Kraft changes their mac and cheese; doesn't tell anybody
March 21, 2016 8:59 AM Subscribe
A new formula that removed artificial preservatives and swapped out artificial dyes for a combination of paprika, annatto and turmeric had been under development for three years. “We’ve sold well over 50 million boxes with essentially no one noticing,” said Greg Guidotti, vice president for meal solutions at Kraft Heinz. (SLNYT)
Thanks, Trudeau.
posted by TheWhiteSkull at 9:03 AM on March 21, 2016 [15 favorites]
posted by TheWhiteSkull at 9:03 AM on March 21, 2016 [15 favorites]
Oh great! I was never allowed Kraft Mac&Cheese as a child because it was so loaded with artificial colors. Not that I wanted it - then. As an adult I developed a real fondness for it, but I also knew it wasn't a great nutritional choice. But for a treat, oh boy do I love it in all its radioactive neon deliciousness.
And now I can eat all of it I want, without let or hindrance other than having to go out of my way to lay hands on it in Europe.
posted by tel3path at 9:05 AM on March 21, 2016 [5 favorites]
And now I can eat all of it I want, without let or hindrance other than having to go out of my way to lay hands on it in Europe.
posted by tel3path at 9:05 AM on March 21, 2016 [5 favorites]
All the woo-woo people I know will be thrilled. All they ever talk about is Tumeric.
posted by Biblio at 9:07 AM on March 21, 2016 [49 favorites]
posted by Biblio at 9:07 AM on March 21, 2016 [49 favorites]
What are they using in the new recipe to simulate the tingle of alpha particles hitting your tongue?
posted by RobotVoodooPower at 9:07 AM on March 21, 2016 [21 favorites]
posted by RobotVoodooPower at 9:07 AM on March 21, 2016 [21 favorites]
All the woo-woo people I know will be thrilled. All they ever talk about is Tumeric.
Fuck turmeric. All hail saffron.
posted by Fizz at 9:09 AM on March 21, 2016 [9 favorites]
Fuck turmeric. All hail saffron.
posted by Fizz at 9:09 AM on March 21, 2016 [9 favorites]
Yes, but using saffron would put Kraft Dinner out of the reach of thousands of hungry students that descend upon the Metro or Food Basics to stock up when they have crazy sales on it.
posted by Kitteh at 9:14 AM on March 21, 2016 [3 favorites]
posted by Kitteh at 9:14 AM on March 21, 2016 [3 favorites]
All hail saffron.
People may not have noticed Kraft changing the recipe, but they will notice the price going from $2 to $10 a box.
posted by a lungful of dragon at 9:15 AM on March 21, 2016 [83 favorites]
People may not have noticed Kraft changing the recipe, but they will notice the price going from $2 to $10 a box.
posted by a lungful of dragon at 9:15 AM on March 21, 2016 [83 favorites]
Fuck turmeric. All hail saffron.
Saffron has always been red when I've used it, either the bunch that my FIL brought back from Egypt, or the stuff I've bought in Spain. I don't know where this yellow comes from for saffron, but it is a decidedly different colour to turmeric.
posted by koolkat at 9:15 AM on March 21, 2016
Saffron has always been red when I've used it, either the bunch that my FIL brought back from Egypt, or the stuff I've bought in Spain. I don't know where this yellow comes from for saffron, but it is a decidedly different colour to turmeric.
posted by koolkat at 9:15 AM on March 21, 2016
My kids noticed.
"It looks weird now," they said a while ago.
posted by chococat at 9:16 AM on March 21, 2016 [4 favorites]
"It looks weird now," they said a while ago.
posted by chococat at 9:16 AM on March 21, 2016 [4 favorites]
Well, shit. I love me some box mac & cheese, but I'm not buying any product advertised by Craig Kilborn.
posted by asperity at 9:17 AM on March 21, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by asperity at 9:17 AM on March 21, 2016 [1 favorite]
My wife noticed; she's been complaining how for the past couple months every time she made Mac and Cheese it made her stomach upset. She'll be happy to know it's not all in her head!
posted by AzraelBrown at 9:18 AM on March 21, 2016 [11 favorites]
posted by AzraelBrown at 9:18 AM on March 21, 2016 [11 favorites]
Most people who loved it and noticed the change before they made a big deal about it probably just sighed, said, "I guess the old one is gone," and went on with their lives. That's what I did when they changed Stoned Wheat Thins for the worse, anyway. Some accountant thought it would be a good idea, and how can you fight 'em?
posted by clawsoon at 9:20 AM on March 21, 2016 [6 favorites]
posted by clawsoon at 9:20 AM on March 21, 2016 [6 favorites]
But without the artificial preservatives, how am I supposed to live to be 110 now?
posted by entropicamericana at 9:21 AM on March 21, 2016 [18 favorites]
posted by entropicamericana at 9:21 AM on March 21, 2016 [18 favorites]
I know every vegan in the world says stuff like this, but last summer my wife and I (although we're not vegans) made some "cheese" sauce for nachos that was made out of carrots, potatoes and nutritional yeast, oil and some spices (maybe turmeric, I don't remember), and when we served it to a crowd of people nobody knew it wasn't actual cheese until we told them. I don't think you could pull that off for "real" cheese, but the "cheese" in nachos or KD?
I have no opinion on the KD situation because the last time I ate it I was like seven and then I barfed in a public pool later that night.
posted by The Card Cheat at 9:22 AM on March 21, 2016 [7 favorites]
I have no opinion on the KD situation because the last time I ate it I was like seven and then I barfed in a public pool later that night.
posted by The Card Cheat at 9:22 AM on March 21, 2016 [7 favorites]
The true nutritional yeast holy grail...put it on popcorn.
posted by Drinky Die at 9:23 AM on March 21, 2016 [16 favorites]
posted by Drinky Die at 9:23 AM on March 21, 2016 [16 favorites]
They could change the recipe to be made predominantly out of Paula Deen's private lard stash; it still would be better than the abomination that comes from the special, custom character-shaped noodles that never cook properly (the Star Wars ones were the worst I've seen for this).
And that's *before* you count in the fact that the custom noodle shapes also have so many more instances of pieces of the machinery used to make the noodles winding up in the box with them...
posted by mystyk at 9:25 AM on March 21, 2016 [3 favorites]
And that's *before* you count in the fact that the custom noodle shapes also have so many more instances of pieces of the machinery used to make the noodles winding up in the box with them...
posted by mystyk at 9:25 AM on March 21, 2016 [3 favorites]
Fuck turmeric. All hail saffron.
Which reminds me of the George Carlin line: "And now, a message from the National Apple Institute: FUCK PEARS!"
posted by Celsius1414 at 9:27 AM on March 21, 2016 [48 favorites]
Which reminds me of the George Carlin line: "And now, a message from the National Apple Institute: FUCK PEARS!"
posted by Celsius1414 at 9:27 AM on March 21, 2016 [48 favorites]
I keep seeing it reported that "they changed it in secret" or "they didn't tell anybody," but they did. They announced a couple of months or so ahead of time that they were going to make the change. But they made no follow-up announcement at the time that the change was made. They were trying to avoid what happened to Country Crock margarine when they attempted to frame their recipe change as an improvement and got a lapful of angry comments likening their product to axle grease and worse. And it seems to have worked for Kraft.
posted by Flexagon at 9:27 AM on March 21, 2016 [4 favorites]
posted by Flexagon at 9:27 AM on March 21, 2016 [4 favorites]
Well but other than recall notices, who pays attention to Kraft announcements?
posted by merelyglib at 9:29 AM on March 21, 2016 [2 favorites]
posted by merelyglib at 9:29 AM on March 21, 2016 [2 favorites]
They were trying to avoid what happened to Country Crock margarine when they attempted to frame their recipe change as an improvement and got a lapful of angry comments likening their product to axle grease and worse.
That's ridiculous, Country Crock isn't axle grease. It's a petroleum byproduct leftover from manufacturing axle grease.
posted by entropicamericana at 9:37 AM on March 21, 2016 [19 favorites]
That's ridiculous, Country Crock isn't axle grease. It's a petroleum byproduct leftover from manufacturing axle grease.
posted by entropicamericana at 9:37 AM on March 21, 2016 [19 favorites]
I have no opinion on the KD situation because
Found the Canadian!
posted by INFJ at 9:38 AM on March 21, 2016 [73 favorites]
Found the Canadian!
posted by INFJ at 9:38 AM on March 21, 2016 [73 favorites]
asperity: "Well, shit. I love me some box mac & cheese, but I'm not buying any product advertised by Craig Kilborn."
And I would gladly buy a product advertised by Craig Kilborn. Just not Kraft Mac and Cheese.
posted by Splunge at 9:39 AM on March 21, 2016
And I would gladly buy a product advertised by Craig Kilborn. Just not Kraft Mac and Cheese.
posted by Splunge at 9:39 AM on March 21, 2016
some "cheese" sauce for nachos that was made out of carrots, potatoes and nutritional yeast, oil and some spices (maybe turmeric, I don't remember)
I would lovelovelove that recipe if you can find it again.
posted by mediareport at 9:40 AM on March 21, 2016 [12 favorites]
I would lovelovelove that recipe if you can find it again.
posted by mediareport at 9:40 AM on March 21, 2016 [12 favorites]
The joke is on them because I already regarded actual Kraft brand mac'n'sleeze as a little too lah-dee-dee fancy for my tastes. After this change? Ooh, look at me, I'm the fucking King of Fancypantsland! I eat turmeric with my pinky out!
posted by ROU_Xenophobe at 9:40 AM on March 21, 2016 [34 favorites]
posted by ROU_Xenophobe at 9:40 AM on March 21, 2016 [34 favorites]
I eat turmeric with my pinky out!
I eat turmeric with chopsticks because fuck turmeric.
posted by Fizz at 9:42 AM on March 21, 2016 [1 favorite]
I eat turmeric with chopsticks because fuck turmeric.
posted by Fizz at 9:42 AM on March 21, 2016 [1 favorite]
Your favorite spice sucks.
posted by ChurchHatesTucker at 9:43 AM on March 21, 2016 [13 favorites]
posted by ChurchHatesTucker at 9:43 AM on March 21, 2016 [13 favorites]
A long time ago somebody ruined cumin for me by pointing out that it smells like body odor, so here I am paying it forward
posted by prize bull octorok at 9:44 AM on March 21, 2016 [13 favorites]
posted by prize bull octorok at 9:44 AM on March 21, 2016 [13 favorites]
The true nutritional yeast holy grail...put it on popcorn.
And then, sprinkle some smoked salt on it.
