Ethiopian Breakfast: Firfir, Chechebsa, Ful, Genfo and More

Sudo Menu Editorial · 3 November 2026

Morning in Addis Ababa starts early. By seven o’clock, cafes are busy with people having a macchiato on the way to work, and small restaurants are already serving plates of firfir and ful. Ethiopian breakfasts are filling, warming and often spicy, and many of them are clever ways to use bread and injera from the day before.

This guide covers the breakfast dishes you are most likely to see on a menu, what each one contains, and how to choose if you are fasting.

Firfir (ፍርፍር)

Firfir is probably the most common Ethiopian breakfast. Pieces of injera are torn up and tossed in a sauce of onion, berbere and oil or spiced butter, so they soak up the flavour and become soft and rich. It is usually served on more injera, which surprises first-time visitors but makes perfect sense once you try it.

There are several versions:

• Injera firfir is the classic, made with torn injera.
• Kita firfir uses torn kita, a thin unleavened flatbread, instead of injera. Its buttery, honey-topped form is better known as chechebsa (see below).
• Siga firfir adds small pieces of meat.
• Yetsom firfir is the fasting version, cooked with oil instead of butter and without meat.

If you like spice, firfir is a great start to the day. If you do not, ask for a milder version or pair it with plain yoghurt, ergo, where available.

Chechebsa (ጨጨብሳ)

Chechebsa, also called kita firfir in some places, is a flatbread that is fried, torn into small pieces and mixed with niter kibbeh (spiced clarified butter) and berbere. It is often served with a spoonful of honey on top and a side of yoghurt. The mix of sweet honey, warm spice and butter is what makes it a favourite.

Because it is made with butter, classic chechebsa is not a fasting dish. Some cafes offer a fasting version cooked with oil.

Ful (ፉል)

Ful is a dish of slow-cooked fava beans, mashed and topped with chopped onion, tomato, green chilli and oil. It is often finished with a fried or boiled egg, a spoonful of yoghurt or a sprinkle of berbere, and it is eaten with bread rather than injera. Ful came to Ethiopia from Sudan and Egypt and has become one of the most popular breakfasts in the city.

Plain ful with oil, onion and tomato is fasting-friendly. Ful with egg, butter or yoghurt is not, so check how your plate is topped if you are fasting.

Genfo (ገንፎ)

Genfo is a thick porridge made from barley or wheat flour, shaped into a mound with a well in the middle. The well is filled with spiced butter and berbere, and the porridge is eaten by dipping pieces into it. It is a traditional, very filling breakfast, often served to new mothers and on cold mornings, and it is commonly found in homes and traditional restaurants more than in modern cafes.

Kinche (ቅንጬ)

Kinche is a simple, savoury dish of cracked wheat or oats cooked with butter or oil and seasoned lightly. It is mild and comforting, a good choice if you want something gentle in the morning. Made with oil, it is fasting-friendly.

Enkulal firfir (እንቁላል ፍርፍር)

Enkulal means egg, and enkulal firfir is Ethiopian-style scrambled eggs: eggs cooked with onion, tomato and green chilli, sometimes with a little berbere. It is served with bread and is popular in cafes that serve a quicker breakfast alongside coffee.

Bread, pastries and coffee

Many people simply have bread with tea or coffee in the morning. Cafes serve fresh rolls, croissants and pastries, and dabo (ዳቦ), Ethiopian bread, is a staple. A macchiato or a cup of jebena buna with something baked is the quick breakfast of choice for office workers, and spiced tea, shai (ሻይ), is a common alternative.

Fasting breakfasts at a glance

On Wednesdays, Fridays and during Lent, many people choose a fasting breakfast. Good options are:

• yetsom firfir, made with oil;
• plain ful with onion, tomato and oil;
• kinche cooked with oil;
• bread with black coffee, black tea or spris.

Dishes made with butter, eggs, yoghurt or meat are not fasting dishes.

Ordering tips

• Breakfast portions are big. One plate of firfir or ful is plenty for most people.
• Ask about the heat. Berbere levels vary a lot between kitchens.
• Ask what is fasting. Menus that mark fasting dishes clearly make this easy, and Sudo Menu shows a fasting filter on every venue’s menu.
• Go early. Many popular breakfast spots sell out of their best dishes by mid-morning.

In short

An Ethiopian breakfast can be as simple as bread and coffee or as hearty as a plate of firfir on injera. Try ful for something familiar but new, chechebsa with honey for a sweet and spicy treat, and genfo if you ever get the chance to have it at home. Whatever you choose, it will keep you going until well past lunchtime.