Congee is the most popular breakfast in China and can also be found on breakfast tables throughout Asia. It's a rice porridge that's most often served with savoury toppings – such as minced pork, pickled vegetables, mushrooms, eggs, fermented tofu and peanuts – but sweet versions can be found with red beans, lotus seeds, dried dates, pine nuts and a sprinkling of sugar. 

If you’re in Brazil, you’ll find their breakfasts include a smorgasbord of different meats and cheeses with pão de queijo, small cheesy bread puffs that are crisp on the outside with soft and chewy insides.

If you need a hearty breakfast in Colombia, order up a bowl of caldo de costilla, a rich soup made from beef ribs, potatoes, carrots and herbs. It's also reputed to be an excellent cure for hangovers...

Indian breakfasts vary depending on the region you’re in, from poha (flattened rice) to idlis made of oats to a vegetable dish called misal. However, typically a tray offering various chutneys and breads, such as roti and parathas, are often found among the other options.

Unfortunately, churros dipped in chocolate aren’t an everyday breakfast staple in Spain. Instead, many Spaniards enjoy pan con tomate – fresh bread spread with garlic, juicy tomato and olive oil with a sprinkling of sea salt. So tasty is the dish, it turns up in the evening as a tapa as well! 

South Africa keeps it simple with a bowl of hot porridge called putu pap. Similar to grits and polenta, putu pap is made from cornmeal and often served hot with milk, butter and sugar, although it can be left to cool then fried. 

The Swedish keep it simple with bread (made from filmjölk – a traditional dairy product made from sour milk, similar to buttermilk or kefir) perhaps topped with lingonberry jam, and coffee (called fika). 

In Russia, pancakes are the star of the breakfast table. There are several varieties: oladi, described as ‘crispy and sweet,’ are similar to American pancakes but are made with kefir (a yoghurt-like drink) while syrniki, small cottage cheese dumplings, offer a higher protein option. Some pancakes are filled with minced meat or cabbage for a savoury meal while others are served with jam, honey, sweetened condensed milk or sour cream. 

Cubans keep breakfast simple with tostada (flattened, grilled and buttered slices of bread) which are dunked into cups of café con leche (coffee with milk).

In Costa Rica, breakfast isn't breakfast without gallo pinto – a hearty meal consisting of rice and black beans served with scrambled eggs, sour cream, fried plantains and corn tortillas. Sometimes avocado or cold meat is added to the dish.

In the Dominican Republic, mangú is a popular breakfast fare. It’s a dish made of boiled and mashed plantains often topped with red onion slices cooked in vinegar. Los tres golpes (the three hits) is mangú topped with eggs, cheese and the local salami. 

Whether you’re feeling for a sweet or salty breakfast option, you’ll be able to take your pick with a traditional Belizean breakfast of fry jacks (small deep-fried dough pieces) served alongside refried beans, eggs, bacon and cheese, or rolled in brown sugar and cinnamon. 

Peruvians opt for heavier breakfast with adobo being a really popular traditional choice. Adobo is a pork stew dressed with spices like cumin and other ingredients like garlic, onions pepper and a fermented corn drink called chichi de jora.

Among the many breakfast options in the Philippines is the rather unusual pairing of champorado and tuyo, or chocolate porridge and fish. The porridge is chewy and thick, made from tablea and glutenous rice, while the tuyo is a rather salty, dried fish. Apparently the sweet and salty combo works! 

You'd be forgiven for thinking huevos rancheros to be the breakfast of choice in Mexico but in reality while that dish is enjoyed north of the border, most Mexicans start the day with pan dulce (sweet bread) and coffee, hot chocolate or atole (a drink thickened with masa, rice or oats). Fresh tropical fruits such as pineapple, papayas, watermelons and bananas abound while out on the streets, one might pick up a picadita or two (small, thick tortillas topped with beans, cheese and various condiments) to start the day.