Umami City, population: you.
posted by soren_lorensen at 9:44 AM on March 21, 2016 [23 favorites]
Don't worry people. You can put the artificial back in using a Photoshop action!
posted by srboisvert at 9:46 AM on March 21, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by srboisvert at 9:46 AM on March 21, 2016 [1 favorite]
♫ Fattening up our tapeworms! ♫
posted by robocop is bleeding at 9:48 AM on March 21, 2016 [11 favorites]
posted by robocop is bleeding at 9:48 AM on March 21, 2016 [11 favorites]
I have old 12 boxes left from when I went to Costco last year. Should I hang on to them?
posted by Melismata at 9:53 AM on March 21, 2016 [2 favorites]
posted by Melismata at 9:53 AM on March 21, 2016 [2 favorites]
I would lovelovelove that recipe if you can find it again.
Kenji at Serious Eats did the science on this, and a recipe, here.
posted by Huck500 at 9:55 AM on March 21, 2016 [15 favorites]
Kenji at Serious Eats did the science on this, and a recipe, here.
posted by Huck500 at 9:55 AM on March 21, 2016 [15 favorites]
Ah yes, the brigade of Mefi localvore foodies who, of course, never touch boxed mac and cheese.
But you know what? I have a nine year old boy on the spectrum. If it were not for Kraft (must be the blue box) mac and cheese (with peas mixed in, because I say so) he wouldn't eat anything some days. But the blue box is always tempting to him, no matter what.
So, yeah, snark on this all you want, but it made their product somewhat less worse for my child to eat. And, if Kraft can do it, maybe some others will do it and "healthy" mac and cheese from a box will no longer be limited to $1.99 a box Annie's and up.
Don't have to have Kraft in your cupboard? Bully for you. But for a lot of us, it is one small thing that gets us through.
posted by anastasiav at 9:55 AM on March 21, 2016 [76 favorites]
But you know what? I have a nine year old boy on the spectrum. If it were not for Kraft (must be the blue box) mac and cheese (with peas mixed in, because I say so) he wouldn't eat anything some days. But the blue box is always tempting to him, no matter what.
So, yeah, snark on this all you want, but it made their product somewhat less worse for my child to eat. And, if Kraft can do it, maybe some others will do it and "healthy" mac and cheese from a box will no longer be limited to $1.99 a box Annie's and up.
Don't have to have Kraft in your cupboard? Bully for you. But for a lot of us, it is one small thing that gets us through.
posted by anastasiav at 9:55 AM on March 21, 2016 [76 favorites]
I haven't been able to eat Mac and Cheese with a straight face ever since a friend of my wife's noted how much stirring Mac and Cheese sounds like sex.
Apologies; I can't un-hear that either.
posted by Mooski at 9:59 AM on March 21, 2016 [45 favorites]
Apologies; I can't un-hear that either.
posted by Mooski at 9:59 AM on March 21, 2016 [45 favorites]
A long time ago somebody ruined cumin for me by pointing out that it smells like body odor, so here I am paying it forward
Yes but tasty, tasty B.O.
posted by jgaiser at 9:59 AM on March 21, 2016 [10 favorites]
Yes but tasty, tasty B.O.
posted by jgaiser at 9:59 AM on March 21, 2016 [10 favorites]
Well, they told Craig Kilborn.
I have to admit that my favorite part of the commercial was seeing Craig Kilborn hustling boxed macaroni and cheese. Apparently I really, really like seeing that asshole get his comeuppance. All the comeuppance he can eat.
posted by Naberius at 10:00 AM on March 21, 2016 [1 favorite]
I have to admit that my favorite part of the commercial was seeing Craig Kilborn hustling boxed macaroni and cheese. Apparently I really, really like seeing that asshole get his comeuppance. All the comeuppance he can eat.
posted by Naberius at 10:00 AM on March 21, 2016 [1 favorite]
If BO smelled like cumin I would be an extrovert. A hungry extrovert.
posted by Mizu at 10:02 AM on March 21, 2016 [9 favorites]
posted by Mizu at 10:02 AM on March 21, 2016 [9 favorites]
I have old 12 boxes left from when I went to Costco last year. Should I hang on to them?
I can't answer as to their future value on eBay, but their shelf life is fantastic!
posted by a lungful of dragon at 10:03 AM on March 21, 2016 [2 favorites]
I can't answer as to their future value on eBay, but their shelf life is fantastic!
posted by a lungful of dragon at 10:03 AM on March 21, 2016 [2 favorites]
"...a friend of my wife's noted how much stirring Mac and Cheese sounds like sex."
Wow. I..... Uhm, no, pretty sure I'm not doing it wrong....
posted by Floydd at 10:04 AM on March 21, 2016 [8 favorites]
Wow. I..... Uhm, no, pretty sure I'm not doing it wrong....
posted by Floydd at 10:04 AM on March 21, 2016 [8 favorites]
I haven't been able to eat Mac and Cheese with a straight face ever since a friend of my wife's noted how much stirring Mac and Cheese sounds like sex.
Mac n Cheese, Steve Byrne (NSFW).
posted by Etrigan at 10:07 AM on March 21, 2016 [4 favorites]
Mac n Cheese, Steve Byrne (NSFW).
posted by Etrigan at 10:07 AM on March 21, 2016 [4 favorites]
I lived on that stuff in college, I used to make it with about half the spoiled cheese dust provided and added broccoli.
You can use the remaining dust on biodegradable packing peanuts, shake and bake in the microwave they taste exactly like cheeze puffs! (I'm not kidding).
posted by boilermonster at 10:08 AM on March 21, 2016 [7 favorites]
You can use the remaining dust on biodegradable packing peanuts, shake and bake in the microwave they taste exactly like cheeze puffs! (I'm not kidding).
posted by boilermonster at 10:08 AM on March 21, 2016 [7 favorites]
Steve Byrne was the year behind me in high school, and we were acquaintances. ASK ME ANYTHING
posted by Chrysostom at 10:08 AM on March 21, 2016
posted by Chrysostom at 10:08 AM on March 21, 2016
What are they using in the new recipe to simulate the tingle of alpha particles hitting your tongue?
Pop Rocks
posted by Billiken at 10:12 AM on March 21, 2016 [2 favorites]
Pop Rocks
posted by Billiken at 10:12 AM on March 21, 2016 [2 favorites]
A long time ago somebody ruined cumin for me by pointing out that it smells like body odour.
If ever there was a sentence crying out for some sloppy typing, it's that one. An extra m and a closing apostrophe in "cumin" would have worked wonders.
posted by Paul Slade at 10:20 AM on March 21, 2016
If ever there was a sentence crying out for some sloppy typing, it's that one. An extra m and a closing apostrophe in "cumin" would have worked wonders.
posted by Paul Slade at 10:20 AM on March 21, 2016
in re cumin / BO, if you rub a little spit on your forearm it smells just like parmesan. mmmm, parmesan.
posted by chavenet at 10:21 AM on March 21, 2016
posted by chavenet at 10:21 AM on March 21, 2016
I can take or leave the mac-n-cheese, but I am pretty curious about the hate for Craig Kilborn. Wasn't he just another forgettable late night TV guy?
posted by anti social order at 10:28 AM on March 21, 2016 [3 favorites]
posted by anti social order at 10:28 AM on March 21, 2016 [3 favorites]
Here's the cheese sauce recipe I mentioned earlier in the thread.
posted by The Card Cheat at 10:28 AM on March 21, 2016 [8 favorites]
posted by The Card Cheat at 10:28 AM on March 21, 2016 [8 favorites]
I don't know where this yellow comes from for saffron, but it is a decidedly different colour to turmeric.
Saffron threads are red, but unless you're using an extremely high concentration of the stuff it tends to impart a yellow color (e.g. Google Image Search for "saffron in water").
posted by jedicus at 10:28 AM on March 21, 2016 [5 favorites]
Saffron threads are red, but unless you're using an extremely high concentration of the stuff it tends to impart a yellow color (e.g. Google Image Search for "saffron in water").
posted by jedicus at 10:28 AM on March 21, 2016 [5 favorites]
ok, Kraft Mac&Cheese and parmesan cheese have been mentioned (3rd ingredient:cayenne pepper).
Dammit I am off to the Shop Rite. (Which, just FYI, has had the 'o' and 'p' burned out on their sign for so long now we just refer to it as 'Sh'riiiite?')
posted by sexyrobot at 10:34 AM on March 21, 2016 [6 favorites]
Dammit I am off to the Shop Rite. (Which, just FYI, has had the 'o' and 'p' burned out on their sign for so long now we just refer to it as 'Sh'riiiite?')
posted by sexyrobot at 10:34 AM on March 21, 2016 [6 favorites]
As someone with food allergies, this creeps me the hell out!
My food shopping involves sticking to specific branded food items that I know won't make me react badly. I wouldn't think to re-check the ingredients list unless the packaging said "New recipe!" on it. Ugh, this totally undermines my trust and now I'm going to feel compelled to double-check ingredients every damn time I go food shopping.
posted by cadge at 10:37 AM on March 21, 2016 [10 favorites]
My food shopping involves sticking to specific branded food items that I know won't make me react badly. I wouldn't think to re-check the ingredients list unless the packaging said "New recipe!" on it. Ugh, this totally undermines my trust and now I'm going to feel compelled to double-check ingredients every damn time I go food shopping.
posted by cadge at 10:37 AM on March 21, 2016 [10 favorites]
Apparently I really, really like seeing that asshole get his comeuppance.
I must be out of the loop. Why are we mad at Kilborn?
posted by hellphish at 10:38 AM on March 21, 2016 [6 favorites]
I must be out of the loop. Why are we mad at Kilborn?
posted by hellphish at 10:38 AM on March 21, 2016 [6 favorites]
When I'm taking up residence in Migraine Town, boxed mac n' cheese is one of the few things I can put in my stomach without puking it up or being completely turned off by the smell.
Now...personally, I really like Annie's best, and I buy 3-4 boxes at a time so I always have it on hand, but I've been known to pick up a box of the blue from the local market because I need to eat and literally can't countenance anything else.
posted by offalark at 10:39 AM on March 21, 2016 [2 favorites]
Now...personally, I really like Annie's best, and I buy 3-4 boxes at a time so I always have it on hand, but I've been known to pick up a box of the blue from the local market because I need to eat and literally can't countenance anything else.
posted by offalark at 10:39 AM on March 21, 2016 [2 favorites]
Just want to point out the absurdity of the job title “vice president for meal solutions.” I just got a LinkedIn invite from someone with the title “business activity optimization.”
posted by migurski at 10:44 AM on March 21, 2016 [2 favorites]
posted by migurski at 10:44 AM on March 21, 2016 [2 favorites]
A long time ago somebody ruined cumin for me by pointing out that it smells like body odor, so here I am paying it forward
You, uh, might want to make friends who don't rub cumin into their pores.
posted by Pope Guilty at 10:47 AM on March 21, 2016 [2 favorites]
You, uh, might want to make friends who don't rub cumin into their pores.
posted by Pope Guilty at 10:47 AM on March 21, 2016 [2 favorites]
Why are we mad at Kilborn?
