Learn Hardcore Swahili: Mimi ninapenda kunywa chai na kitumbua asubuhi. - I like to drink tea with a rice cake in the morning.

In Swahili, the subject is normally shown on the verb, so ni- in ninapenda already means “I”.
The independent pronoun mimi is optional and is usually used for:

Emphasis or contrast:
- Mimi ninapenda kunywa chai… = I like to drink tea (implying maybe others don’t).
Clarity in a longer sentence or after a pause.

So:

Ninapenda kunywa chai… = I like to drink tea.
Mimi ninapenda kunywa chai… = I (as opposed to someone else) like to drink tea.

Can I drop Mimi and just say Ninapenda kunywa chai na kitumbua asubuhi?

Yes. In fact, that’s the most natural everyday version.

Mimi ninapenda kunywa… – perfectly correct, but has a feeling of emphasis.
Ninapenda kunywa… – neutral, what people usually say.

You normally only include mimi when you specifically want to highlight “I”.

What exactly does ninapenda mean in terms of tense? Is it “I like” or “I am liking”?

The form ni-na-penda is:

ni- – subject marker “I”
-na- – present tense marker
-penda – verb root “like / love”

In practice, ninapenda usually covers both English:

“I like” / “I love” (general, habitual)
sometimes “I am liking” in a very broad sense of “currently like”, though English rarely says that.

In your sentence, it’s best understood as “I like / I enjoy (habitually)”.

What’s the difference between ninapenda and napenda?

Both can mean “I like”.

Ninapenda – clear, “textbook” form: ni- (I) + -na- (present) + penda.
Napenda – very common shortened form in everyday Swahili.

Meaning-wise, they are the same in this context, and both are acceptable. Many people will say or write:

Napenda kunywa chai… instead of Ninapenda kunywa chai….

As a learner, you can safely use ninapenda; just be aware you’ll hear napenda all the time.

Why do we use kunywa here? How does this “ku-” infinitive work?

Kunywa is the infinitive form of the verb “to drink”:

ku- – infinitive prefix (similar to English “to” in “to drink”)
-nywa – verb root

With verbs like penda (“like”), it’s very common to follow them with an infinitive:

ninapenda kunywa chai – I like to drink tea
anapenda kusoma vitabu – he/she likes to read books

So the pattern is: [conjugated verb] + [ku- + verb].

Does “chai na kitumbua” mean “tea and kitumbua” or “tea with kitumbua”? And why is there no separate verb “eat” for kitumbua?

Na can mean both “and” and “with”, depending on context.

Here chai na kitumbua is naturally understood as “tea with kitumbua” or “tea and kitumbua (together)” – a typical breakfast combo.

Strictly speaking, if you wanted to mark both actions, you could say:

Ninapenda kunywa chai na kula kitumbua asubuhi.
- I like to drink tea and eat kitumbua in the morning.

But because chai is a drink and kitumbua is food, “kunywa chai na kitumbua” is easily understood as “drink tea with kitumbua.” No one thinks you are drinking the kitumbua.

What is a kitumbua, and why don’t we say “a kitumbua” or “the kitumbua” in Swahili?

A kitumbua is a kind of fried rice cake / rice doughnut commonly eaten for breakfast in East Africa.

Swahili does not use articles like “a” or “the”. Nouns appear without them:

chai – tea / some tea / the tea
kitumbua – a kitumbua / the kitumbua / kitumbua (in general)

Context tells you whether English should use “a,” “the,” or no article. Here, good translations could be:

“I like to drink tea with a kitumbua in the morning.”
“I like to drink tea with kitumbua in the morning.”

Why is it kitumbua and not vitumbua? What if I eat more than one?

Kitumbua is singular; its plural is vitumbua. It belongs to the ki-/vi- noun class:

kitabu → vitabu (book(s))
kiti → viti (chair(s))
kitumbua → vitumbua (rice cake(s))

Your sentence with kitumbua doesn’t specify number clearly; English would normally say “a kitumbua” or just “kitumbua” generically.

If you want to be explicit about more than one, you might say:

Ninapenda kunywa chai na vitumbua asubuhi.
- I like to drink tea with rice cakes in the morning.

How do noun classes show up in this sentence, especially with kitumbua?

The most visible noun class here is the ki-/vi- class:

ki-tumbua – singular (one rice cake)
vi-tumbua – plural (rice cakes)

In this simple sentence there are no adjectives or agreement markers that have to change, so noun-class agreement isn’t obvious yet. But later you’ll see things like:

kitumbua kizuri – a good kitumbua
vitumbua vizuri – good vitumbua (plural)

The class prefix on the noun (ki- / vi-) and on related words (like adjectives) typically matches.

Can I move asubuhi to the beginning, like Asubuhi ninapenda kunywa chai na kitumbua?

Yes. Time expressions in Swahili are quite flexible. Both are correct:

Mimi ninapenda kunywa chai na kitumbua asubuhi.
Asubuhi ninapenda kunywa chai na kitumbua.

Putting asubuhi first gives it a bit more emphasis on the time: “In the morning, I like to drink tea and kitumbua.” The meaning is essentially the same.

How would I say “every morning” instead of just “in the morning”?

Use kila (“every”) before the time word:

Ninapenda kunywa chai na kitumbua kila asubuhi.
- I like to drink tea and kitumbua every morning.

So:

asubuhi – (in) the morning
kila asubuhi – every morning

How do you pronounce kunywa and chai? The consonant clusters look tricky.

Pronunciation tips:

kunywa
- ku- like “koo” in “cook” (short).
- nyw is one cluster:
  - ny like “ny” in “canyon” (similar to Spanish ñ).
  - then wa like “wah”.
- Roughly: koo-NYWA (said smoothly, not in English syllables).
chai
- like English “chai” (as in chai tea): CHAI with a clear ch as in “church.”

Saying the consonant clusters smoothly will make you sound much more natural.

Is it also correct to say Ninapenda kunywa chai na kula kitumbua asubuhi?

Yes, that’s perfectly correct and a bit more explicit:

kunywa chai – to drink tea
kula kitumbua – to eat kitumbua

So:

Ninapenda kunywa chai na kula kitumbua asubuhi.
- I like to drink tea and eat kitumbua in the morning.

Your original sentence is just a more compact way to say essentially the same thing.