✔ Updated · 32 ideas: eggs, tortillas, make-ahead + sweet
A Mexican breakfast means salsa-soaked tortillas, eggs with a kick and a strong cup of café de olla, and I can't think of a better way to start the day.
The most popular traditional Mexican breakfast dishes are chilaquiles, huevos rancheros, huevos a la mexicana, huevos con chorizo, migas, molletes, tamales and enfrijoladas, usually served with refried beans, fresh fruit and café de olla or hot chocolate. For easy make-ahead options, try breakfast burritos, taquitos or a Mexican breakfast casserole.
- Egg dishes: huevos rancheros, a la mexicana, con chorizo, divorciados.
- Tortilla dishes: chilaquiles, enfrijoladas, sopes, quesadillas.
- Sweet: conchas, churros, atole and champurrado.
- Make-ahead: burritos, taquitos, casserole and egg cups.
Here are 32 recipes, from traditional favorites to easy make-ahead ideas.
Mexican Egg Breakfasts
1. Huevos Rancheros
Ranch-style eggs: crisp corn tortillas, sunny-side-up eggs and warm tomato-chile salsa, with beans on the side. Further south in Honduras the breakfast tortilla is a baleada, which I explain in my Honduran food guide.
Get the recipe →2. Huevos a la Mexicana
Soft scrambled eggs with tomato, onion and serrano chile, the red, white and green of the Mexican flag.
How: Sauté diced tomato, onion and serrano for 3 minutes, add beaten eggs and scramble gently. Serve with warm tortillas.
3. Huevos con Chorizo
Crumbly, smoky Mexican chorizo scrambled with eggs. Spoon it into tortillas with a little salsa verde.
How: Brown 8 oz fresh Mexican chorizo until cooked through (160°F), pour off extra fat, add 6 beaten eggs and scramble.
4. Huevos Divorciados
Two fried eggs, one under red salsa and one under green, split by a line of refried beans.
How: Fry two eggs on warm tortillas; spoon salsa roja over one and salsa verde over the other; add beans between them.
5. Huevos Ahogados
Drowned eggs: eggs gently poached in a spicy tomato and chile broth. Mop it up with bolillo bread.
How: Simmer blended tomatoes, garlic, onion and a dried chile; crack in eggs, cover and poach until the whites set.
6. Huevos Motuleños
A Yucatán favorite: fried eggs on tortillas and black beans with tomato sauce, ham, peas and cheese.
How: Layer a crisp tortilla with black beans and a fried egg; top with tomato sauce, diced ham, peas and queso fresco.
7. Migas
Scrambled eggs tossed with crunchy fried tortilla strips, peppers, onion and melted cheese. A Tex-Mex weekday hero.
How: Fry tortilla strips until crisp, add onion and peppers, pour in eggs and scramble; finish with cheese and salsa.
8. Machacado con Huevo
A northern Mexico classic of shredded dried beef scrambled with eggs, tomato and chile. Hearty ranch food.
How: Sauté shredded dried beef with onion, tomato and chile for 2 minutes, then add eggs and scramble until set.
Tortilla and Corn Breakfasts
My weekend move when there's a half bag of tortilla chips in the pantry? Chilaquiles. The chips soak up the warm salsa, the edges stay a little crunchy and this is the moment to grab a fork straight from the skillet.
9. Chilaquiles Rojos
Tortilla chips simmered briefly in red chile sauce, then topped with crema, queso fresco, onion and an egg.
How: Warm 2 cups red enchilada-style sauce, toss in 6 cups tortilla chips for 1 minute and top right away.
10. Chilaquiles Verdes
The tangy green version made with tomatillo salsa. Bright, a little spicy and perfect with a fried egg.
How: Toss chips in hot salsa verde, then top with crema, queso fresco, sliced onion and cilantro.
11. Enfrijoladas
Corn tortillas dipped in silky black bean sauce, folded and topped with crema and cheese. Cozy and cheap.
How: Blend black beans with their liquid and a little chipotle; warm, dip the tortillas, fold and top.
12. Breakfast Enchiladas
Tortillas rolled around scrambled eggs, cheese and chorizo, baked under red sauce. Great for a crowd.
How: Fill tortillas with eggs, cheese and cooked chorizo; cover with sauce and cheese; bake at 350°F for 20 minutes.
13. Gorditas de la Villa
Little sweet griddled corn cakes sold on the streets of Mexico City, lightly spiced with cinnamon.
How: Mix masa harina with sugar, cinnamon, butter and milk; shape small rounds and cook on a dry griddle until golden.
14. Sopes
Thick masa bases with pinched edges, loaded with beans, eggs, salsa and cheese.
How: Shape masa into thick 3-inch rounds, cook on a griddle, pinch up the edges and fill with beans, egg and salsa.
15. Molletes
Split bolillo rolls spread with refried beans and topped with melted cheese and pico de gallo. Mexico's answer to cheese on toast.
How: Toast halved rolls, spread with refried beans, top with cheese and broil until bubbly; finish with pico de gallo.
16. Breakfast Quesadillas
A thin egg omelet folded into a tortilla with melty Oaxaca cheese. Ready in 10 minutes.
How: Cook a thin omelet, lay it on a tortilla with cheese and salsa, fold and toast both sides until the cheese melts.
17. Tamales and Guajolotas
Steamed masa parcels with savory or sweet fillings. In Mexico City they even go inside a bolillo as a guajolota.
How: Steam store-bought or homemade tamales 15 to 20 minutes until hot; serve with atole or tuck into a roll.
Hearty and Make-Ahead Mexican Breakfasts
18. Papas con Chorizo
Crispy diced potatoes fried in spicy chorizo fat. Wonderful in tacos or under a fried egg.
