To this day, Kahvalti – the word for a traditional breakfast in Turkey – is by far the most fabulous, most delicious, most diverse in flavors and foods of breakfast in any destination I’ve visited. And somehow, thankfully, the recipes that make up a Turkish breakfast are relatively easy to replicate with some kitchen basics. 

I’ve always loved breakfast. Eggs, pancakes, french toast, home fries, grits, corn beef hash, potato latkes, huevos rancheros, the Italian panettone my family traditionally eats every Christmas morning… One of my favorite things to do in a new country is learn the local breakfast traditions, and I’m always willing to try anything – even Spam and eggs, for example, which I came to appreciate while living in Hawaii. So when I was traveling for two months in Italy before moving to Turkey I was constantly disappointed at breakfast options and consistently hungry until lunchtime. For Italians, there is one important thing to consume in the morning: coffee. They might add in a cracker or a biscuit, but only if they’re really hungry. So when I arrived in Turkey I was happy to find that their traditional Turkish breakfast is quite different, much more extensive, and much more loveable. 

Breakfast in Turkish – the meaning of kahvalti

The word for the first meal of the day in Turkish is kahvalti – synonymous with breakfast, but the literal translation is “before coffee.” Typically, a basic breakfast in Turkey will contain cheese, olives, sliced cucumbers and tomatoes, and bread. The cheese will generally be beyaz peynir (white cheese), the same cheese that is used in most other Turkish dishes and snacks like tost, and sometimes kasar peynir (more like our chedder). In people’s homes, at a bare minimum they’ll always keep containers of cheeses and olives as well as cucumbers and tomatoes on hand, and of course a loaf of bread, for even the most basic first meal of the day, especially if there might be guests to feed. Menemen or some soft boiled eggs might be whipped up on demand for some extra sustenance. Of course, a cup or five of Cay (Turkish tea) is served alongside the meal or after consumption.

Menemen and other egg dishes 

Another morning mainstay is menemen, a scrambled egg-style dish, but made by first sauteing peppers and tomatoes and later adding unbeaten eggs into the already soupy mixture. The result is a more liquid, spicier version of what we typically make in the US. Sometimes sausage or cheese are added, too. 

Fancy types of kahvalti

In a restaurant or hotel, a kahvalti plate can be served with any number of additional perks. Up to five or six other types of cheese, fruit, jams and jellies, Nutella, infused baked goods, fried potatoes. But the ultimate add-on is the much beloved bal ve kaymak (honey and clotted cream). Mouth-wateringly, tongue-meltingly amazing.  It almost seems like every restaurant serving a kahvalti plate is trying to one up the others with a more elaborate offering.