Kraft Dinner

Kraft Dinner with veggie dogs.

Regular Kraft Dinner preparation, boiling water with pasta-noodles inside the pot, cheese powder package and strainer to the right.

Kraft Dinner, also known as KD, Kraft Mac n' Cheese, or Kraft Macaroni & Cheese, is a pasta dish of macaroni and cheese that is produced by the Kraft company.

The product was originally marketed as Kraft Dinner, but is now known in the United States and other countries as Kraft Macaroni & Cheese. In the United Kingdom it is marketed as Cheesey Pasta, while in Canada it has retained its original name of Kraft Dinner.

The product is also heavily promoted toward teenagers in the United States on television with the promotional name Kraft Cheese & Macaroni. When advertising to younger children, the television advert encourages the children to ask for The Blue Box.

The product comes in three primary compositions:

• The traditional form of dry macaroni pasta and powdered processed cheese. To prepare the dish, one boils the pasta, and then adds milk, butter and the cheese powder.
• The deluxe form, with the powdered processed cheese replaced with Velveeta cheese spread. This allows the cheese to be applied directly to the cooked pasta without additional preparation or ingredients.
• Kraft Easy Mac - single servings that includes a portion of macaroni and a mixture of processed cheese and milk powder. Unlike the boxed version, it is designed to be prepared using only water and a microwave in 3 minutes and 30 seconds. Instructions are included on each individual packet. Recently, Kraft released new additional flavors and sizes of Easy Mac, meant for varied appetites (the original version is small enough that a standard serving for an adult consumer was actually two packets).

Note: The dish may be prepared the "poor man's way" with boiling the pasta, straining the water out, placing on a plate and sprinkling on only the cheese.

While many love it, and the product has become a standard meal and late night snack for college students, it has frequently been decried for its unnatural yellow-orange color, its lack of nutritional value, and the artificiality of its ingredients. In the United States from the late 1980s to late 1990s, the marketing term "Kraft Cheese and Macaroni" was used to emphasize its flavor (advertised as "the cheesiest"); however, this term was never used on the actual product boxes, which remained labeled "Kraft Macaroni and Cheese" throughout the period.

Variations

There are many modifications to the basic recipe. Some use two packages of cheese for more flavour. An interesting recipe called "Bucket of Glue" consists of Kraft Dinner mixed with tuna which is covered with Velveeta cheese and then baked. Others serve it mixed with chicken and broccoli, canned tuna, chitterlings, ground beef, sliced sausage bits, sliced hot dogs, cut-up Spam or with ketchup. Bologna or canned meatballs in gravy is a common side dish in Newfoundland. The milk can also be replaced with water, and the butter with cooking oil. Also, the butter can be used to fry additions such as onions or mushrooms while the pasta is draining.

The Kraft company has also released many varieties of the dish:

• Original Kraft Dinner (The Cheesiest)
• Kraft Dinner with Egg Noodles
• Kraft Dinner Sharp Cheddar
• Kraft Dinner White Cheddar
• Kraft Dinner Alfredo
• Kraft Dinner Shapes
• Kraft Dinner Cheese and Tomato
• Spaghetti & Cheese Kraft Dinner
• Spaghetti in Tomato Sauce Kraft Dinner
• Kraft Dinner Extra Creamy (Thick 'n Creamy Kraft Macaroni & Cheese Dinner in the United States)
• Tomato Marinara
• Creamy Garlic
• Cheese & Bacon
• Deluxe Cheddar Macaroni & Cheese
• Three Cheese Macaroni & Cheese Dinner

There are regular promotional tie-in versions of the Kraft Dinner. Packages have come with noodles in the shapes of characters from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, The Amazing Spiderman, Super Mario Bros., Rugrats, The Flintstones, Scooby-Doo, SpongeBob SquarePants, The Fairly OddParents The Incredible Hulk and others.

Other companies have created similar macaroni and cheese products. In Canada, the no name and President's Choice brands have both had some success.

References

Kraft. Kraft Macaroni and Cheese. Accessed on Dec. 12, 2005, http://www.kraft.com/100/innovations/kraftmac.html

See also

• Cheez Whiz
• Hamburger Helper

External links

• Kraft Macaroni and Cheese
• KraftCanada Kraft Dinner
• The Original No-Drain Microwave Directions (webarchive of KraftDinner.com 2006)

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