Forcing Lizz Winstead off The Daily Show, a career of casual misogyny, an attitude of entitlement...
posted by Etrigan at 10:48 AM on March 21, 2016 [9 favorites]
Forcing Lizz Winstead off The Daily Show, a career of casual misogyny, an attitude of entitlement...
posted by Etrigan at 10:48 AM on March 21, 2016 [9 favorites]
i am senior vice president of buzzword solutions optimization at global entropicamericana industries
posted by entropicamericana at 10:48 AM on March 21, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by entropicamericana at 10:48 AM on March 21, 2016 [1 favorite]
"...a friend of my wife's noted how much stirring Mac and Cheese sounds like sex."
I am doing at least one of these things incorrectly.
posted by Cosine at 10:53 AM on March 21, 2016 [15 favorites]
I am doing at least one of these things incorrectly.
posted by Cosine at 10:53 AM on March 21, 2016 [15 favorites]
Huh, I would have thought people would notice the turmeric when they spilled some on the counter and the counter was just yellow until the end of time.
posted by Bulgaroktonos at 10:53 AM on March 21, 2016 [25 favorites]
posted by Bulgaroktonos at 10:53 AM on March 21, 2016 [25 favorites]
Huh, I would have thought people would notice the turmeric when they spilled some on the counter and the counter was just yellow until the end of time.
So no change then.
posted by Cosine at 10:55 AM on March 21, 2016 [3 favorites]
So no change then.
posted by Cosine at 10:55 AM on March 21, 2016 [3 favorites]
"...a friend of my wife's noted how much stirring Mac and Cheese sounds like sex."
Bob Marley knew what he was singing about.
posted by Kabanos at 10:56 AM on March 21, 2016 [2 favorites]
Bob Marley knew what he was singing about.
posted by Kabanos at 10:56 AM on March 21, 2016 [2 favorites]
Some accountant thought it would be a good idea, and how can you fight 'em?
Eh, no. There is a bit of accounting, yes, but it generally isn't the accountant that thinks its a good idea.
I work for a company that has done this and with one brand we heard 'YAY!' and with another brand we heard 'COMMIES!' This doesn't happen because the bottom line is the issue, this happens because the consumer base pivots and sales erode, and companies that had growth have lost customers to the alternatives.
Returning to old formulations , and/or reworking formulations to take out the words with strange 'y's and hyphens is something that companies do to stay relevant. If the formulation changes, is the brand/manufacturer going to consider changing back? You'd better believe it. Kraft has to contend with Annies, Private Label and probably a whole host of other smaller players that they consider competitors. Annies is organic - which means they sourced materials organic, they purchase organic, their equipment has always handled organic, and it is their point of differentiation which they maintain to grab their customers. Annie's isn't going to start releasing their "all pesticide line." Then there's private label. They are contracting out to local(ish) factories who likely hold their own formula and provide a product to several grocers. They make their money by minimizing cost. Private label is insanely cheap to make and the store is making bank on the margin.
In between late-comers to the category inspiring quality (Annie's) and low cost solutions (Private Label) sits Kraft. Kraft has one thing that no-one else has: advertising and probably a war chest of marketing funds. When those aren't maintaining share and your customer research is showing that "new moms want organic shlock and/or something that they think is real" the challenge then becomes how do you get out the bad stuff and engage your target customer.
So you come up with a formula, then you have to figure out what process is necessary to "clean" your manufacturing plants, how to use up as much of your old product as possible, when a plant shuts down, how you produce enough to make the change, all kinds of crazy things. It isn't just "turn off plant A, fire everybody, and Plant B produces new product." It is way way hard, you've got quality tests, production run tests, sourcing of new materials (which you have to source for your peak demand times - especially when it comes to dairy products - even powdered dairy products.
I mean, Annies has already secured Organic feed for organic cows at organic farms, organic wheat, and organic eggs from organic chickens.
If you were Kraft, you would have to #1. Tell all your farmers to magically convert their cows from conventional to Organic. that means that magically all the conventional cows die overnight, someone magically sprays every surface in the farm with stuff to eliminate whatever feed the conventional cattle had, all the trucks and feed containers are replaced and bam! new magical organic cattle and organic feed show up the next day producing the requested organic dairy. Clearly that doesn't actually happen overnight but until the farmer has made the full conversion and obtained the necessary certification, they have to sell their product at the conventional rate - which means they could be losing money for years while they scale up their cattle. As for the manufacturer, the process of having one ingredient done is multiplied by every ingredient - milk, eggs, flour... all of the ingredients as well as the supply chain and the plants all have to be converted over to handle "organic" and until every part of it can actually be certified organic - guess what - your product isn't... No premium for you.
So that means Kraft's first step on a road to an organic offering is the elimination of artificial flavors... They are "democratizing" (god I hate that word in this context) macaroni and cheese - improving the quality to bring back customers they lost as the health concerns about weird chemical names has risen to the forefront.
the sad thing is this: private label can pivot straight to a clean label - not because they are all set to do so, but because a Grocery Store can just shut off one plant and start again with the next plant that has made the conversion and is ready to jump on the new formula. (as long as the contract is up). the plant that loses, then produces bargain variety til their supplies are out, and then converts to the new set and competes again, or just totally retools for a different food.
Anyway, so... wow. I derailed myself there.
Yeah, not saying anything that "middle america" likes the way they like it is probably a good policy. The change likely affected some folks with allergies, which is why they only whispered the change until now, but once they've secured their audience... ok announce it and you've already avoided the boycott.
posted by Nanukthedog at 11:01 AM on March 21, 2016 [43 favorites]
Eh, no. There is a bit of accounting, yes, but it generally isn't the accountant that thinks its a good idea.
I work for a company that has done this and with one brand we heard 'YAY!' and with another brand we heard 'COMMIES!' This doesn't happen because the bottom line is the issue, this happens because the consumer base pivots and sales erode, and companies that had growth have lost customers to the alternatives.
Returning to old formulations , and/or reworking formulations to take out the words with strange 'y's and hyphens is something that companies do to stay relevant. If the formulation changes, is the brand/manufacturer going to consider changing back? You'd better believe it. Kraft has to contend with Annies, Private Label and probably a whole host of other smaller players that they consider competitors. Annies is organic - which means they sourced materials organic, they purchase organic, their equipment has always handled organic, and it is their point of differentiation which they maintain to grab their customers. Annie's isn't going to start releasing their "all pesticide line." Then there's private label. They are contracting out to local(ish) factories who likely hold their own formula and provide a product to several grocers. They make their money by minimizing cost. Private label is insanely cheap to make and the store is making bank on the margin.
In between late-comers to the category inspiring quality (Annie's) and low cost solutions (Private Label) sits Kraft. Kraft has one thing that no-one else has: advertising and probably a war chest of marketing funds. When those aren't maintaining share and your customer research is showing that "new moms want organic shlock and/or something that they think is real" the challenge then becomes how do you get out the bad stuff and engage your target customer.
So you come up with a formula, then you have to figure out what process is necessary to "clean" your manufacturing plants, how to use up as much of your old product as possible, when a plant shuts down, how you produce enough to make the change, all kinds of crazy things. It isn't just "turn off plant A, fire everybody, and Plant B produces new product." It is way way hard, you've got quality tests, production run tests, sourcing of new materials (which you have to source for your peak demand times - especially when it comes to dairy products - even powdered dairy products.
I mean, Annies has already secured Organic feed for organic cows at organic farms, organic wheat, and organic eggs from organic chickens.
If you were Kraft, you would have to #1. Tell all your farmers to magically convert their cows from conventional to Organic. that means that magically all the conventional cows die overnight, someone magically sprays every surface in the farm with stuff to eliminate whatever feed the conventional cattle had, all the trucks and feed containers are replaced and bam! new magical organic cattle and organic feed show up the next day producing the requested organic dairy. Clearly that doesn't actually happen overnight but until the farmer has made the full conversion and obtained the necessary certification, they have to sell their product at the conventional rate - which means they could be losing money for years while they scale up their cattle. As for the manufacturer, the process of having one ingredient done is multiplied by every ingredient - milk, eggs, flour... all of the ingredients as well as the supply chain and the plants all have to be converted over to handle "organic" and until every part of it can actually be certified organic - guess what - your product isn't... No premium for you.
So that means Kraft's first step on a road to an organic offering is the elimination of artificial flavors... They are "democratizing" (god I hate that word in this context) macaroni and cheese - improving the quality to bring back customers they lost as the health concerns about weird chemical names has risen to the forefront.
the sad thing is this: private label can pivot straight to a clean label - not because they are all set to do so, but because a Grocery Store can just shut off one plant and start again with the next plant that has made the conversion and is ready to jump on the new formula. (as long as the contract is up). the plant that loses, then produces bargain variety til their supplies are out, and then converts to the new set and competes again, or just totally retools for a different food.
Anyway, so... wow. I derailed myself there.
Yeah, not saying anything that "middle america" likes the way they like it is probably a good policy. The change likely affected some folks with allergies, which is why they only whispered the change until now, but once they've secured their audience... ok announce it and you've already avoided the boycott.
posted by Nanukthedog at 11:01 AM on March 21, 2016 [43 favorites]
So, yeah, snark on this all you want, ...
I think you are seriously misreading most of this thread. This right here is some genuine, guilty pleasure gentle poking fun at something lots of people have a fondness for. The kind of thing we all know we shouldn't like, but do, so we have some fun.
posted by Bovine Love at 11:02 AM on March 21, 2016 [10 favorites]
I think you are seriously misreading most of this thread. This right here is some genuine, guilty pleasure gentle poking fun at something lots of people have a fondness for. The kind of thing we all know we shouldn't like, but do, so we have some fun.
posted by Bovine Love at 11:02 AM on March 21, 2016 [10 favorites]
"...a friend of my wife's noted how much stirring Mac and Cheese sounds like sex."
Bob Marley knew what he was singing about.
See also: Wynonie Harris' "Keep on Churnin'."
posted by mandolin conspiracy at 11:05 AM on March 21, 2016
Not to be a buzzkill, but isn't turmeric allergies a known thing? I would imagine that if you're allergic to turmeric and a common product changes its recipe to include turmeric and doesn't announce it you'd be justifiably annoyed/angry/ill.
posted by iamkimiam at 11:17 AM on March 21, 2016
posted by iamkimiam at 11:17 AM on March 21, 2016
Ah yes, the brigade of Mefi localvore foodies who, of course, never touch boxed mac and cheese.
