7 common Nigerian breakfast dishes

7 most common Nigerian Breakfast Dishes 

1. Bread Sandwich with a hot beeverage

This is the most common breakfast dish in Nigeria. The ever-present Bread and ‘tea’. In most homes, this is the go-to breakfast dish. It is loved by both adults and children, it is quick and easy to throw together. Bread and ‘tea’ can be accompanied by boiled egg, omelette, sausage, bacon, canned sardines, corned beef, mackerel in tomato sauce (geisha) etc. A lot of kids call any hot beverage ‘tea’.

2) Pap and Akara

This is another very common Nigerian breakfast dish. In most homes, both the Akara and pap are bought from street vendors who fry the akara on the spot, so you buy it steaming hot. Some people for different reasons, process and fry theirs at home. Akara is a beans fritter made from beans paste while the pap is a paste made from grains, mostly corn but also millet etc. It is turned into a gruel to go with the akara using boiling water.

3) Instant noodles and egg

This is another ubiquitous breakfast dish. In fact, it can be served as breakfast, lunch or dinner in most Nigerian homes. It is so common that there are noodle stands at street corners dishing out delicious noodle dishes all day, all night. Instant noodle is so convenient, cheap, easy to prepare that it will give bread and tea a run for the money in Nigerian homes. It is mostly served with boiled egg or omelette. In fact, in a lot of homes, this is the first dish children learn how to cook.

4) Moi-Moi with custard or pap

Moi-Moi is a type of steamed pudding made from beans. To serve it for breakfast, one has to start very early if using whole beans because the process is quite tedious. Alternatively, to cut down on prep time, beans powder can be used or moi-moi can be bought already made.

5) Cereal

Nigerians like their cereals too although due to the high cost of cereals, especially imported ones, it’s going out of the reach of the average Nigerian. Another minus to cereal is that it is not as filling as other breakfast dishes unless there are other accompaniments. Cornflakes is the most common followed by coco pops.

6) Fried plantain and yam with egg stew

This combination is another awesome breakfast dish common in Nigeria, it can also be eaten as lunch or dinner. For the fried plantain, ripe plantains are used. Some households prefer boiled plantain and plantains that are not totally ripe. Some people also include fried sweet potatoes.

The egg stew is not a stew as such, it is more like a scrambled egg with other ingredients added.

7) Pancake

Pancakes are another staple breakfast dish in Nigeria. Most children love pancakes. There is also the Nigerian pancake called Diet.

Tender, moist and fluffy homemade buttermilk pancake.