The Food Craze Gen X Grew Up With Is Still Hanging Around

Thanks to TikToks and reels, you might think that cakes made in mugs are a recent invention. Among various comfort foods loved by Gen X include a variety of recipes that could be conveniently made in a cup. Though such easy meals tend to be associated with college students, tasty recipes that can be cooked in the microwave and in cups go back decades. Betty Crocker encouraged homemakers to make hot meals in mugs in 1976, and Mug-O-Lunch provided the ingredients needed to put together a quick snack or meal using only boiling water. Some Gen Xers remember eating the contents sans water and enjoy chomping on pieces that weren't fully cooked.

Ideally, Mug-O-Lunch packages were prepared by emptying the dehydrated contents into a mug, adding hot water, waiting several minutes, and stirring before eating. Meal options included spaghetti with tomato sauce, macaroni and cheese, and beef noodles. Nostalgic eaters of these dishes recall the meals fondly. "I loved this as a kid. Betty Crocker needs to bring this back," wrote one YouTube user. "I LOVED the macaroni and cheese one! The taste was 10x more potent than regular mac and cheese boxed kits like Kraft," added another. 

Though Mug-O-Lunch offered easy-to-make dishes that helped make distributing food straightforward and fast, not everyone remembers savoring the taste of the prepared meals. "Those were nasty and half the time it didn't cook properly," wrote a Facebook user. Some Gen Xers compared Mug-O-Lunch's easy-to-make meals to bad cooking and simply preferred the packages as an alternative to poorly made dishes. Others noted the high level of sodium in the dehydrated recipes. 

Though Mug-O-Lunch didn't withstand the test of time (the single-serve packets were only around for a few years), plenty of other cup-sized instant noodles, soups, and meals can still be found in markets. For those who enjoy the simple satisfaction that comes with a perfectly portioned snack or meal that can be served in a cup, netizens have set out to create recipes that can be made in mugs, like macaroni and cheese, pizza, French toast, and quiche. You certainly don't need to be a college student to appreciate a tasty recipe that can be conveniently made. Without the hassle of having to deal with leftovers or an unnecessary amount of post-meal clean up, your food in a cup may taste even better.