Macaroni box or Macaroni casserole must be one of the most-eaten traditional Finnish dish! It's loved by both kids and adults.

Many Finns make this dish at least every month. It has been common in  the Finnish households since the 1950's. Finnish Macaroni box is also available as ready-to-eat meal in all grocery shops.

Macaroni box is not a casserole..

Important note: Finnish macaroni box is supposed to keep it's form when cut. It would be considered "not baked enough" or raw if there is any running sauce. That is why there are plenty of eggs, to form milk-egg mixture that will hold everything together.

The only sauce to enjoy with Makaronilaatikko (translated directly to macaroni box) is ketchup. Most Finns like to add ketchup on top of this dish, on their plate.

Can I add cheese into Finnish macaroni box?

During the last decades, adding cheese to this Finnish dish has become more popular. Originally on top there were only breadcrumbs. Now many like to add cheese in between the layers and also on top. 

The best cheese to add in between is Finnish Koskenlaskija ("raftsman") that is a block of processed cheese that you can actually cut pieces of. It melts in the oven to a nice gooey pieces that go very well with this dish.

Nowadays there are also several varieties of Koskenlaskija cheese available, e.g. spreadable. But the original is the yummiest! (I do eat it just like that without anything..!😂) 

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