I get your situation completely. But others might have different issues, comparable to yours.
When I was a kid, I loved mac and cheese. It was my favorite food of all time, and I could eat it every day. And then, in my twenties, I realized my astma and rashes were triggered by MSG. That includes yeast extract (and a lot of other delicious stuff). I was constantly ill because of my favorite food. (The rashes were so bad, my dermatologist wanted to hospitalize me). So I had to learn how to make food I could eat.
After years and years of avoiding stuff I once loved, I can now safely eat a sun-dried tomato, a sprinkling of parmigiano on my pasta, and a touch of thin soy sauce on Asian food.
So I thought I'd try my old favorite. But now it is just too much for me. Never mind the intolerance - it's the taste that is too overpowering now after almost three decades of being very careful with the umami. I'll make casseroles, but unfortunately, my kids who have been raised on the un-tastey regime just aren't that much into cheese and pasta.
posted by mumimor at 11:19 AM on March 21, 2016 [1 favorite]
I get your situation completely. But others might have different issues, comparable to yours.
When I was a kid, I loved mac and cheese. It was my favorite food of all time, and I could eat it every day. And then, in my twenties, I realized my astma and rashes were triggered by MSG. That includes yeast extract (and a lot of other delicious stuff). I was constantly ill because of my favorite food. (The rashes were so bad, my dermatologist wanted to hospitalize me). So I had to learn how to make food I could eat.
After years and years of avoiding stuff I once loved, I can now safely eat a sun-dried tomato, a sprinkling of parmigiano on my pasta, and a touch of thin soy sauce on Asian food.
So I thought I'd try my old favorite. But now it is just too much for me. Never mind the intolerance - it's the taste that is too overpowering now after almost three decades of being very careful with the umami. I'll make casseroles, but unfortunately, my kids who have been raised on the un-tastey regime just aren't that much into cheese and pasta.
posted by mumimor at 11:19 AM on March 21, 2016 [1 favorite]
Cumin doesn't smell like body odor. The body odor of people who eat a lot of cumin smells like cumin. See also: garlic.
Saffron tastes different than turmeric. Turmeric adds lots of color, but not (to my taste buds, anyway) a lot of flavor. Also, yes, saffron is reddish, but then again so is yellow food coloring until it is diluted.
All the ingredients are on the box. At some point, it becomes the consumer's responsibility to check the ingredients. Announcing an ingredient change can destroy a brand. Look at the New Coke thing that happened in the 80s.
posted by tempestuoso at 11:21 AM on March 21, 2016 [3 favorites]
Saffron tastes different than turmeric. Turmeric adds lots of color, but not (to my taste buds, anyway) a lot of flavor. Also, yes, saffron is reddish, but then again so is yellow food coloring until it is diluted.
All the ingredients are on the box. At some point, it becomes the consumer's responsibility to check the ingredients. Announcing an ingredient change can destroy a brand. Look at the New Coke thing that happened in the 80s.
posted by tempestuoso at 11:21 AM on March 21, 2016 [3 favorites]
Agreeing with the food allergy points above. If you're going to change your recipe, warn people so they know to check the ingredients again. If you're going to serve people a food that contains stuff they're not expecting, tell them what those ingredients are so they can make an informed decision.
(Not allergic to tumeric, but still resenting that time someone added Spenda(tm) to plain carrots and I spent the drive home doubled over with stomach cramps. Because who expects Splenda(tm) to show up in carrots?)
posted by pie ninja at 11:22 AM on March 21, 2016 [6 favorites]
(Not allergic to tumeric, but still resenting that time someone added Spenda(tm) to plain carrots and I spent the drive home doubled over with stomach cramps. Because who expects Splenda(tm) to show up in carrots?)
posted by pie ninja at 11:22 AM on March 21, 2016 [6 favorites]
I'm fairly sure that at some point in my lifetime they changed the recipe for Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, but nobody else agrees with me
posted by Ray Walston, Luck Dragon at 11:36 AM on March 21, 2016 [9 favorites]
posted by Ray Walston, Luck Dragon at 11:36 AM on March 21, 2016 [9 favorites]
Ray: If you mean because they don't taste good anymore I would agree, and have thought so for years.
posted by Cosine at 11:37 AM on March 21, 2016 [11 favorites]
posted by Cosine at 11:37 AM on March 21, 2016 [11 favorites]
so you're telling me I should put saffron in my Kraft mac & cheese? ok
posted by prize bull octorok at 11:40 AM on March 21, 2016
posted by prize bull octorok at 11:40 AM on March 21, 2016
Awesome! Now I can just rub cumin under my arms and people will just think I have BO. But they'll be wrong! HA HA FOOLED YOU! WHO'S A LOOSER NOW?!?! THE GUY WHO SMELLS LIKE A BELOVED INDIAN RESTAURANT OR THE PEOPLE WHO ARE WRONG! SO WRONG!
posted by Nanukthedog at 11:45 AM on March 21, 2016 [5 favorites]
posted by Nanukthedog at 11:45 AM on March 21, 2016 [5 favorites]
Over the years I've discovered that one of the biggest lies in the consumer market are the three words "SAME GREAT TASTE"
posted by Spatch at 11:50 AM on March 21, 2016 [3 favorites]
posted by Spatch at 11:50 AM on March 21, 2016 [3 favorites]
Now I have to re-do the blind taste test of boxed mac and cheese brands. Last time, a store brand won, but it'll be interesting to see what happens now. Also, the kids can participate this time so that should be fun.
(Thinking back, I think we did the last one more than 10 years ago when we were dating. That's how I wooed her: blind taste tests and lots of discussions about the best testing protocol.)
posted by Alluring Mouthbreather at 11:52 AM on March 21, 2016 [6 favorites]
(Thinking back, I think we did the last one more than 10 years ago when we were dating. That's how I wooed her: blind taste tests and lots of discussions about the best testing protocol.)
posted by Alluring Mouthbreather at 11:52 AM on March 21, 2016 [6 favorites]
Saffron has always been red when I've used it,
Huh. Every time I've used saffron threads that looked red in the container before use, the sauce that resulted was yellow-orange.
That said, fuck yeah turmeric. Not that it has much to add in the way of taste but it's a great color and, if my South Asian friends over the years are to be believed, really really good for you. Just don't get any on you because in my experience it's a perma-stainer.
posted by aught at 11:53 AM on March 21, 2016
Huh. Every time I've used saffron threads that looked red in the container before use, the sauce that resulted was yellow-orange.
That said, fuck yeah turmeric. Not that it has much to add in the way of taste but it's a great color and, if my South Asian friends over the years are to be believed, really really good for you. Just don't get any on you because in my experience it's a perma-stainer.
posted by aught at 11:53 AM on March 21, 2016
Now I can just rub cumin under my arms and people will just think I have BO.
ITYM pre-cooked asafoetida. That'll clear a room.
posted by aught at 11:55 AM on March 21, 2016 [1 favorite]
ITYM pre-cooked asafoetida. That'll clear a room.
posted by aught at 11:55 AM on March 21, 2016 [1 favorite]
Kilborn seems to be a huge prick. That said, I thought he was actually pretty amusing as host of the Daily Show.
posted by Chrysostom at 11:58 AM on March 21, 2016
posted by Chrysostom at 11:58 AM on March 21, 2016
And now I can eat all of it I want, without let or hindrance other than having to go out of my way to lay hands on it in Europe.
Well, I mean, it probably still contains just as much fat and salt.
posted by tobascodagama at 12:00 PM on March 21, 2016
Well, I mean, it probably still contains just as much fat and salt.
posted by tobascodagama at 12:00 PM on March 21, 2016
This is brilliant. We are, like all free thinking highly educated and good looking parents, an Annie's Family. A month or so ago, on our way up to the ski cabin, we stopped at the grocery store and the boys, fresh from The Force Awakens, insisted on the blue box of Kraft Star Wars Mac and Cheese. By insisted, I mean one or more of them may have been on the floor and crying. Mrs. Bartfast held her ground, but being a former junk food aficionado, I was prepared to hear the reasoned arguments of Baby Bartfast 1 and Baby Bartfast 2. It may have been that we were on vacation, or that we were in Canada and I was worried we'd be found out as spoiled Americans out of control of our kids who were completely intolerant of not getting their way, but I figured, surely delicious delicious junk food is a fine treat every once in a while.
I was shocked to discover that the flavor lacked the certain chemical pizzazz of my memories. Not only that, but the kids acted entirely like themselves after eating it, and on occasion that week they even chose not to eat it.
Once my wife started talking to me again, I remarked to her that the kids and I really didn't think the Kraft Dinner (we were in Canada) tasted any better than the artisanally handmade organically shade grown pasta with cheese flavor we were used to. And our pantry remains stocked with the boxes with the bunnies on them.
Am I saying "oh yes, I certainly could tell the difference"? No, but had the chemicals seeped through my limbic system and reactivated ancient neural pathways, or if they created the same state of lower consciousness in my kids that Doritos can, there might have been Serious Discussion with Mrs. Bartfast.
posted by Slarty Bartfast at 12:12 PM on March 21, 2016 [8 favorites]
I was shocked to discover that the flavor lacked the certain chemical pizzazz of my memories. Not only that, but the kids acted entirely like themselves after eating it, and on occasion that week they even chose not to eat it.
Once my wife started talking to me again, I remarked to her that the kids and I really didn't think the Kraft Dinner (we were in Canada) tasted any better than the artisanally handmade organically shade grown pasta with cheese flavor we were used to. And our pantry remains stocked with the boxes with the bunnies on them.
Am I saying "oh yes, I certainly could tell the difference"? No, but had the chemicals seeped through my limbic system and reactivated ancient neural pathways, or if they created the same state of lower consciousness in my kids that Doritos can, there might have been Serious Discussion with Mrs. Bartfast.
posted by Slarty Bartfast at 12:12 PM on March 21, 2016 [8 favorites]
Fun Kraft Mac & Cheese fact: There is a misprint on the nutritional information label. Where it reads, "Serving Size 2.5 oz, Servings Per Container about 3" it should read, "Serving Size ONE BOX".
