How To Make a Perfect Kraft Macaroni and Cheese

(A Contemporary Barista-styled Perspective)

A wave of culinary wizardry is set to breath new life into the ubiquitous Kraft Macaroni and Cheese dinner. While much of modern cuisine with its molecular gastronomy, information-age QR coded juicepacks, or the recent advancements in self-cooking AI “Smart Foods” may feel intimidating, your humble kitchen can now play a part in this revolution. This guide is going to set you on a path to radically upgrade your Kraft Mac & Cheese game.

The venerable instructions on the box (relics of a bygone era which prized kitchen convenience above refining of flavor) might deceive you into believing this is a simple affair. Boiling water, mixing ingredients, an easy meal in minutes, right? But there is so much more to it! While the bumbling masses of plebes with low taste will always be content with mediocrity, those of us fortunate to taste the truest expressions of Kraft dinner can never go back.

It begins with the selection of a boiling vessel. Stainless is superior, a 6 or 8 quart saucepan is ideal. A commercial grade gas range is preferred for its ability to quickly modulate your heat inputs and thus correctly calibrate your boil. While you can learn to make a decent Kraft dinner on an electric stove, I wouldn’t recommend it.

Don’t overlook the importance of good water! the macaronis absorb 1.25 times their own weight in water during the pasta phase of preparation meaning that the final result is upwards of 70% water by weight! More professional Krafters should consider employing a scale with .1 gram resolution to accurately dial in their level of water absorptions and calibrate against current pasta industry standards. Communicating with other Krafters on the online forums can help you keep up with the latest science and methodology here.

Water must be filtered of impurities and many experts suggest aiming for a neutral water with total dissolved solids starting in the 100–300ppm range. Beginning with pure distilled water and selectively re-mineralizing is an option to explore for the more advanced users.

Fill your pot with 5.5 liters of cold filtered water and bring it to rapid boil. Optionally add .8–1.5 gram of kosher sea salt as it reaches boil.

Start your timer. Carefully pour in the dry macaronis with one hand while judiciously stirring the water with the other hand using a clean wooden spoon. Now you’ll begin down-modulating the flame as the full boil returns which should not take longer than 45 seconds. Note that if the boil doesn’t return quickly enough you are going to be left with a greater disparity between the tenderness of the surface of the pasta and it’s interior and an overall gumminess. A common preparation defect easily detected by seasoned Kraft connoisseurs. If this occurs, it’s best to dump the batch immediately and begin again. Many uneducated Kraft eaters fail to appreciate all the miraculous chemistry at play during a proper boil — a thermodynamic molecular dance that transforms commonplace pasta into a intricate delight for all the senses!

While you monitor the progress of your boil, modulating the flame and pan position to maximize optimal pasta turbulence ensuring a uniform texture, begin preparing the colander for straining, preheating it if necessary to prevent it from prematurely cooling your pasta during the draining phase. You should have your milk and 2 tbsp of slightly softened grass fed salted butter at the ready as well as your still-sealed cheese pack (prematurely exposing the cheese pack to oxygen will degrade some of the brighter lactic acid tang contributing to a duller finished dinner).

At the 7 minute mark, sample a macaroni to see if the pasta has completed its cycle. it should be firm but elastic, yielding to the chew without breaking apart or offering resistance. An additional 30 seconds can be added here if you are unsure. Though the macaroni you remove to test will be scalding hot, as you begin to master the technique your mouth and tongue will become less sensitive to the boiling temperatures.

Drain quickly and return to the still warm pan quickly adding in the softened butter and stirring vigorously.

The cheesing phase is all about timing. Open the seal on the cheese powder and pour it into the center of the now buttery pasta mound. pour in 1/3rd of the milk while stirring in concentric motions from the outside of the pan the center, gently folding the pasta into the cheese. continue adding the remainder of the milk and increase the vigor of the stir to break up any cheese clumps which could be lurking at the open points of individual macaronis.

Serve!

Your early attempts will likely have a lot of problems — hidden clumps, torn macaronis, uneven emulsification during cheesing. But don’t get discouraged! True mastery takes years of patience and trial and error, and nobody is expecting you could ever make a Kraft dinner at home as expertly as a chef in a commercial kitchen.

Needless to say, I don’t think it’s hard to make mac n cheese — and I don’t think it has to be hard to make a great cup of coffee. I’m the founder of Yes Plz which aims to be the best coffee subscription service (and also the most fun). Give us a try!