Does Kraft Mac And Cheese Actually Expire?

Kraft mac and cheese is processed heaven for your taste buds packaged nice and neat in an iconic blue and yellow box. This is the stuff of childhood nostalgia, and even with the subtle changes to Kraft's classic mac and cheese, it is still beloved. It's tasty, cheap, and easy to make, and it can sit on a shelf in your pantry for seemingly forever. However, if you have Kraft mac and cheese that has been sitting in your cabinets for a really long time, you may wonder if it is no longer edible. The answer is it depends. While this food doesn't have an expiration date, it does have a best-used-by date.  

A best-used-by date doesn't mean that when this date rolls around on the calendar or when you move a couple of weeks past it, its contents are suddenly inedible and unsafe to eat. But it does mean that after that date, the quality of the flavor may start to wane, as might the ingredients themselves. 

Boxed Kraft, and most instant mac and cheese brands, can last for a full year past its best-used-by date as long as the packaging hasn't been compromised or damaged. However, the only true way to know if your mac and cheese is past its prime is by examining the noodles and the powdery cheese that's required to create the sauce. 

What should you look for? Use your senses. Because the noodles are dry and not packaged in any airtight packaging, it is imperative that they remain moisture-free. Otherwise, you might be dealing with moldy, stale pasta that isn't worth cooking up. And, of course, you also need to make certain it is stored in an environment without the dreaded weevils, which can happen in even the cleanest of kitchens. 

You can also use your nose. If something smells off, it probably is. Finally, taste before you make waste. If you make an older box of mac and cheese and it has a weird taste to it, don't serve it. If you don't detect anything wrong with your meal in a box that is past its best-used-by date, then it may be a prime opportunity to upgrade your mac and cheese with some hot sauce for a spicy kick or add some frozen vegetables to your Kraft mac and cheese and see if the kiddos even notice.