... and that's how I got diabetes, kids!
posted by charred husk at 12:43 PM on March 21, 2016 [8 favorites]
... and that's how I got diabetes, kids!
posted by charred husk at 12:43 PM on March 21, 2016 [8 favorites]
"Serving Size ONE BOX"
Yup, except that one time I tried Serving Size TWO BOXES, it was bad, it put me off KD for a good while.
posted by Cosine at 12:47 PM on March 21, 2016 [3 favorites]
Yup, except that one time I tried Serving Size TWO BOXES, it was bad, it put me off KD for a good while.
posted by Cosine at 12:47 PM on March 21, 2016 [3 favorites]
But does it still taste the same when mixed with cream of mushroom soup and a can of tuna? Starving college students want to know!
posted by fifteen schnitzengruben is my limit at 12:48 PM on March 21, 2016 [5 favorites]
posted by fifteen schnitzengruben is my limit at 12:48 PM on March 21, 2016 [5 favorites]
Ok, blue box purchased. Regret, here I come!
posted by sexyrobot at 12:53 PM on March 21, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by sexyrobot at 12:53 PM on March 21, 2016 [1 favorite]
At some point, it becomes the consumer's responsibility to check the ingredients.
Yes, but surely that point isn't every single time one consumes a given product, on the off chance that they changed the ingredients without making any other change to the packaging.
posted by Shmuel510 at 12:54 PM on March 21, 2016 [5 favorites]
Yes, but surely that point isn't every single time one consumes a given product, on the off chance that they changed the ingredients without making any other change to the packaging.
posted by Shmuel510 at 12:54 PM on March 21, 2016 [5 favorites]
I spent all day Sunday cooking a nice big meal so I'd have lots of leftovers ready for the week. You people are really gonna make me have mac & cheese for dinner instead, aren't you?
posted by downtohisturtles at 12:55 PM on March 21, 2016 [3 favorites]
posted by downtohisturtles at 12:55 PM on March 21, 2016 [3 favorites]
This right here is some genuine, guilty pleasure gentle poking fun at something lots of people have a fondness for. The kind of thing we all know we shouldn't like, but do, so we have some fun.
No... no, Kilborn really does put my teeth on edge.
posted by Naberius at 12:56 PM on March 21, 2016 [2 favorites]
No... no, Kilborn really does put my teeth on edge.
posted by Naberius at 12:56 PM on March 21, 2016 [2 favorites]
Almost done boiling it up. Checked the ingredients...definitely the new formulation.Stay tuned!
posted by sexyrobot at 1:05 PM on March 21, 2016 [2 favorites]
posted by sexyrobot at 1:05 PM on March 21, 2016 [2 favorites]
Ok...as per the instructions, I am eating it over the stove directly out of the pot. Oddly enough it tastes exactly like Coca-Cola Classic.
posted by sexyrobot at 1:16 PM on March 21, 2016 [17 favorites]
posted by sexyrobot at 1:16 PM on March 21, 2016 [17 favorites]
TIL: Craig Kilborn is not the same person as Conan O'Brien.
posted by a box and a stick and a string and a bear at 1:23 PM on March 21, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by a box and a stick and a string and a bear at 1:23 PM on March 21, 2016 [1 favorite]
Damn it you guys, My rheumatologist has me on a gluten free, sugar free, coffee free, enjoyment free diet, and now I really, really, really want weird dried pasta with orange dust.
posted by SecretAgentSockpuppet at 1:28 PM on March 21, 2016 [2 favorites]
posted by SecretAgentSockpuppet at 1:28 PM on March 21, 2016 [2 favorites]
Oh my god did I really just wolf down that whole thing? Why, god, whyyyyy? Ok, I'm going to go lie down now and never look in the mirror again. (Srsly tho, tastes the same but seems like maybe the cheese powder is more resistant to dissolving...I'm going to go ahead and blame it on the turmeric since that seems to be everyone's enemy here anyway) Wait, am I seeing spots? Is my vision failing? Oh sweet shameful regret!
posted by sexyrobot at 1:31 PM on March 21, 2016 [5 favorites]
posted by sexyrobot at 1:31 PM on March 21, 2016 [5 favorites]
Cumin doesn't smell like BO. You know what smells like BO? Scallions.
posted by pxe2000 at 1:37 PM on March 21, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by pxe2000 at 1:37 PM on March 21, 2016 [1 favorite]
Ok...as per the instructions, I am eating it over the stove directly out of the pot. Oddly enough it tastes exactly like Coca-Cola Classic.
Or Pepsi Blue.
posted by Celsius1414 at 1:41 PM on March 21, 2016 [2 favorites]
Or Pepsi Blue.
posted by Celsius1414 at 1:41 PM on March 21, 2016 [2 favorites]
I don't really feel like eating Kraft tonight, but I am kind of missing Yambo right now.
posted by prize bull octorok at 1:43 PM on March 21, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by prize bull octorok at 1:43 PM on March 21, 2016 [1 favorite]
I've had KD a couple of times since the change, but I wouldn't be able to tell because I add all sorts of things to it. It's red by the time I'm done.
posted by zennie at 1:43 PM on March 21, 2016
posted by zennie at 1:43 PM on March 21, 2016
do tell
posted by prize bull octorok at 1:45 PM on March 21, 2016
posted by prize bull octorok at 1:45 PM on March 21, 2016
I haven't had KD since last year. Occasionally get the hankering for it, have it and then wonder what the heck I was thinking. I'm kinda bitter about that because I ate it a lot as a kid and it was one of the first things I learned to make ALL BY MYSELF MOM! Nostalgia and comfort memories of KD are strong. It just doesn't sit with me for some reason.
I'll give this new formula a shot next time I'm at the store.
posted by Jalliah at 1:49 PM on March 21, 2016 [1 favorite]
I'll give this new formula a shot next time I'm at the store.
posted by Jalliah at 1:49 PM on March 21, 2016 [1 favorite]
I feel sorta weird mentioning it after my last comment, but I usually have Mac and Cheese with sliced Kielbasa.
Nom.
posted by Mooski at 1:55 PM on March 21, 2016 [5 favorites]
Nom.
posted by Mooski at 1:55 PM on March 21, 2016 [5 favorites]
And then, sprinkle some smoked salt on it.
I had never heard of smoked salt, and I am intrigued.
posted by not that girl at 1:56 PM on March 21, 2016
I had never heard of smoked salt, and I am intrigued.
posted by not that girl at 1:56 PM on March 21, 2016
Annie's mac and cheese is a crappy imitation of junk food while still being junk food. If I'm going to eat some trashy food, I might as well go hole hog and get the one that does it's job.
posted by Ferreous at 1:56 PM on March 21, 2016 [2 favorites]
posted by Ferreous at 1:56 PM on March 21, 2016 [2 favorites]
I feel sorta weird mentioning it after my last comment, but I usually have Mac and Cheese with sliced Kielbasa.
I don't normally like Mac and Cheese, but when my wife insists on it, I buy a pack of real-beef, ten-times-as-expensive-as-I-think-hot-dogs-should-be, hot dogs and cut those up in my M&C. That's a tasty meal.
posted by AzraelBrown at 2:00 PM on March 21, 2016 [3 favorites]
I don't normally like Mac and Cheese, but when my wife insists on it, I buy a pack of real-beef, ten-times-as-expensive-as-I-think-hot-dogs-should-be, hot dogs and cut those up in my M&C. That's a tasty meal.
posted by AzraelBrown at 2:00 PM on March 21, 2016 [3 favorites]
also, if you mix one minced habanero (without seeds) into mac and cheese along with a small dash of lemon juice, it's a lot better.
posted by Ferreous at 2:02 PM on March 21, 2016 [2 favorites]
posted by Ferreous at 2:02 PM on March 21, 2016 [2 favorites]
My kids always preferred the wegmans brand, three boxes for .99 so...
I have noticed a distinct upscaling of mac & cheese, tho. Especially with the "lobster as an ingredient" thingy. And the last time I was at the mall, the Arby's at the food court had been replaced by a mac & cheese stall. So there's that.
posted by valkane at 2:08 PM on March 21, 2016
I have noticed a distinct upscaling of mac & cheese, tho. Especially with the "lobster as an ingredient" thingy. And the last time I was at the mall, the Arby's at the food court had been replaced by a mac & cheese stall. So there's that.
posted by valkane at 2:08 PM on March 21, 2016
The secret to the good powder box mac is reading the ingredients on the cheese powder. The first ingredient has to be "cheese powder" or "cheddar cheese." If the first ingredient is whey, you will find disappointment, even if you use real butter and skimp on the (whole) milk. I rediscovered my childhood following that tip.
I feel like I learned that on MetaFilter. I also think I learned from MetaFilter that at least one of Wal-Mart's boxed varieties used to (and maybe still does) pass that test. Most varieties of KD no longer do.
posted by Naamah at 2:10 PM on March 21, 2016 [1 favorite]
I feel like I learned that on MetaFilter. I also think I learned from MetaFilter that at least one of Wal-Mart's boxed varieties used to (and maybe still does) pass that test. Most varieties of KD no longer do.
posted by Naamah at 2:10 PM on March 21, 2016 [1 favorite]
but surely that point isn't every single time one consumes a given product, on the off chance that they changed the ingredients without making any other change to the packaging
Processed food lasts a really long time, and you could reasonably buy 2 years' worth of Mac & Cheese — which in some people's cases might be just one or two boxes. With a purchase frequency that low, the recipe for any processed foodstuff could have changed several times between purchases. What is "new" depends on the purchaser.
The revision history of the recipe is not what's important. What's in the box you're about to eat is important, though, and that is always conveniently printed on the back. If your life or death depends on the box's contents, you should read the label each and every time, it seems to me.
posted by tempestuoso at 2:14 PM on March 21, 2016 [1 favorite]
Processed food lasts a really long time, and you could reasonably buy 2 years' worth of Mac & Cheese — which in some people's cases might be just one or two boxes. With a purchase frequency that low, the recipe for any processed foodstuff could have changed several times between purchases. What is "new" depends on the purchaser.
The revision history of the recipe is not what's important. What's in the box you're about to eat is important, though, and that is always conveniently printed on the back. If your life or death depends on the box's contents, you should read the label each and every time, it seems to me.
posted by tempestuoso at 2:14 PM on March 21, 2016 [1 favorite]
For anyone else fed up with Big Cheese and their bullshit, you can circumvent them entirely by buying your own vat of powdered cheese. Buy some generic macaroni noodles and do your thing. Bonus: YOU control the cheese content!
posted by triggerfinger at 2:20 PM on March 21, 2016 [5 favorites]
posted by triggerfinger at 2:20 PM on March 21, 2016 [5 favorites]
You know what's even better than hot dogs cut up in Kraft Mac n' Cheese? Some browned Johnsonville ground Italian sausage. Add a touch of cayenne and stir it all together and you have yourself a meal worthy of the finest insulin one can buy. Seriously yum.
posted by three easy payments and one complicated payment at 2:23 PM on March 21, 2016 [3 favorites]
posted by three easy payments and one complicated payment at 2:23 PM on March 21, 2016 [3 favorites]
I don't normally like Mac and Cheese, but when my wife insists on it, I buy a pack of real-beef, ten-times-as-expensive-as-I-think-hot-dogs-should-be, hot dogs and cut those up in my M&C. That's a tasty meal.
