How to Make Really Good Mac N Cheese

Just a note: the best way to actually make Mac N Cheese is to do it homemade by adding real cheese to noodles (Gouda works well).  This is more of a breakdown of how to make really, really good Mac N Cheese from the kind you buy at the store.

Prepared not following the bogus instructions the boxes give you

Pretty basic steps here to enhance your Mac N Cheese experience so it tastes really, really good instead of just kinda good.

1. Boil noodles 10-14 minutes.  The box tells you 7-10 and that would be fine if you like hard, undercooked boring noodles.  By boiling it longer the noodles get more plump, softer, and taste better.

2. After draining the water, add REAL cheese before putting the powdered stuff in.  The above includes cheddar and six cheese Italian but you could use any kind.  Mix it in so the cheese melts.  Then add the powder and mix that in as well.  The box will tell you to add butter and milk first but mixing in the cheese beforehand helps enhance the flavor.

3. I like to add a protein in.  The above includes two turkey hot dogs.  Meatballs work well as does sausage. Jalapenos do not.

4. Add the milk and butter.  I like to add a little more of each than what the box says.  The butter adds a little flavor and the milk makes it creamy.  3 and 4 can be interchanged.

5. Seasoning.  I like to add salt, smoked paprika, and a touch of hot sauce. Louisiana's Pure Crystal Hot Sauce I've found to be the best, as its flavor isn't overpowering and it adds the perfect amount of zest.  Tabasco and Sriracha dominate the flavor too much.

6. Mix it all together real well (make sure all the real cheese is melted in) and enjoy.  Even if you skip steps 3 and 5 I think you'll notice a significant difference when it's prepared a little differently.  

Oh yeah. 

BONUS!

My first movie trailer made when I was about 15 - it's about a minute long - for The Treasure of the Old Man.  Notice that while I'm being yelled at I'm scarfing down a bunch of food.  Hasn't changed much, has it?

Shot in 2000 when we were in 7th grade, this was our largest production of that time with a crew of, like, 10 and a budget of, like, 42 cents.  The tape went missing for a year and a half after production and then resurfaced in late 2001, where my friend Lars and I edited it and created this trailer set for a June 1, 2002 release to the three people who had 10 minutes to spare to watch it.

Thanks for reading!