Combine 2 Popular Instant Meals For A Flavor-Packed Lunch

The bygone memories of don't-know-how-to-cook adolescence and college life can be vibrantly revived with the taste of insta-dishes like boxed mac & cheese and ramen noodles. In all my latchkey afternoons of childhood spent cooking instant mac in the microwave or ramen on the stovetop, it never once occurred to me to try combining the two. However, social media has recently popularized the amalgamation of boxed mac and instant Asian noodles. Now that the idea has been planted, I kind of want to time travel. My younger self needs to know this is a thing.

It's so brilliant and yet so simple, and merging these two speedy-prep meals adds up to a quick but flavor-packed lunch. You end up with the satisfying uber-saltiness of the ramen and the creamy artificial cheesiness of the mac; It's a match made in processed food heaven. Bonus: The prep time is what the packages call for and no more, so you're getting something tastier than standalone ramen or mac, but you're not spending any extra time.

There are multiple approaches to preparing this hybrid dish. One method (which uses microwave mac and cheese) is to cook your ramen, complete with the flavor packet, and separately cook your macaroni noodles. Mix them together, then add in the cheese pouch contents from the mac package. Voilà, you're done! If you're using boxed mac, you can cook the macaroni noodles and then add the ramen to the pot for the last few minutes. Add the mac and cheese ingredients first, then mix in the contents of the ramen flavoring packet. 

If you want to get fancy, you can also go slightly more gourmet with your ramen-mac hybrid and make a homemade cheese sauce rather than using the prepackaged cheese mix. Upgrading the dish in this way takes you somewhat out of "quick meal" territory and adds a bit more time to the process (but not a lot). This enhanced version can be achieved by making a roux with butter and flour and incorporating freshly grated cheeses and milk or cream to create a rich sauce. The cooked pasta, ramen, and seasoning packet are then added io the mix.

The different noodle textures strike a nice balance of softness and chewiness, but you can omit the macaroni if you don't want two different types of noodles in your lunch. You can also double down on enhancing the dish and use a higher-end product in place of the bargain ramen. Try creating your own seasoning blend, if you'd like; you can spice things up with a flavorful condiment like sweet chili sauce, or you can incorporate a host of toppings to turn the mixture into a restaurant-worthy bowl. Whether your prep is straightforward — a simple mashup of the two low-cost, quick-fix packaged meals — or you take a little more time and thought to give it some enhancement, the result is satisfying and tasty. It's also something both kids and adults can appreciate.