There is no room in China for Kraft Dinner, the delightful KD, food of my youth. I think the rule in China is there is nothing grown and raised, or any part/item/organ of the previously mentioned food products, that cannot be eaten or used in a Chinese medicinal preparation.  (aside: My lovely wife once took me to the local clinic. When filling the prescription I was to ingest, the clerk placed large, dried seahorses in the bag with the assorted roots, nuts and berries,. “They taste just like fish,” she told me.)

I have eaten a lot of strange things since arriving in the PRC. Vegetables, for one. I was never a big fan of anything grown in the ground or on a plant, but have started eating such items on a regular basis. I’m more of a carnivore.

After 29 months in China I have ingested tragically few boxes of the standard Canadian treat, Kraft Dinner (Kraft Macaroni and Cheese to my American Friends). Reflecting on this fact, I find it hard to believe. My life is full of Kraft Dinner stories. It was a staple of my youth. (One night at dinner, two Canadian friends and I had a very serious discussion, comparing the pros and cons of regular KD vs spirals and shells. The extra cheesy type of KD was also discussed at length. Our New Zealand pengyou was puzzled and wondered what we were talking about.)

During my childhood the meal was pork chops, French green beans from a can, and Kraft Dinner. This culinary gem was usually eaten weekly. I loved KD. That strange, almost Day-Glo orange color, the faux-cheese taste – what’s not to like. As a teenager I prepared KD for myself when I was home alone. I started to experiment with different ratios of milk and butter in a quest to reach the perfect consistency. My college and university days were full of KD. It was fast, easy and cheap.

Back ‘in the day’ there wasn’t all the fancy brands you see now; No spirals or cartoon character shaped noodles, no white cheddar flavor.  Standard KD was all that was available. Now, you can find the following flavors under the KD banner:

• Original Kraft Dinner (The Cheesiest)
• Kraft Dinner with Egg Noodles
• Sharp Cheddar Kraft Dinner
• Kraft Dinner Spirals
• Kraft Dinner White Cheddar
• Kraft Dinner Alfredo
• Kraft Dinner Shapes
• Spaghetti & Cheese Kraft Dinner
• Spaghetti in Tomato Sauce Kraft Dinner
• Kraft Dinner Extra Creamy Tomato Marinara
• Creamy Garlic
• Cheese & Bacon
• Deluxe Cheddar Macaroni & Cheese
• Three Cheese Macaroni & Cheese Dinner
I find the fact that KD has an entry on Wikipedia very funny.

Later, I moved to the Kraft Easy Mac that can be prepared in a microwave. This suited my incredibly lazy Canadian lifestyle better. While in Canada KD was a staple of my diet. For good or ill, it sustained me and added little joy to my life when it was needed.

Not now.

As I said, I have eaten a few boxes of Kraft Dinner since arriving in the PRC. One of the first meals I cooked for my wife was KD. She wanted Canadian food and I could think of nothing better to give her a taste of real lower-middle-class Canada (I bought a few boxes of the stuff with me, just in case.) I did chop up spicy peppers and placed them on the top of her bowl of orange noodles. She politely ate it, made a general comment as to its tastiness, but has never asked for it again (a common occurrence when I cook North American food).

Ah, tastes of youth and Canada. Memories…