Step 3: Heat the pasta
Heat the pasta mix on the stove over medium heat and stir occasionally until the water comes to a rolling boil. Bring the heat down to low and let the pasta simmer gently while stirring. Do not cover the pot with a lid. You’ll notice the cheese sauce thickening and the noodles softening as the ingredients simmer together—this is exactly what you want. It should only take a few minutes for most of the liquid to evaporate.
Step 4: Add milk, mix and serve
When the cheese sauce has thickened and there is little liquid left in the pot, add the milk. Mix it in while the heat is kept low and the macaroni is barely simmering, and keep an eye on it as you mix—you don’t want the sauce to get too thick and sticky. When you’re satisfied with the consistency, turn off the heat and serve.
Here’s What I Thought
tiktok mac and cheese on fork over bowl
This TikTok hack for Kraft mac and cheese deserves all the attention it’s getting!
First, the absence of straining the macaroni is a nice touch. Using a colander to strain pasta isn’t at all strenuous, but it’s not something I enjoy—I’ll pass on transferring a heavy pot to the sink and the hot blast of steam to the face that follows. There’s an even easier TikTok method for straining pasta, though I often find it difficult with large amounts of food.
The pasta cooked perfectly—it wasn’t too soggy and had just the right amount of firmness. I know some have had trouble with the pasta overcooking, but that’s why it’s important to check that the water level is just above the noodles in Step 2 and that you keep a close eye on the liquid when cooking.
I could definitely tell that the ingredients weren’t dumped in at the last minute but instead simmered together with the pasta—the cheese sauce itself was thick and creamy, not runny at all, and, dare I say, less salty.
For reference, I used 2% milk and thought this Kraft mac and cheese tasted delicious. If you like, add in your favorite shredded cheddar cheese, like Nikki does, to make the pasta even cheesier. To finish the dish, I topped it off with a dash of cracked black pepper and was pleasantly surprised.
It’s safe to say that I’ll be ditching those instructions on the box for good, thanks to TikTok. If you haven’t yet, it’s never too late to try more TikTok recipes, like the whipped coffee that got us all through quarantine and, of course, the famous
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