How: Brown chorizo, add diced par-boiled potatoes and fry until crisp at the edges, about 12 minutes.
19. Breakfast Burritos
Eggs, sausage, potatoes, cheese and salsa wrapped tight. Make a batch and freeze them for busy mornings.
Get the recipe →
20. Loaded Breakfast Burrito
Our copycat of the Egg-Normous Burrito: eggs, sausage, bacon, hash browns and cheese with creamy spicy sauce.
Get the recipe →21. Mexican Breakfast Tacos
Soft flour or corn tortillas filled with eggs, potatoes, bacon or chorizo and a spoonful of salsa.
How: Warm the tortillas, fill with scrambled eggs and your favorite fillings, then top with salsa and avocado.
22. Breakfast Taquitos
Tortillas rolled around egg, cheese and chorizo, then baked until crunchy. They freeze brilliantly.
How: Roll the filling tightly in small tortillas, brush with oil and bake seam-side down at 425°F for 15 minutes.
23. Mexican Breakfast Casserole
Eggs, chorizo, peppers, black beans and cheese baked in one dish. Assemble the night before and bake in the morning.
How: Pour 10 beaten eggs over layered fillings in a 9×13 pan; bake at 350°F for 40 minutes until set in the center.
24. Mexican Breakfast Hash
Butternut squash or potatoes with peppers, black beans and cumin, topped with eggs right in the skillet.
How: Roast or pan-fry diced squash with onion, peppers and cumin; make wells, crack in eggs, cover until set.
25. Mexican Egg Cups
Little baked egg bites with green chiles, pepper jack and peppers. Make 12 on Sunday for the whole week.
How: Whisk 10 eggs with chiles, cheese and peppers; fill a greased muffin tin and bake at 350°F for 20 to 22 minutes.
Sweet Mexican Breakfasts
26. Conchas
Soft, lightly sweet pan dulce buns with a crackly shell-patterned sugar topping. Made for dunking in coffee.
How: Top rounds of enriched yeast dough with a sugar-flour-butter paste, score a shell pattern and bake at 350°F.
27. Churro Waffles
Crisp waffles brushed with butter and rolled in cinnamon sugar. All the churro joy, none of the frying.
Get the recipe →
28. Easy Churros
Golden, crunchy cinnamon-sugar churros made with a shortcut Bisquick dough. Dip them in chocolate or coffee.
Get the recipe →29. Sopapillas
Puffy fried pastry pillows from New Mexico, drizzled with honey. Fill savory ones with beans and eggs.
How: Roll dough thin, cut into squares and fry at 375°F until they puff; drizzle with honey or fill.
30. Tres Leches Overnight Oats
Oats soaked in three milks with banana and cinnamon, inspired by tres leches cake. Zero prep in the morning.
How: Stir oats with almond milk, a little condensed and evaporated milk, mashed banana and cinnamon; chill overnight.
Mexican Breakfast Drinks and Fruit
Want something cold? Our creamy Mexican horchata is a lovely brunch drink.
31. Café de Olla and Atole
Café de olla is coffee simmered with cinnamon and piloncillo; atole and chocolate champurrado are warm, thick corn drinks.
How: Simmer water with a cinnamon stick and piloncillo, stir in coarse coffee, steep 5 minutes and strain.
32. Mexican Fruit Cup
Papaya, mango, pineapple, cucumber and jicama with lime and chili-lime seasoning. Fresh and zingy.
How: Cut the fruit into spears, squeeze over lime juice and sprinkle with chili-lime seasoning and a pinch of salt.
How to Serve a Traditional Mexican Breakfast
A typical Mexican breakfast (desayuno) pairs an egg or tortilla dish with refried beans, warm corn tortillas and salsa, plus fresh fruit and coffee or hot chocolate. Weekend brunches are bigger, with tamales, pan dulce and fresh juice.
- Cook chorizo all the way: fresh Mexican chorizo is raw pork, so cook it until no pink remains and it reaches 160°F.
- Set egg dishes fully: bake casseroles and egg cups until the center is set and reaches 160°F.
- Use thick chips for chilaquiles: thin chips turn to mush. Sauce them right before serving.
- Freeze burritos and taquitos well: cool completely, wrap individually and freeze up to 3 months. Reheat to 165°F.
More Mexican Recipes
Keep the fiesta going with our easy Mexican appetizers, slow-cooked pork carnitas and traditional Mexican desserts.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a traditional Mexican breakfast?
A traditional Mexican breakfast usually pairs an egg or tortilla dish, such as chilaquiles, huevos rancheros or huevos a la mexicana, with refried beans, warm corn tortillas, salsa and fresh fruit. It is often served with café de olla, hot chocolate or atole.
What is the most popular breakfast in Mexico?
Chilaquiles are one of the most popular breakfasts in Mexico, along with huevos rancheros and huevos a la mexicana. Tamales from street vendors and sweet pan dulce such as conchas with coffee are also hugely popular morning foods.
What do Mexicans drink with breakfast?
Common breakfast drinks are café de olla (coffee simmered with cinnamon and piloncillo), Mexican hot chocolate, atole and champurrado (warm corn-based drinks), and fresh-squeezed orange juice or fruit aguas frescas.
What is the difference between chilaquiles and migas?
Chilaquiles are tortilla chips simmered in red or green salsa and topped with cheese, crema and often an egg. Migas, popular in Tex-Mex cooking, are scrambled eggs mixed with crispy tortilla strips, peppers, onion and cheese.
Can you make Mexican breakfast ahead of time?
Yes. Breakfast burritos, taquitos and egg cups freeze well for up to 3 months, and a breakfast casserole can be assembled the night before and baked in the morning. Reheat leftovers to 165°F before eating.
