In ancient Greek mythology, they speak of food feasted on by the Gods. They tell stories of something so delicious that no mortal would be worthy of consuming it: ambrosia.
Today that can be found in the frozen foods section of your local WinCo or Walmart in the form of Stouffer’s Macaroni and Cheese.
Sitting at a frugal $2.72 for the large size, this plastic container of ambrosial heaven satisfies the palate like none other.
I’ve debated releasing my coveted knowledge about Stouffer’s hidden gem for a while.
Now, when writer’s block is hitting me the hardest, I will share my veritable treasure trove.
I can’t remember the first time I tried Stouffer’s Mac, but I do remember thinking the combined 12-minute cook time was ridiculous.
Would my hair fall out from the radiation? Upon consuming said mac, would I suddenly be able to shoot cheesy webs?
Unfortunately, no.
Griffen Winget | Argonaut
Instead, my tongue greeted its soon-to-be best friend for the first time.
It was love at first taste, the smooth, creamy cheese and al dente pasta combined to form the best store-bought, mac and cheese I’d ever tasted.
What makes this mac so much better than the others? The sauce.
Noodles are tough to get wrong when making mac, after cooking them once or twice it becomes obvious how long they should be cooked.
But, the real test comes with the cheese sauce
Stouffer’s somehow found the perfect cheese sauce recipe and can replicate it on a large scale.
I’m not arguing that Stouffer’s is better than gran gran’s mac, but for a store-bought frozen mac and cheese, it performs well.
I hope you’re beginning to see my trepidation about releasing this information to the public, especially on a large-scale publication like The Argonaut.
The size is a whopping one pound and four ounces of cheddar goodness.
This, personally, is the perfect size to satisfy my hunger during the dinner hours.
There is, however, a darker side to Stouffer’s mac reign — the flour fiasco of 2017.
It seemed as if a blight had struck the factories producing the beloved classic mac.
Too much flour was being added to the cheese sauce recipes resulting in a granular and clumpy texture.
Frankly, I am surprised there weren’t riots in the streets. It was appalling. I consider myself lucky to have survived.
Only now do the dark times seem to be behind us. Stouffer’s has returned to form and I eagerly look forward to cracking open a cold one.
Next time you happen to wander by the frozen foods section in WinCo, which is half the store, look for the orange and red package.
It might just be a new regular buy, as it was for me.
Stouffer’s macaroni is the one true frozen dinner. There is no competition.
Fair warning however, wait at least three minutes after heating. Burnt tongues aren’t worthy of tasting Stouffer’s ambrosia.
Griffen Winget can be reached [email protected]