Six Weeks of Breakfast

In my head, I love breakfast. I go to sleep with visions of me waking up earlier than usual, baking cinnamon rolls (from scratch, not the kind I have to pop open with the flat side of a spoon), arranging a fruit salad, frying the perfect strips of extra-thick bacon, poached eggs, pancakes, perfect coffee. My family gathered around the table, bright eyed and sprightly, enjoying each other’s company.

But if you were to observe our typical day, well, notsomuch. I usually try to set out the breakfast dishes the night before (in homage to my great-grandmother and great-aunt who used to do that, according to my mother). Breakfast for the boys is usually cereal, milk, orange juice, and two gummy vitamins (hooray!). If I’m not freaked out about oversleeping, I manage to get the French press assembled (after having to rinse the damn thing out from the previous day’s use) and 5 out of 8 times, I can make the coffee without burning it. P is usually on his own and if he’s in a good mood, well, he makes himself an English muffin with butter (of which, by default, he has to fork over 1/3 of to Boo, who is a muffin fanatic).

Notice I’m not in there anywhere? Not by accident. I forget to get myself breakfast in my morning rush and end up homicidal and shaking like a methadone patient by 10:15 a.m. (the darkest hour of the day…too far gone to be breakfast and nearly and hour and a half to really be lunch.) I cave and head downstairs to the coffee shop for a 600-calorie, shrink-wrapped Costco muffin atrocity. Which I immediately regret eating and vow to myself that I will wake up earlier the next morning to get myself a decent breafkast! (In case you were wondering, it doesn't usually happen.)

But I am infatuted the notion of breakfast and the fact that it varies so greatly from country to country. Some examples:

Netherlands. Typical fare is sliced bread with three choices of toppings: various cheeses, a cured sliced meat, or a sweet jam, peanut butter, or chocolate topping (hagelslag) or chocolate sprinkles (chocoladevlokken).  Often, a chocolate bar is broken over a piece of toast and eaten when a spread or sprinkles are unavailable. Weekend breakfasts include boiled eggs, raisin bread, pumpernickel, or croissants.

Norway. Called “frukost,” or “early meal”, breakfast includes meats, breads, and cheeses.  Kulturmelk (cultured milk similar to buttermilk) is often eaten with cereal.

Russia. Substantial is the word of the day in this frosty climate. Zavtrak may consist of hot oatmeal of kasha, eggs, cheese, cured meats, rye breads with butter (butterbrods), and usually tea.

Italy. Traditionally, breakfast is Caffe e latte (hot coffee with milk) with bread or rolls, butter and jam (known as prima colazione).

France. In France a typical domestic breakfast will consist of cups of coffee, often café au lait, or hot chocolate, usually served in big bowls, accompanied by a glass of orange or grapefruit juice. The main food consists of sweet products such as tartines (slices of baguette or other breads spread with butter, jam or chocolate paste), sometimes dunked in the hot drink. Brioches and other pastries such as croissants, pains au chocolat and pains aux raisins are also traditional. Other products such as breakfast cereals, fruit compote, fromage blanc, and yogurt are becoming increasingly common as part of the meal. A typical French breakfast does not include any savory product.

Vietnam. Typical noodle breakfast dishes in Vietnam (which are usually served with a loaf of bread to dip in the soup) include pho (Vietnamese beef or chicken soup based rice noodle), hu tieu (rice noodles in a pork based soup), bún bò Huế (spicy Hue style beef soup based noodles), bún riêu (crab soup based vermicelli noodles) or mi quang (prawn and pork rice noodles). Banh cuon (crêpe-like roll made from thin, wide sheets of rice flour filled with ground pork, minced wood ear mushroom, and other ingredients, including meat loaves and sauce), banh bao (savory meat buns or sweet bean buns), banh mi hot ga op la (Vietnamese French bread with sunny side-up eggs).

Phillipines. Known as agahan or almusal, breakfasts vary from moderate to very heavy.

A favorite traditional breakfast has fried rice called sinangag. Usually, this is made of leftover rice from the previous dinner and fried with salt and garlic cloves. This is then combined with fried or scrambled eggs, and a choice of breakfast meat: beef tapa (similar to beef jerky), pork tocino (sweet cured pork), longganisa (sausage), sliced tomatoes and a local pickle (achara) on the side. Alternatively, a cheese-topped breakfast pastry called an ensaymada is also eaten, usually with hot chocolate, as is pan de sal (Philippine breakfast roll) filled with a buffalo milk white cheese, and local barako coffee.

Japan. A traditional Japanese breakfast is based on rice, seafood, and fermented foods, which do not differ substantially from dishes eaten at other meals in Japanese cuisine. An exception is nattō (a type of fermented soybeans), which is most popularly eaten for breakfast. A typical Japanese restaurant breakfast presentation would be miso soup, rice with nori or other garnishes, nattō, rice porridge, grilled fish, raw egg, and a pickled vegetable.

India. In Bengal and Bangladesh, breakfast may include luchi/kochuri (stuffed luchis), puffed rice crisps with milk, jaggery and fruits. The luchi/kochuri are served with a vegetable curry or something sauteed. Semi-fermented rice (panta bhaath), which has a mild pungent flavor, is also eaten, sometimes with dal and chilies.

In South India, the most popular breakfast has several possible main dishes, such as idlis, vadas, dosas, uppuma savory pongal, and chapatis. These are most often served with hot sambar and at least one kind of chutney. This is usually accompanied with a tumbler of filter coffee.

In Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh especially, rice porridge (known as congee, kanji or ganji) is also traditional. It is served with various condiments such as pickles, nuts, coconut chutney or curry.

Korea. In South Korea, breakfast is traditionally eaten at home around 7 a.m. before going to work or school. It often consists of a small plate of kimchi or several types of kimchi, a bowl of rice and a bowl of salty soup made with vegetables (radish, onion, seaweed green onion, cucumber, squash, any vegetable can be used) and enriched with stock made most commonly from meat.

Uganda. Breakfasts vary by region. People often have a cup of tea with a variety of either warm or cold foods. In central Uganda, tea is prepared with milk and ginger, and it is served with a warm meal known locally as katogo. This is a combination of green cooking bananas (matooke) mixed either in a stew from beef or in sauce from vegetables such as beans. In some parts of northern Uganda, breakfast would consist of tea and boiled cassava.

Ghana. The typical breakfast includes omelets; a very sweet and dense bread known as sugar bread; and tea. Porridge is occasionally eaten at home, while many people purchase their breakfasts from street vendors. A porridge called Tom Brown (a light brown porridge made from roasted maize flour) is also eaten for breakfast. These days, a local meal called waakye (rice cooked in beans) is very common. People prefer to buy waakye from street vendors just as they do other small meals. It is normally eaten before work begins in offices.

I know I’m not even beginning to scratch the surface, but I’m running out of space and time to list all the fantastic breakfast habits from around the world.  But I’ve also opened up a challenge to myself (and by default, my family).  For the next six weeks, the Hungry Little Blackbird is going to branch out (get it?!) and try a new breakfast recipe from around the world. And report on it, naturally. I can’t say it’s going to be easy with my finicky crew at home, but it’s always worth a shot.

What about you? What are your breakfast traditions?