Is it possible to brew Yerbador yerba mate without a thermometer?

Many people, when they hear about the ritual of preparing yerba mate infusion, believe that it is quite difficult or time-consuming, which may certainly discourage beginner lovers of the infusion of dried yerba mate leaves. The key element in preparing the infusion is the appropriate water temperature. However, nothing could be further from the truth, because in South America, where yerba mate is a kind of national drink, a thermometer is not the most important accessory for brewing it. It is common knowledge that when we start learning something new, we scrupulously follow the instructions or a specific recipe to make everything work out as well as possible. However, when we become more confident, we start to fall into a kind of routine and at some point we don’t even have to measure the water temperature because we know how long we need to wait from the moment of boiling it so that it reaches the right temperature to pour the herb.

So if we asked an experienced person, they would certainly be able to determine the exact time we need to wait to reach the ideal water temperature. Of course, we know that not everyone is experienced, so we have prepared some tips that will make it easier for beginners to reach water temperatures of around 80 degrees Celsius.

“Basic way of brewing” yerba mate.

First, pour the appropriate amount of dried herb into the matero. It is recommended to start with a slightly smaller portion to get used to the taste. Then cover the opening of the container with your hand and shake it several times so that the lighter particles and dust are on your hand. The herb should be shaped into the so-called mound, i.e. arrange the herbs diagonally at an angle of 45° so that on one side it reaches the very top of the vessel and on the other side it exposes its bottom. Pour a small amount of water, about 30-50 ml, into the free space so that the dry media absorbs all of it. Then we place the bombilla straw under the herbs so that it remains stable. The last step is to pour the herb with water at a temperature of about 70-80 degrees Celsius. Water should be poured slowly and not too suddenly. It is worth remembering that after putting the straw under wet herbs, it should not be taken out. This is recommended because the herb will separate during mixing and may clog the bombilla, which will negatively affect the enjoyment of the infusion.

 Source: EU EFSA health claims no. 2071, 3923 scientific publications

• https://yerbador.com/kompleksowy-przeglad-chemii-implikacji-zdrowotnych/
• https://yerbador.com/antybakteryjne-dzialanie-yerba-mate/
• https://yerbador.com/spozywanie-yerba-mate-ilex-paraguariensis/

Ways to brew Yerbador without a thermometer.

• The first and most logical thing that comes to mind is to wait until the water cools down. However, this is one of the less precise methods, but you should also remember that yerba is not as demanding as we usually say about it. After boiling the water, all you need to do is lift the kettle lid after about 5-7 minutes, then the water should reach a temperature close to 80 degrees Celsius.  
• Another method is to mix boiling water with cooler water. It is known that to reach 80 degrees Celsius, we need to add about a quarter of its volume of water at room temperature to boiling water. This more or less means that we need to add a glass of cold water to 1 liter. Of course, it is difficult to do this in a yerba mate brewing vessel, so it is easier to use a vessel with a measuring cup or anything else that will make it easier to measure a specific amount of water. This technique can also be used in the following way: add a little cold water to the material previously covered with herbs, and then pour boiling water over the rest of the vessel. However, this requires much more skill.
• One of the worst ideas is that some people try to measure the temperature of water by putting their finger in it. This is quite unhygienic and an imprecise way of measuring water temperature and it is difficult to draw any conclusions from it. Moreover, it is quite a dangerous method because we can simply burn ourselves with boiling water. However, if we think that we will be able to remember the water temperature this way, we can try it – but for safety reasons we definitely do not recommend this method.
• One of the last ways we have found is to add ice cubes to the boiling water. In this case, we apply almost the same principle as when mixing water at different temperatures. Assuming that a standard ice cube weighs about 30 to 50 g and the temperature in freezers is from -15 to -20 degrees Celsius. We can conclude from this that one ice cube should be enough to cool boiling water in a matero with a capacity of 230 to 250 ml.
• The last way is the following proposition: we take three dishes of equal size. Pour room temperature water halfway into the first one. We proceed in the same way with the remaining two vessels. Pour water at room temperature into one of the cups with boiling water and mix. Then, pour half of the mixture into the third container with boiling water, resulting in water at a temperature of 75 degrees Celsius. We can pour this mixture over our herbs.

However, remember that we cannot go crazy and brewing yerba mate is not as complicated as it looks. The most important thing to remember is not to pour boiling water over the herbs.

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