When I first moved off-campus my junior year of college, I got through the entire first quarter eating nothing but store-brand mac and cheese with the bargain hot dogs from Domenick's. As I was writing that sentence, the flavor returned to me like Proust's grandmother's madeleines, and it was 1983 all over again.
posted by briank at 2:40 PM on March 21, 2016 [4 favorites]
When I first moved off-campus my junior year of college, I got through the entire first quarter eating nothing but store-brand mac and cheese with the bargain hot dogs from Domenick's. As I was writing that sentence, the flavor returned to me like Proust's grandmother's madeleines, and it was 1983 all over again.
posted by briank at 2:40 PM on March 21, 2016 [4 favorites]
Annie's mac and cheese is a crappy imitation of junk food while still being junk food. If I'm going to eat some trashy food, I might as well go hole hog and get the one that does it's job.
posted by Ferreous at 4:56 PM on March 21 [+] [!]
Someone clearly hasn't tried putting peas in the white cheddar shells variety.
posted by edbles at 2:46 PM on March 21, 2016 [3 favorites]
posted by Ferreous at 4:56 PM on March 21 [+] [!]
Someone clearly hasn't tried putting peas in the white cheddar shells variety.
posted by edbles at 2:46 PM on March 21, 2016 [3 favorites]
A long time ago somebody ruined cumin for me by pointing out that it smells like body odor
Mrs. Wallflower still hasn't forgiven me for pointing out that California eucalyptus leaves smell like a cat litter box.
posted by Johnny Wallflower at 2:47 PM on March 21, 2016
Mrs. Wallflower still hasn't forgiven me for pointing out that California eucalyptus leaves smell like a cat litter box.
posted by Johnny Wallflower at 2:47 PM on March 21, 2016
I used to fry up some onions and cabbage in the cast iron skilled while making the macaroni and cheese on the adjoining burner. Then, I'd mix them together. It was great. (I'm using the past tense because my wife doesn't like the smell or taste. I'll have to make it next time she is out of town.)
posted by Alluring Mouthbreather at 2:49 PM on March 21, 2016
posted by Alluring Mouthbreather at 2:49 PM on March 21, 2016
Blue Box with a slight extra splash of milk
Browned ground beef
Garlic powder
A couple drops Worcestershire sauce
Hamburger Helper is for hipsters.
posted by Lyn Never at 2:50 PM on March 21, 2016 [2 favorites]
Browned ground beef
Garlic powder
A couple drops Worcestershire sauce
Hamburger Helper is for hipsters.
posted by Lyn Never at 2:50 PM on March 21, 2016 [2 favorites]
I used to fry up some onions and cabbage in the cast iron skilled while making the macaroni and cheese on the adjoining burner.
My mother cooked diced-up Spam and green peppers in this way. I eventually found out: no one else does this.
posted by thelonius at 3:09 PM on March 21, 2016
My mother cooked diced-up Spam and green peppers in this way. I eventually found out: no one else does this.
posted by thelonius at 3:09 PM on March 21, 2016
For the non-Canadians out there, KD=Kraft Dinner=Kraft Mac & Cheese (with some French text on the box to keep the peace/comply with the law).
For folks that like Kraft Mac and Cheese, but find it a tad bland, and a little bit lacking in actual cheese... Add some grated cheddar after adding the milk & butter (for fucks sake, you're not eating this stuff for your health, do NOT use margarine); finally add a bit of your favorite hot sauce. If you want a bit of texture add some chopped onions. If you grate the cheese and chop the onions while the water is boiling, you won't add 1 minute to your total prep time.
Just because you're a foodie doesn't mean you can't enjoy some Kraft Dinner.
posted by el io at 3:12 PM on March 21, 2016 [2 favorites]
For folks that like Kraft Mac and Cheese, but find it a tad bland, and a little bit lacking in actual cheese... Add some grated cheddar after adding the milk & butter (for fucks sake, you're not eating this stuff for your health, do NOT use margarine); finally add a bit of your favorite hot sauce. If you want a bit of texture add some chopped onions. If you grate the cheese and chop the onions while the water is boiling, you won't add 1 minute to your total prep time.
Just because you're a foodie doesn't mean you can't enjoy some Kraft Dinner.
posted by el io at 3:12 PM on March 21, 2016 [2 favorites]
also, hold the cheese powder and substitute your favorite brand of pasta. mmm, now that's some good kraft dinner
posted by prize bull octorok at 3:13 PM on March 21, 2016 [6 favorites]
posted by prize bull octorok at 3:13 PM on March 21, 2016 [6 favorites]
Cumin doesn't smell like BO. You know what smells like BO? Scallions.
Word. Also, raw broccoli tastes like halitosis.
posted by Johnny Wallflower at 3:20 PM on March 21, 2016
Word. Also, raw broccoli tastes like halitosis.
posted by Johnny Wallflower at 3:20 PM on March 21, 2016
My mother cooked diced-up Spam and green peppers in this way. I eventually found out: no one else does this.
That sounds delicious
posted by Alluring Mouthbreather at 3:24 PM on March 21, 2016 [1 favorite]
That sounds delicious
posted by Alluring Mouthbreather at 3:24 PM on March 21, 2016 [1 favorite]
I substitute peas for the pasta and butter for the cheese powder.
posted by Johnny Wallflower at 3:31 PM on March 21, 2016 [2 favorites]
posted by Johnny Wallflower at 3:31 PM on March 21, 2016 [2 favorites]
I add a couple tablespoons of full-fat yogurt to mine. Gives it a bit of tang. If I have buttermilk but no yogurt, I'll swap in some of that for the milk.
I am actually curious now if the "new" version tastes any different. Probably not.
posted by offalark at 3:32 PM on March 21, 2016 [1 favorite]
I am actually curious now if the "new" version tastes any different. Probably not.
posted by offalark at 3:32 PM on March 21, 2016 [1 favorite]
A big knob of goat cheese is the king of dairy-related add-ins.
posted by a box and a stick and a string and a bear at 3:51 PM on March 21, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by a box and a stick and a string and a bear at 3:51 PM on March 21, 2016 [1 favorite]
personally, I like to shave a bit of Périgord truffle into my Kraft macaroni & cheese
posted by prize bull octorok at 3:58 PM on March 21, 2016 [16 favorites]
posted by prize bull octorok at 3:58 PM on March 21, 2016 [16 favorites]
I add a couple tablespoons of full-fat yogurt to mine. Gives it a bit of tang. If I have buttermilk but no yogurt, I'll swap in some of that for the milk.
I'm so glad not to be the only one who does this. It's great, especially in the Annie's white cheddar versions.
posted by joyceanmachine at 4:00 PM on March 21, 2016 [2 favorites]
I'm so glad not to be the only one who does this. It's great, especially in the Annie's white cheddar versions.
posted by joyceanmachine at 4:00 PM on March 21, 2016 [2 favorites]
Ferreous: "Annie's mac and cheese is a crappy imitation of junk food while still being junk food. If I'm going to eat some trashy food, I might as well go hole hog and get the one that does it's job."
Annie's is owned by General Mills now so it's no different from buying food from Kraft-Heinz.
posted by octothorpe at 4:24 PM on March 21, 2016 [3 favorites]
Annie's is owned by General Mills now so it's no different from buying food from Kraft-Heinz.
posted by octothorpe at 4:24 PM on March 21, 2016 [3 favorites]
My wife has a great way to make Kraft Mac & Cheese: she adds a shit-ton of cheddar cheese, queso fresco and sour cream. Everyone who tastes it loves it... except for me, because I've always loathed the texture of m&c.
She's a saint for marrying a man who can't/won't eat one of her favorite, best recipes.
posted by infinitewindow at 4:54 PM on March 21, 2016
She's a saint for marrying a man who can't/won't eat one of her favorite, best recipes.
posted by infinitewindow at 4:54 PM on March 21, 2016
Over the weekend mr hgg and I saw a (Canadian) movie with a scene involving consumption of a pot of Kraft Dinner. When we came home, we had the following conversation:
Me: That movie really made me want some Kraft Dinner!
Mr hgg: ?
Me: Because they were eating it in that one scene!
Mr hgg: What, the scene in that terrible squalid drug dealer's trailer?? THAT made you hungry for Kraft Dinner??
Me: (shrug)
But it was past midnight and all the stores were closed and we only had Annie's. That's what I had instead, but it's not the same. Sometimes I want my orange food product.
posted by hurdy gurdy girl at 5:11 PM on March 21, 2016 [3 favorites]
Me: That movie really made me want some Kraft Dinner!
Mr hgg: ?
Me: Because they were eating it in that one scene!
Mr hgg: What, the scene in that terrible squalid drug dealer's trailer?? THAT made you hungry for Kraft Dinner??
Me: (shrug)
But it was past midnight and all the stores were closed and we only had Annie's. That's what I had instead, but it's not the same. Sometimes I want my orange food product.
posted by hurdy gurdy girl at 5:11 PM on March 21, 2016 [3 favorites]
I used to swear by Kraft, but when they went to those skinny ass noodles, I was like "fuck this".
Ended up settling on Annies - which is really sorta like Velveeta (also Kraft), but still... I totes would by Kraft if the noodles were fatter like they used to be. Then again, maybe I wouldn't. I dunno.
Annies is waaaaaaaaaaay too tasty compared to anything else (and I'm not a huge "must go organic/natural" person. Just Annies... Mmmmm...
posted by symbioid at 5:35 PM on March 21, 2016
Ended up settling on Annies - which is really sorta like Velveeta (also Kraft), but still... I totes would by Kraft if the noodles were fatter like they used to be. Then again, maybe I wouldn't. I dunno.
