DrinksEasy

Atole de Guayaba (Guava Corn Drink)

Name: Atole de Guayaba (Guava Corn Drink)
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 35 min
Cuisine: Mexican
Ingredients: 500 g Guavas maduras; 80 g Dough de maiz; 100 g Piloncillo (raw cane sugar); 2 Cinnamon stick; 1500 ml Water; 250 ml Milk (opcional)

35 min (10 prep + 25 cook) Easy 6 servings Nacional

Edmond Bojalil

Recetas Mexas

Published: 20 Mar 2026 · Updated: 23 Mar 2026

Warm thick corn drink with guava, cinnamon and unrefined cane sugar.

About this recipe

Atole de guayaba is a fruity variant of the traditional Mexican atole. It combines the thick corn masa base with the aromatic, sweet flavour of ripe guava, sweetened with piloncillo and scented with cinnamon. A comforting hot drink enjoyed especially on cold mornings and during the guava season in autumn and winter.

History & Origin

Atole is one of the oldest drinks of Mesoamerica, consumed by indigenous peoples for over three thousand years. Its name comes from the Nahuatl atolli, meaning corn water. The base of atole is nixtamalised corn masa dissolved in water and cooked until thick, a preparation that the Aztecs, Maya and other Mesoamerican peoples consumed daily as a source of energy and nutrition. With the arrival of the Spanish and the introduction of cane sugar, atole became sweeter and diversified with different flavours. Guava, a fruit native to Mexico and Central America, was one of the most natural and popular additions. Guava season in Mexico coincides with the cold months from October to February, making guava atole the perfect drink for the Mexican winter. In the streets of towns and cities across Mexico, itinerant atole vendors traverse neighbourhoods in the early morning, offering this hot drink alongside tamales in the traditional combination known as tamales y atole. Guava atole stands out for its natural pink colour, its intense floral aroma and its flavour that balances the acidity of the fruit with the sweetness of piloncillo and the smoothness of corn.

Estimated cost

£4.00

Total cost

£0.67

Per serving

* Approximate prices based on UK supermarkets

Nutritional information per serving

180

Calories

Protein

38g

Carbohydrates

Fat

Fibre

35mg

Sodium

* Approximate values. May vary depending on ingredients used.

Method

1
Wash the guavas, cortalas into quarters and cuecelas in 1 litro of water with the cinnamon for 15 minutes until esten soft.
💡 Use guavas well maduras for mejor flavour and colour rosado.
2
Remove the cinnamon and licua the guavas with its water of coccion. Strain for retirar the seeds.
💡 Strain dos times si quieres a texture mas tersa.
3
Dissolve the dough of maiz in the water remaining (cold), asegurandote of that not queden grumos.
💡 La dough es it that da the texture thick caracteristica of the atole.
4
Pour the water of guava colada in a pot, anade the dough dissolved and the piloncillo (raw cane sugar). Cook over medium heat stirring constantly.
💡 Mueve constantemente with a batidor for evitar grumos.
5
Cook 10 minutes mas until thickened and the piloncillo (raw cane sugar) disuelva completely. If deseas, anade the milk for a atole mas cremoso. Serve hot.
💡 El atole should tener consistency of chocolate hot thick.