A 'Typical' Breakfast in ... South Africa

Sawubona! And so it begins. Here's the first of the reports from SE's "culinary ambassadors," our "eats envoys." We figured it'd be nice to start with the first meal of the day from a nation much in the news lately. —AK

Centuries of European rule have left their mark on the "typical" South African breakfast. It's a tea-and-coffee culture, so breakfast is often a cup of something hot (with lots of sugar added) served alongside something bready. That can be a piece of toast with jam or cheese, a rusk (a thick and tooth-breakingly hard cookie), buttered bread, or even a hot dog bun.

The ubiquitous "English breakfast" is also quite popular—especially after a long night of watching World Cup at a local pub. Recover with eggs, bacon, sausage (sometimes the greasy local boerwors), sautéed mushrooms, broiled tomatoes, and baked beans. Though if you're looking for crisp American-style bacon, you won't find it here—it's almost always the fatty, floppy "back bacon." —Liz Hawthorne