12 Traditional Mexican Breakfast Foods To Start Your Day (2024)

Breakfast is the most important meal of the day, is it not? Culture has a huge influence on food and Mexico is no exception.

Let’s talk about the tastiest of all: Mexican breakfast foods.

Mexican breakfast foods can be traditional breakfast foods with a cultural spin; this includes eggs with chorizo and old-fashioned oatmeal. But Mexican breakfast can also be as simple as a concha, atole or a bolillo first thing in the morning.

Whether you’re looking to try food from different cultures or you’re looking for some new breakfast recipes, or planning a Mexican vacation you’ll want to read on.

In this article, you’ll learn more about Mexican breakfast and the history behind it all.

What Are Mexican Breakfast Foods?

From simple easy-to-grab foods like conchas to meals rich in nutrients and flavor like Mexican-style scrambled eggs, Mexican breakfast can fit your level of hunger.

Some recipes are like well-known breakfast foods with a Mexican twist to them.

However, this isn’t the case for all recipes.

Many Mexican breakfast foods are not typical morning snacks to other cultures.

When it comes to foods that aren’t the traditional breakfast, there is a wide variety.

There are tetelas, gordita de harina, chilaquiles, huevos rancheros and more.

For a Mexican breakfast that sounds traditional, there’s Mexican scrambled eggs and old-fashioned oatmeal.

12 Delicious Mexican Breakfast Ideas

1. Tetelas

If you’re looking for savory breakfast food that’ll only take you 30 minutes, you should make tetelas oaxaca.

Tetelas are a tasty Mexican bread shaped like triangles, so even the kids will have fun eating them.

Tetelas Oaxaca inside is stuffed with refried black beans, and the outside is topped with crumbled cheese and salsa.

Of course, you can add more toppings or fillings to suit your taste.

2. Huevos Rancheros

If you’re looking for a delicious dish to get you going in the morning, huevos rancheros won’t disappoint.

This meal has tortillas as a base and includes fried eggs.

Huevos rancheros are often topped with home-made salsa fresca and typically served with fried potatoes, avocado slices and refried beans.

3. Gordita de Harina

Maybe savory breakfast isn’t your style, and you’d like something sweeter. Gordita de Harina is a recipe you can follow to make some sweet cookies on the griddle.

The flavors can vary depending on your creativity.

So if you want to make this often, you should try switching up the flavors.

But be warned, as soon as you make the cookies, they’ll disappear. That’s how delicious they are.

4. Chilaquiles

Chilaquiles is a typical Mexican breakfast dish made using some fried tortillas andsalsa verde.

If you made too many tortillas last night and have quite a few to spare, use them to make some chilaquiles.

Like many popular Mexican dishes, chilaquiles is spicy, but you can certainly fine-tune the same.

5. Mexican Scrambled Eggs

Just as the name implies, Mexican scrambled eggs are just scrambled eggs with a cultural twist.

The most common recipe includes white onion, your favorite Mexican pepper, and tomato.

This way, the colors represent the Mexican flag.

This is a highly popular breakfast choice that you can make by yourself or order at a restaurant.

Regardless of where you get it, you’re sure to enjoy it.

6. Café de Olla

Café de Olla is the traditional Mexican coffee that’s usually brewed in a clay or enamel pot.

That’s why locals call it café de olla, which directly translates to “coffee in a pot.”

While the name is pretty simple, the flavor isn’t! It’s traditionally spiced with cloves, cinnamon, and star anise.

If you want to make it truly authentic, you should sweeten it withpiloncillo(the Mexican raw form of sugarcane).

7. Mexican Oatmeal

For a sweet and creamy addition to your flavor pool, you might want to make some old-fashioned oatmeal: Mexican style.

While the ingredients may be simple, making it can be tedious and difficult if you don’t get the timing right.

You can serve it with a side of toast, add peaches and apples, and even more to suit your taste.

This delicious bowl is best served hot, so it’s more of a cold-weather meal.

8. Tamales

Tamales begin with masa dough with a hearty filling inside.

You can find pork, chicken, beef, cheese, or bean tamales.

They are traditionally wrapped in a plantain leaf or corn husk and steamed.

You may see tamales served on a plate or still in the leaf.

9. Atole

Atole is a type of beverage that originates from Mexico.

It primarily consists of cornflour and water, though spices and milk are often added for taste.

Cinnamon, vanilla, and sugar are common additives.

People traditionally enjoy atole during the winter months, and it’s typically served warm.

Atole is often served with tamales for breakfast.

10. Molletes

Molletes are traditionally made with bolillo, a Mexican baguette-style that is baked in a stone oven.

Long slices ofbolilloare hollowed and then filled with warm refried beans and jalapeno peppers.

