom consume tereré frequently throughout the day.

Due to the hot climate, tereré is popular throughout the Central-West and Northern region of Brazil and is often prepared with a variety of juices, although coffee is still the most popular beverage in Brazil.

References

References

1. (May 28, 2021). "Tereré - Dr. P. M. Gibert".
2. "tereré | Diccionario de la lengua española".
3. "¿QUE ES EL TERERE? (Paraguay)".
4. (December 18, 2020). "Qué es el tereré, la bebida paraguaya reconocida como patrimonio inmaterial de la humanidad".
5. (December 18, 2020). "La UNESCO declaró al tereré patrimonio inmaterial de la humanidad".
6. (November 26, 2019). "Jóvenes esteños lanzan línea de hielos saborizados con remedios refrescantes".
7. (November 26, 2019). "Tereré Pantano: El emprendimiento que con G. 100.000 inventó una nueva forma de tomar tereré".
8. (November 26, 2019). "Paraguay festeja el Día Nacional del Tereré, bebida símbolo de su identidad".
9. (June 2, 2019). "Unesco admite candidatura del tereré y poha ñana como Patrimonio de la Humanidad".
10. (September 5, 2020). "Festival del Tereré propone serie de espectáculos".
11. (March 27, 2009). "Comprar bombilla para mate - El Mate".
12. "Todo sobre el tereré".
13. (December 2014). "¿Cómo hacer un mate tereré? - Rincón Recetas".
14. "Terere". ma-tea.com.
15. (May 28, 2021). "Study reveals that 40 percent of the country already drinks tereré".
16. (2013). "Prácticas alimentarias y actividad física en adultos de una población Toba de la provincia de Formosa, Argentina". Asociación Argentina de Dietistas y Nutricionistas Dietista.