You'll Be Surprised What People Eat for Breakfast Around the World

Pão de queijo (literally “cheese bread”) is a small, light bun — sometimes called a cheese puff — similar to France’s gougère, except that it’s made with tapioca (cassava) flour. A specialty of the state of Minas Gerais in southeastern Brazil and traditionally made with cheese from that region, it’s now a popular breakfast snack all over the country, usually accompanied by coffee.

Pupusas — in effect thick, stuffed tortillas, made with masa (alkali-processed corn dough) — are a breakfast staple in this Central American nation. They’re usually filled with beans and cheese or with cheese and chicharrón (spiced, shredded pork, not to be confused with the fried pork rinds called chicharrones) and served with curtido, a spicy slaw.

Bake and saltfish (or salt fish), also called saltfish and bake, is a classic breakfast dish in this small country on the northern coast of South America. Saltfish is another name for salt cod — cod or pollock preserved by drying and salting. “Bake” consists of dough balls fried in hot oil. The accompanying fish is cooked with onions, bell peppers, and tomatoes. Green tea rather than coffee is the usual accompaniment.

The salted fish in the Jamaican standby called ackee and saltfish — considered the island’s national dish and eaten for breakfast, lunch, and dinner — is also salt cod. Ackee is a fruit related to lychee. Its yellow flesh, when cooked with onions, bell peppers, tomatoes, and often a Scotch bonnet chile, resembles scrambled eggs.

The Mexican breakfast favorite called chilaquiles consists of fried tortilla strips or chips cooked in red or green salsa. Shredded chicken is sometimes stirred in, and chilaquiles are often served with a fried or scrambled egg on top.