Then, the refried beans are topped with cheese, and the bread is grilled until the cheese melts.

11. Huevos Divorciados

Translated as “Divorced Eggs”, Huevos Divorciados are for those who can’t decide between salsa rojo and salsa verde.

This classic Mexican breakfast features both topped on fried eggs and separated by refried beans.

This playful breakfast dish is not only tasty but visually appetizing as well.

12. Conchas

Conchas are a type of Mexican sweet bread roll with a crunchy topping of sugar, butter, and flour that is scored for a striped appearance similar to a seashell.

The origins can be traced back to Mexico’s pre-colonial period when French, Spanish, and Italian bakers brought their bread recipes.

Conchas are a very popular bread that is sold in almost every Mexican bakery.

Whether for breakfast or as a late-night snack, these sweet Mexican treats are enjoyed by people of all ages.

How To Make The Most Popular Mexican Breakfast Foods

Now that we’re well informed on Mexican breakfast, let’s get right on to it and make some!

For recipes, we’re only going to look at tetelas and Mexican scrambled eggs.

Tetelas

For tetelas, you will need:

• 2 cups of Masa Harina
• 1¼ cups of warm water
• 1⅓ cups of refried beans
• 3/4 cups of Mexican Cream
• 3/4 cups of Queso Fresco
• Red spicy salsa or raw green salsa
• Plastic (2 sheets)
• Tortilla press or glass pie dish
• A griddle

If you don’t have a tortilla press, you can get the Uno Casa Cast Iron Tortilla Press over on Amazon.com.

It comes with 100 sheets of parchment paper, and it can be used for more than just tacos, considering it also comes with a book of recipes.

Here are the steps:

1. To begin, take the masa harina and the water. Mix and knead until you’ve formed a smooth dough. You can also add small amounts of water little by little if the dough seems like it’s too dry.
2. Then, take the dough and divide it into 12 equal-sized balls. Cover them with a wet paper towel.
3. Put your griddle over medium-high heat and let it heat up.
4. Take one ball and put it between 2 sheets of plastic. Press under the tortilla press or glass pie dish. The tortilla should be roughly 6 inches (15.24 cm) and be slightly thin.
5. Take away the top piece of plastic and spread about 1 tablespoon of refried beans on.
6. Easily fold one side of the tortilla over with the guidance of the bottom plastic sheet. Then, you’ll want to fold the second side and flip the third side, which will close the tetela.
7. Remove the plastic and cook your tetela on the griddle for 1 minute, then you will want to flip it and cook it for about 2 or 3 minutes on the other side.
8. Again, flip it and cook it for 1 minute and remove it from the griddle when it has a few brown spots.
9. Top it with cream, cheese, and salsa, and serve!

Mexican Scrambled Eggs

To make these delicious scrambled eggs with a fantastic story and cultural background, you will need the following:

• 1/2 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 2 tablespoons chopped white onion
• 1/2 Serrano pepper, finely diced
• 1 diced plum tomato (1/2 cup)
• 2 eggs (cracked and in a bowl)
• Salt (taste)

To serve it, you may also want to consider the following:

• 1/2 cup refried beans
• 2-3 tortilla chips
• 1 tablespoon crumbled Queso Fresco
• 3 warm corn tortillas

Follow the steps below:

1. To begin, heat your oil in a frying pan over medium-high heat.
2. Add in the chopped onion and cook for about 1 minute.
3. Stir in the Serrano pepper and cook for 2 minutes.
4. Add in the tomato and cook for an additional 2 minutes.
5. While the vegetables are cooking, gently beat the eggs. When ready, pour the eggs over the vegetables and sprinkle some salt. Feel free to add any other seasonings you might like.
6. Let the eggs cook for about 2 minutes and fold the vegetables into the eggs.
7. Cook for an additional 2 minutes until the eggs are set and remove from the pan.
8. Add crumbled Queso Fresco and any other toppings you want. Finally, serve and enjoy!

Final Mexican Breakfast Thoughts

Whether it’s food, holidays, or just traditions, Mexican culture always sets the bar high.

So it’s truly no surprise that Mexican breakfast is so rich in culture and flavors.

From breakfast with a great cultural meaning like Mexican scrambled eggs to breakfast that’s quick and easy to make like tetelas, you’re sure to find something that’ll suit your flavor pool.

And if you’re new to Mexican food and culture, get ready for your entire world to be rocked.

Best of all, enjoy!

Sources

• Mexico in my Kitchen: Types of Mexican Breakfast
• Mexico in my Kitchen: Tetelas
• Mexico in my Kitchen: Gordita de Harina
• Mexico in my Kitchen: Mexican Scrambled Eggs
• Mr. Breakfast: History of Mexican Breakfast