Some of the cheapest meals out there are 1. Mac and Cheese and also 2. Ramen Noodles. Mac and Cheese can be bought for 35 cents for a box or sometimes even less. Ramen noodles are even cheaper than that. Perhaps 10 or 12 cents each, and that includes the seasoning packets.
The problem with both of those dishes? There aren’t very good. Compare a box of mac and cheese with homemade macaroni and cheese with real cheeses and there simply is no comparison. So what to do if you really only have a limited budget? Here are couple of simple ways to make your cheap mac and cheese pop.
First, swap from margarine to real butter. That will give you a much richer and deeper flavor. It will also change the consistency of the cheese sauce and making it more buttery and smooth. The cheap cheese like packet will regain some of the ‘stuff’ that was taken our of it in manufacturing.
Second, add some basic spices. I happen to love the flavor of the standard Mrs.. Dash on mac and cheese. I think you should try it too and see if you love it as much as I do. If Mrs. Dash isn’t your thing, then find another spice that you love. After your favorite spice, add some garlic.
Then my favorite addition – sprinkle a generous amount of coconut on top. Really Mac and Cheese with coconut and garlic is the bomb. It’s super yummy and the coconut adds some addition texture to an otherwise very boring and meaningless dish. It transforms boring macaroni to something that you can serve to company and not be embarrassed. Sprinkling in a little bit of real cheese will add some stringiness that will add to the overall feel too. So for less that 75 cents you can have a dish you can show off and not be concerned about sharing with your friends and family.
For Ramen Noodles it’s a similar trick. But before you add any garnishing, make sure that you don’t over cook the pasta. Slimy and over cooked pasta is the quickest way to ruin it and there’s no way to recover from that…ever. Test the actual cooking time a few times so that you’re comfortable with that part of the preparation.
Once the noodles are prepped correctly, top it with the seasoning and drain off a portion of the extra liquid. One of the challenges with ramen Noodles is that the liquid proportion is off and when you drain off some liquid you recover and be ready to add some coconut. Like the mac and cheese, the coconut adds some crunchy texture and a flavor and aroma that stands out as having no part of the original ramen noodles.
YAY! for cheap food that tastes great!
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