that anon called blue

But first, I have to make a separate image for the mate, because of course I do

The mate, an infusion invented by the Guarani, a native tribe that still exists to this day, although the population not even close to the numbers they were before colonization (yay colonialism ig /sar)

It's made with hot water poured in a very specific* way over the yerba (the green dried leaves) that is in a mate (the wooden thing with a metal rim) and you drink it through the bombilla (straw but metal and with a filter on the lower end for the yerba). Drinking mate is typically done amongst friends and/or family and it's an excuse to make some time to chat with people and have nice conversations, which is probably why it's the most well-known thing about argentinians globally (also because it tastes great and I think it should be easier to come across yerba outside of the country)

Now there’s a debate about whether the mate is argentinian or uruguayan and I’d like to say it’s both because the Guarani were in what currently are both of these countries (among others ofc). But also if I come across an uruguayan saying the mate is theirs I will fight them because no it isn’t (/j but also not really)

Also, the summer version of the mate is tereré, which is basically the same but with cold juice instead of hot water and sometimes even ice, great for beach days

* I'm not gonna step-by-step on how to prepare and cebar (serve, I believe) mate, because I'd never finish.

Okay this is my wall of notable foods, we’ve got:

Asado: you’ve heard of it, like a barbecue but just better in every way, if you ever go to Argentina you will mandatorily have this on a Sunday.

Empanadas: also a classic, a variety of fillings wrapped in a thin dough that can be cooked in an oven or fried (in that case being empanadas fritas), depending on the repulgue (the little border they have) they usually indicate a different filling (the one in the pic specifically is cow meat or carne suave), if you ever decide to eat homemade ones I recommend asking which empanadas is what filling because there are people out there that use the same repulgue for everything (im my personal opinion it should be considered a federal crime to do that, but alas).

Tortas fritas: oh my fucking god they are sooooo good. Like thats it. Incredible. Fried dough (unheard of, I know) and sprinkled with sugar (sometimes). Add a mate on the side and you’ve got yourself my favourite combo for breakfast and tea time.

Dulce de leche: if you haven't ever heard about this have you even heard about Argentina? The typical sweet topping for cakes, ice cream and pretty much anything that can be sweet. Has it's own ice cream flavour with like twenty different variations (that I know of), basically the better version of caramel. And I still can't believe people think it's "too sweet", like??? It has tha word "dulce" (meaning sweet) in its name of course it's gonna be sweet??

Pastelitos de membrillo: if you ever come here around May 25th or July 9th (first argentinian presidency and independence day respectively) you will see these in every bakery. Classic pastry that kinda if you squint a little looks like a four-petal flower, made from layered dough (I think, I'm not entirely sure how they're made and I gave up on research atp) and with a filling in the middle that can either be dulce de membrillo or dulce de batata (I also don't know the English equivalent for either of those) and glazed with almibar (google translate says its syrup but i dont believe it). I personally hate them but a lot of people really like them so they're going in here as well

Medialunas: Not croissants, they're smaller and sweeter* and frankly better than the french versions**.

* depends on the type of medialuna, there's medialunas de manteca (in the picture) and medialunas de grasa (salty version, my personal favourites), among so many others

** /hj please french people don't attack me we are all entitled to our opinions

Not pictured but thought abt these while writing:

Milanesas: brought by the Italian immigrants, different kinds of meat (best but also most expensive are cow meat) breaded and fried, commonly with a side of french fries or can be milanesas a caballo (with fried egg on top)

Alfajores: ultimate snack, basically two cookies with dulce de leche in the middle, sometimes covered in chocolate, I'm still surprised how they aren't sold worldwide man they're so good

Do you happen to know this guy?

Yeah, the bus. It was invented in Argentina as a way for taxi fees to be split between several passengers, ultimately being much cheaper than paying for a regular taxi (and to this day they still are over here) (somewhat)

Also this thingy

Yeah the ballpoint pen, it was also invented in Argentina by a guy named Ladislao José Biro, whose surname named the ballpoint pen in spanish (called birome)

And since we’re in the topic of writing, let’s me introduce you to this guy

Jorge Luis Borges (1899-1986) was an argentinian short story writer that would dictate his books to her mother (he was blind) and she would write them down, and his books about the gaucho argentino in the mid-to-late 19th century made him one of the biggest figures in international literature. I’ve read some of his stories for class and honestly they’re very interesting if you like classical literature

And also this guy, José Hernández

He published Martín Fierro in 1872, a gauchesque poem (like an epic poem but argentinian, and this book was so good it’s considered the pinnacle of that genre) that narrates the life of Martín Fierro, a gaucho that was drafted to defend an inner frontier from the natives. This book is an important part of argentinian culture, having the most prestigious national award for radio and television named after it. I havent read it yet, but I still encourage you to do so if you have the time (I will say tho, some versions are pretty long)