Preparo sempre il cibo al mattino.

Because Italian usually drops the subject pronoun when it is already clear from the verb form.

• preparo = I prepare
• The ending -o tells you the subject is io.

So io preparo is possible, but it is normally used only for emphasis, contrast, or clarity:

• Io preparo il cibo, tu apparecchi la tavola.
  = I prepare the food, you set the table.

In a neutral sentence, preparo by itself is more natural.

Preparo is the present indicative of preparare.

Here is the pattern:

• io preparo = I prepare
• tu prepari = you prepare
• lui/lei prepara = he/she prepares
• noi prepariamo = we prepare
• voi preparate = you all prepare
• loro preparano = they prepare

In this sentence, the present tense expresses a habit or something that happens regularly, especially because of sempre.

Here it most naturally means a habitual action:

• Preparo sempre il cibo al mattino.
  = I always prepare the food in the morning.

The word sempre strongly suggests a repeated routine, not just what is happening at this exact moment.

Italian present tense often covers both:

• what you do regularly
• what you are doing now

Context tells you which meaning is intended.

In Italian, adverbs like sempre often come after the verb and before the object:

• Preparo sempre il cibo

This is a very natural word order.

It can sometimes move, but the default position here is very common. For example:

• Preparo sempre il cibo al mattino.
• Al mattino preparo sempre il cibo.

Both are correct, but the original sentence sounds very standard and natural.

Italian uses articles more often than English does.

So il cibo is natural when referring to the food in a general or contextually understood sense. In everyday Italian, leaving out the article here can sound less natural.

Compare:

• Preparo il cibo = I prepare the food
• Preparo cibo = sounds less usual in this context, and can feel more abstract or more like I prepare food as an activity in general

Very often, Italian prefers the article where English might not.

Cibo means food in a general sense.

It is a broad word. Depending on context, an Italian speaker might also say:

• il pranzo = lunch
• la cena = dinner
• da mangiare = something to eat / food

So:

• Preparo sempre il cibo al mattino is grammatically fine and understandable.
• But in real life, if someone means a specific meal, they might more naturally say:
  • Preparo sempre il pranzo al mattino.
  • Preparo sempre da mangiare al mattino.

Al is the combination of:

• a
  • il = al

This is called a contracted preposition.

So:

• al mattino literally = at the morning
• but in natural English it means in the morning

Italian often contracts prepositions with definite articles:

• a + il = al
• a + lo = allo
• a + la = alla
• a + i = ai
• a + gli = agli
• a + le = alle

Because that is one of the normal Italian ways to express time of day.

Common expressions are:

• al mattino = in the morning
• nel pomeriggio = in the afternoon
• alla sera / la sera / di sera = in the evening
• di notte = at night

So even though English uses in, Italian often uses a different structure. You should learn al mattino as a set expression.

Yes, but the meaning shifts slightly.

• al mattino = in the morning, as a general time frame
• di mattina = in the morning; also common, often a bit more informal in tone
• ogni mattina = every morning

Compare:

• Preparo sempre il cibo al mattino.
  = I always prepare the food in the morning.
• Preparo il cibo ogni mattina.
  = I prepare the food every morning.

Both are natural, but ogni mattina emphasizes repetition more directly.

Yes. Italian word order is more flexible than English, although some orders sound more natural than others.

These are all possible:

• Preparo sempre il cibo al mattino.
• Al mattino preparo sempre il cibo.
• Il cibo lo preparo sempre al mattino.
  This adds emphasis to il cibo.

The original version is a very neutral, standard sentence. If you move things around, you often change the focus or emphasis, not the basic meaning.

There actually is an article there, but it is hidden inside al:

• al = a + il
• so al mattino contains il mattino

That is why you do not see il written separately.

They are closely related, and both refer to morning, but they are not always used in exactly the same way.

• mattino appears in common expressions like al mattino
• mattina is also very common, especially in phrases like:
  • stamattina = this morning
  • domani mattina = tomorrow morning
  • ogni mattina = every morning

So for this sentence, al mattino is perfectly natural.

Italian can add emphasis by changing pronouns or word order.

To emphasize I:

• Io preparo sempre il cibo al mattino.
  = I always prepare the food in the morning.

To emphasize the food:

• Il cibo lo preparo sempre al mattino.
  = The food, I always prepare it in the morning.

That extra lo is a pronoun that repeats il cibo, which is common in spoken Italian when the object is moved to the front.

Yes, it is grammatical and natural enough, but a native speaker might choose a more specific noun depending on the situation.

For example:

• Preparo sempre il pranzo al mattino.
• Preparo sempre da mangiare al mattino.

That is because cibo is quite general. Still, your sentence is correct and easy to understand.