Annies is waaaaaaaaaaay too tasty compared to anything else (and I'm not a huge "must go organic/natural" person. Just Annies... Mmmmm...
posted by symbioid at 5:35 PM on March 21, 2016
My go-to meal during the lean (and many of the not-so-lean) years was the blue box, prepared as on the package; a can of tuna; generic frozen peas; and some combination of Tabasco, Adobo, Mrs. Dash, and/or Spike. Straight outta the pot.
posted by Halloween Jack at 5:38 PM on March 21, 2016 [2 favorites]
posted by Halloween Jack at 5:38 PM on March 21, 2016 [2 favorites]
Annies yo. I miss their "Mexican fiesta taco" flavor. It was my favorite!! But their nuclear yellow version is good too
posted by jcruelty at 5:48 PM on March 21, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by jcruelty at 5:48 PM on March 21, 2016 [1 favorite]
You can always buy your own noodles and use the cheese from the M&C package.
posted by Pope Guilty at 6:04 PM on March 21, 2016
posted by Pope Guilty at 6:04 PM on March 21, 2016
'Noticed it, didn't want to spoil it for others. Btw, the dimensions of the macaroni changed in the 80s..... /ssshhh
posted by onesidys at 6:16 PM on March 21, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by onesidys at 6:16 PM on March 21, 2016 [1 favorite]
If I'm going to eat some trashy food, I might as well go hole hog
That sounds... messy, but satisfying? Probably less so for the hog, tho.
posted by FatherDagon at 6:23 PM on March 21, 2016
That sounds... messy, but satisfying? Probably less so for the hog, tho.
posted by FatherDagon at 6:23 PM on March 21, 2016
My 4 year-old daughter likes Kraft Dinner and our almost 2 year-old likes it as well so it is a pretty common thing to have as a Sunday lunch (other common things being udon or instant ramen). We actually made real macaroni and cheese a couple of weeks ago, which was a first for us, and it was pretty good, although I think it is more of a Sunday dinner food. I haven't noticed any change in the taste/texture and I usually don't add anything to mine except for some black pepper on top.
posted by any portmanteau in a storm at 6:49 PM on March 21, 2016
posted by any portmanteau in a storm at 6:49 PM on March 21, 2016
Annie's is owned by General Mills now so it's no different from buying food from Kraft-Heinz.
You shut your mouth. When Annie isn't busy selling her hand harvested flour at the local farmer's market, she is lovingly sealing the boxes of her wholesome pasta in her kitchen with kisses.
posted by Slarty Bartfast at 6:50 PM on March 21, 2016 [7 favorites]
You shut your mouth. When Annie isn't busy selling her hand harvested flour at the local farmer's market, she is lovingly sealing the boxes of her wholesome pasta in her kitchen with kisses.
posted by Slarty Bartfast at 6:50 PM on March 21, 2016 [7 favorites]
Over the weekend mr hgg and I saw a (Canadian) movie with a scene involving consumption of a pot of Kraft Dinner. When we came home, we had the following conversation:
Me: That movie really made me want some Kraft Dinner!
Mr hgg: ?
Me: Because they were eating it in that one scene!
Mr hgg: What, the scene in that terrible squalid drug dealer's trailer?? THAT made you hungry for Kraft Dinner??
Me: (shrug)
That description both makes me want to know the name of the movie, and makes me want mac and cheese. Sometimes squalid is the best option.
posted by Dip Flash at 7:28 PM on March 21, 2016 [2 favorites]
Me: That movie really made me want some Kraft Dinner!
Mr hgg: ?
Me: Because they were eating it in that one scene!
Mr hgg: What, the scene in that terrible squalid drug dealer's trailer?? THAT made you hungry for Kraft Dinner??
Me: (shrug)
That description both makes me want to know the name of the movie, and makes me want mac and cheese. Sometimes squalid is the best option.
posted by Dip Flash at 7:28 PM on March 21, 2016 [2 favorites]
A can of chili (the one with the red and yellow label) stirred into the pot makes a box of KM&C a genuine pleasure to eat. All of. From the pan, of course, using the wooden spoon you cooked it with, and also used (held across the edge of the tilted pot) instead of an actual strainer because that is just one more thing to wash.
posted by wenestvedt at 8:07 PM on March 21, 2016 [2 favorites]
posted by wenestvedt at 8:07 PM on March 21, 2016 [2 favorites]
Hormel. It's Hormel chili that makes it good.
Damn, I know it's bedtime but I would happily lose an hour of sleeps to make and eat a pot of that right now.
posted by wenestvedt at 8:08 PM on March 21, 2016 [1 favorite]
Damn, I know it's bedtime but I would happily lose an hour of sleeps to make and eat a pot of that right now.
posted by wenestvedt at 8:08 PM on March 21, 2016 [1 favorite]
Ask and ye shall receive, Dip Flash (well, the name of the movie, anyway, if not the Kraft Dinner): Sleeping Giant. (Link goes to a relatively spoiler free review.) I thought it was an excellent movie and was pretty surprised it was the filmmakers' first feature length film.
posted by hurdy gurdy girl at 8:32 PM on March 21, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by hurdy gurdy girl at 8:32 PM on March 21, 2016 [1 favorite]
My husband is super into KD, I usually eat a bite or two of his whole-box serving, but I'd never had it until I was an adult (thanks, hippie parents!) so without the nostalgia of it being your favourite kid-lunch it's not as good.
However! He has recently started buying some of their flavour-altered versions (like spiral noodles, or sharp cheddar, or white cheddar) instead of the standard because he felt like something was weird about the original.
Good to know it kind of is. I think it tastes and looks the exact same, and I don't understand why we can have 15 boxes of it in the basement, and he'll still come home with a "Sea Creatures" shaped pasta one, because he felt more like that shape of noodle.
posted by euphoria066 at 8:52 PM on March 21, 2016 [1 favorite]
However! He has recently started buying some of their flavour-altered versions (like spiral noodles, or sharp cheddar, or white cheddar) instead of the standard because he felt like something was weird about the original.
Good to know it kind of is. I think it tastes and looks the exact same, and I don't understand why we can have 15 boxes of it in the basement, and he'll still come home with a "Sea Creatures" shaped pasta one, because he felt more like that shape of noodle.
posted by euphoria066 at 8:52 PM on March 21, 2016 [1 favorite]
My dad was a strict meat and potatoes guy and so I had never had Kraft M&C or any other kind of convenience foods like that until I was in college. We didn't even have the standard casserole or hot dish that are the foods of the midwest where I grew up. My roommates introduced me to the blue box with tuna and peas and for a while I was enthralled, but I can't really eat it anymore. It just doesn't taste the same, and I'm not talking about the recipe change. There's this memory that I have that just doesn't match anymore. It's like eating McD's hamburgers. Every once in a while I eat one to try to recapture that memory but I am always left disappointed. Oh and also Chef-boy-r-dee raviolis. I buy one of those now and again. Those are disgusting but every couple of years...
posted by Belle O'Cosity at 9:06 PM on March 21, 2016
posted by Belle O'Cosity at 9:06 PM on March 21, 2016
I used to fry up some cherry tomatoes + onions + basil + balsamic vinegar + a sprinkle of chili flakes, and serve that on top. Adding some real cheddar into the pasta is essential as well. I'd also add a bit of this other kind of cheese that made the cheese sauce super stringy instead of liquidy.
Now I avoid that section of the grocery store at all costs because mmmmmm way too good to resist on a cold, low-energy kind of night.
posted by mantecol at 10:00 PM on March 21, 2016 [1 favorite]
Now I avoid that section of the grocery store at all costs because mmmmmm way too good to resist on a cold, low-energy kind of night.
posted by mantecol at 10:00 PM on March 21, 2016 [1 favorite]
I guess I use too much saffron in my saffron rice because it always ends up pink not yellow.
posted by koolkat at 6:31 AM on March 22, 2016
posted by koolkat at 6:31 AM on March 22, 2016
I guess I use too much saffron in my saffron rice because it always ends up pink not yellow.
Honestly, that is strange.
posted by mumimor at 6:47 AM on March 22, 2016
Honestly, that is strange.
posted by mumimor at 6:47 AM on March 22, 2016
You can tell I grew up in Hawaii because none of this crap is remotely appetising to me, but I would gladly eat a bowl of instant ramen with spam and egg in it, sodium be damned.
posted by tobascodagama at 7:34 AM on March 22, 2016
posted by tobascodagama at 7:34 AM on March 22, 2016
I love Kraft Mac & Cheese. Not even ashamed.
At first, I was relieved that this had all happened in "secret," but I hadn't noticed a difference so everything was clearly the same.
Then I realized we buy it by the case at Costco and it's probably been a year or so since we purchased any, so now I'm nervous. Now, I don't know what to think. Guess I'd better buy a box and see what's up.
Oh, and in case you're wondering how to make THE BEST KRAFT MACARONI & CHEESE EVER:
1) Use 1.5 times the butter. Don't double it, that's just crazy talk. Also, don't even THINK about margarine, no matter what the box says.
2) Use heavy whipping cream in place of milk. Don't even think about using 2% milk like the box says; they don't know what they're talking about.
3) Optional but delicious: Add extra cheese powder from The Spice House. You won't regret it.
4) Eat the whole box (You might regret it).
posted by terilou at 8:09 AM on March 22, 2016 [1 favorite]
At first, I was relieved that this had all happened in "secret," but I hadn't noticed a difference so everything was clearly the same.
Then I realized we buy it by the case at Costco and it's probably been a year or so since we purchased any, so now I'm nervous. Now, I don't know what to think. Guess I'd better buy a box and see what's up.
Oh, and in case you're wondering how to make THE BEST KRAFT MACARONI & CHEESE EVER:
1) Use 1.5 times the butter. Don't double it, that's just crazy talk. Also, don't even THINK about margarine, no matter what the box says.
2) Use heavy whipping cream in place of milk. Don't even think about using 2% milk like the box says; they don't know what they're talking about.
3) Optional but delicious: Add extra cheese powder from The Spice House. You won't regret it.
4) Eat the whole box (You might regret it).
posted by terilou at 8:09 AM on March 22, 2016 [1 favorite]
I'm not sure I understand the point of expensive mac&cheese like Annie's. Surely the attraction of the Kraft product is that it's a pretty good, consistent, flavour at a very attractive price point?
It's not like you're saving a huge amount of time since you still need to boil the pasta separately, and then add the milk, butter, and cheese sauce powder (according to the Kraft recipe website). I assume that the process for the Annie's is basically the same.
If you were making it from scratch, you would boil pasta separately, mix flour and butter in a separate pan before adding milk and cheese, and then mix the whole lot together. Maybe some spices.
So you save one pan worth of cleaning, and you don't need separate flour, cheese, and spices.
Let's be clear, I get why this is attractive to people cooking with limited equipment, limited budget, and limited training. I'm just surprised that there is enough overlap between people in that category and people willing and able to pay double the price for organic ingredients.
posted by atrazine at 8:46 AM on March 22, 2016 [1 favorite]
It's not like you're saving a huge amount of time since you still need to boil the pasta separately, and then add the milk, butter, and cheese sauce powder (according to the Kraft recipe website). I assume that the process for the Annie's is basically the same.
If you were making it from scratch, you would boil pasta separately, mix flour and butter in a separate pan before adding milk and cheese, and then mix the whole lot together. Maybe some spices.
So you save one pan worth of cleaning, and you don't need separate flour, cheese, and spices.
Let's be clear, I get why this is attractive to people cooking with limited equipment, limited budget, and limited training. I'm just surprised that there is enough overlap between people in that category and people willing and able to pay double the price for organic ingredients.
posted by atrazine at 8:46 AM on March 22, 2016 [1 favorite]
From what I've read, fake saffron will apparently turn water pink as dye washes off, and it will happen quickly. Real saffron, while red in color, will release its distinctive yellow essence, but it does so relatively slowly.
posted by Celsius1414 at 8:50 AM on March 22, 2016 [3 favorites]
posted by Celsius1414 at 8:50 AM on March 22, 2016 [3 favorites]
> cumin... smells like body odor
> raw broccoli tastes like halitosis
You guys are going to love Garlicky Sesame-Cured Broccoli Salad, a.k.a. "sexy, spicy broccoli". I un-triple the olive oil back to a reasonable 1/4 cup.
posted by morganw at 9:12 AM on March 22, 2016 [3 favorites]
> raw broccoli tastes like halitosis
You guys are going to love Garlicky Sesame-Cured Broccoli Salad, a.k.a. "sexy, spicy broccoli". I un-triple the olive oil back to a reasonable 1/4 cup.
posted by morganw at 9:12 AM on March 22, 2016 [3 favorites]
4) Eat the whole box (You might regret it).
And that adds fiber, too!
Let's be clear, I get why this is attractive to people cooking with limited equipment, limited budget, and limited training. I'm just surprised that there is enough overlap between people in that category and people willing and able to pay double the price for organic ingredients.
Never, ever underestimate the power of the bleeding liberal hipster.
posted by Melismata at 10:06 AM on March 22, 2016
And that adds fiber, too!
Let's be clear, I get why this is attractive to people cooking with limited equipment, limited budget, and limited training. I'm just surprised that there is enough overlap between people in that category and people willing and able to pay double the price for organic ingredients.
Never, ever underestimate the power of the bleeding liberal hipster.
posted by Melismata at 10:06 AM on March 22, 2016
Never, ever underestimate the power of the bleeding liberal hipster.
That will definitely empinken your rice water. ;)
posted by Celsius1414 at 10:08 AM on March 22, 2016 [3 favorites]
That will definitely empinken your rice water. ;)
posted by Celsius1414 at 10:08 AM on March 22, 2016 [3 favorites]
I love how you can pick out all the Canadians in this thread by who refers to it as Kraft Dinner or KD.
All brands of the stuff taste the same to me because I dump in so much extra butter and cheese that it hardly tastes like what the instructions on the box produce.
My senior year of college, our go-to meal was boxed mac & cheese and tuna salad topped onto a toasted English muffin, consumed while watching the same VHS tape of the first two seasons of Kids In The Hall.
posted by slogger at 10:13 AM on March 22, 2016 [1 favorite]
All brands of the stuff taste the same to me because I dump in so much extra butter and cheese that it hardly tastes like what the instructions on the box produce.
My senior year of college, our go-to meal was boxed mac & cheese and tuna salad topped onto a toasted English muffin, consumed while watching the same VHS tape of the first two seasons of Kids In The Hall.
posted by slogger at 10:13 AM on March 22, 2016 [1 favorite]
I buy the $2 Annie's boxed mac and cheese as a status marker.
posted by prize bull octorok at 10:13 AM on March 22, 2016 [3 favorites]
posted by prize bull octorok at 10:13 AM on March 22, 2016 [3 favorites]
We end up mostly getting Annie's, only because that's the only brand my hippie-ass grocery store sells.
posted by slogger at 10:15 AM on March 22, 2016
posted by slogger at 10:15 AM on March 22, 2016
people willing and able to pay double the price for organic ingredients
double the price of Incredibly Cheap is still Pretty Cheap For A Dinner, I think is the answer.
posted by LobsterMitten at 10:20 AM on March 22, 2016 [3 favorites]
double the price of Incredibly Cheap is still Pretty Cheap For A Dinner, I think is the answer.
posted by LobsterMitten at 10:20 AM on March 22, 2016 [3 favorites]
A common university dinner for me was what I called "bachelor chow" - a box of KD, a can of greenbeans, and some cut up hotdogs all cooked up in one pot. Eaten from the pot with the spoon used to stir it while watching teevee, of course.
I can't tell if there was any change, but I rarely bother to sample it when I make it for my kids. They eat a crap-tonne of the stuff.
posted by fimbulvetr at 10:50 AM on March 22, 2016
I can't tell if there was any change, but I rarely bother to sample it when I make it for my kids. They eat a crap-tonne of the stuff.
posted by fimbulvetr at 10:50 AM on March 22, 2016
blasphemy!
posted by asteroidJAZZ at 12:14 PM on March 22, 2016
posted by asteroidJAZZ at 12:14 PM on March 22, 2016
X smells like Y
I'm just gonna come right out and say it: Y'all have some weird noses.
This reminds me of the "lizard/squirrel/antelope or what-have-you tastes kinda like chicken" canard. No it doesn't, it tastes like lizard/squirrel/antelope or what-have-you.
I am willing to accept that there might be some common taste element between say ostrich and chicken, but cumin smells like BO? Maybe it's an enzyme thing, like cilantro?
(stoked to try some of this new mac-n-cheese. might even add some cumin.)
posted by aspersioncast at 12:31 PM on March 22, 2016 [1 favorite]
...kinda like chicken" canard
I find the chicken-duck juxtaposition to be funny. quacked me up.
posted by j_curiouser at 12:43 PM on March 22, 2016 [4 favorites]
I find the chicken-duck juxtaposition to be funny. quacked me up.
posted by j_curiouser at 12:43 PM on March 22, 2016 [4 favorites]
Cumin smells like BO until it is either cooked or mixed with some acidic stuff like a lemony dressing. Then it becomes delicious, both in smell and taste.
posted by mumimor at 12:47 PM on March 22, 2016
posted by mumimor at 12:47 PM on March 22, 2016
As someone noted some time ago, "tastes like chicken" is shorthand for "doesn't have much of a taste at all without spices", which is true for the whiter parts of chicken, turkey or pork, at least their bloated, bred-for-maximum-white-meat commercial versions. In that sense, Red Delicious apples taste like chicken, for the most part.
posted by Halloween Jack at 5:34 PM on March 22, 2016 [2 favorites]
posted by Halloween Jack at 5:34 PM on March 22, 2016 [2 favorites]
I was poor and Kraft was evil, so I was always a Golden Grain guy.
Then, I discovered that I can make a quick béchamel and make my own cheese sauce with butter, milk, flour, seasoning, and a delicious non-industrial cheese in the time it takes the water to boil and the macaroni to cook and those shitty unsealed cardboard boxes of stale sadness died for me forever. I'm a fan of the occasional infantile comfort junk food freak-out as the next guy, but no no no—Escoffier and poverty go together perfectly well.
posted by sonascope at 3:44 AM on March 23, 2016 [5 favorites]
Then, I discovered that I can make a quick béchamel and make my own cheese sauce with butter, milk, flour, seasoning, and a delicious non-industrial cheese in the time it takes the water to boil and the macaroni to cook and those shitty unsealed cardboard boxes of stale sadness died for me forever. I'm a fan of the occasional infantile comfort junk food freak-out as the next guy, but no no no—Escoffier and poverty go together perfectly well.
posted by sonascope at 3:44 AM on March 23, 2016 [5 favorites]
My wife noticed; she's been complaining how for the past couple months every time she made Mac and Cheese it made her stomach upset. She'll be happy to know it's not all in her head!
I've had it twice in the past couple of months after not having any for probably a couple of years in an effort to make healthier food choices. The first time I wrote it off as just a possible stomach bug and the second as my body just no longer being able to handle the re-hydrated cheese. I'm relieved to learn that it's the product that's changed and not just my metabolism.
posted by dances with hamsters at 5:57 AM on March 23, 2016 [2 favorites]
I've had it twice in the past couple of months after not having any for probably a couple of years in an effort to make healthier food choices. The first time I wrote it off as just a possible stomach bug and the second as my body just no longer being able to handle the re-hydrated cheese. I'm relieved to learn that it's the product that's changed and not just my metabolism.
posted by dances with hamsters at 5:57 AM on March 23, 2016 [2 favorites]
I'm fairly sure that at some point in my lifetime they changed the recipe for Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, but nobody else agrees with me
You're not mistaken. Hershey's changed their chocolate recipes in the '00s. They added more vegetable oils and in some products (though not their peanut butter cups) removed the milk from their chocolate altogether.
When Twinkies were reintroduced to the market after Hostess went under a lot of people noted that they tasted differently though the new manufacturer came out and said it was using the Hostess recipe. It was simply that Hostess had previously converted from animal shortening to vegetable shortening. (That had been the primary difference between their Hostess and Drakes lines.)
posted by dances with hamsters at 6:16 AM on March 23, 2016 [1 favorite]
You're not mistaken. Hershey's changed their chocolate recipes in the '00s. They added more vegetable oils and in some products (though not their peanut butter cups) removed the milk from their chocolate altogether.
When Twinkies were reintroduced to the market after Hostess went under a lot of people noted that they tasted differently though the new manufacturer came out and said it was using the Hostess recipe. It was simply that Hostess had previously converted from animal shortening to vegetable shortening. (That had been the primary difference between their Hostess and Drakes lines.)
posted by dances with hamsters at 6:16 AM on March 23, 2016 [1 favorite]
Wow, Hershey's was barely even chocolate to begin with.
posted by malocchio at 7:50 AM on March 23, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by malocchio at 7:50 AM on March 23, 2016 [1 favorite]
I doubt anyone will be believe me, but about a month or two ago I had the most disappointing box of KD and now I realize it's probably because of the formula change.
KD was the one unwholesome food I was allowed to eat as a child and I still indulge in it about once a year. But after I'd had that box, I thought it tasted wrong because I'd made it wrong or was used to Annie's white cheddar. I feel vindicated that my tastebuds were right!
posted by A hidden well at 1:32 PM on March 23, 2016
KD was the one unwholesome food I was allowed to eat as a child and I still indulge in it about once a year. But after I'd had that box, I thought it tasted wrong because I'd made it wrong or was used to Annie's white cheddar. I feel vindicated that my tastebuds were right!
posted by A hidden well at 1:32 PM on March 23, 2016
Fortunately, the green dress is still fake – they're not monsters, after all.
posted by schmod at 1:31 PM on March 27, 2016
posted by schmod at 1:31 PM on March 27, 2016
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posted by prize bull octorok at 9:00 AM on March 21, 2016 [5 favorites]