The 1980s ushered in a new kind of childhood: the latchkey kid. With both parents working, these children used a latchkey to let themselves into their homes after school.
And they were hungry. By the ’80s, microwaves had entered most kitchens, making it quick and easy to prepare food—something latchkey kids treasured after long school days.
Gen Xers on Reddit shared the “latchkey kid cuisine” they made for themselves after school. Some jokingly called their concoctions a “crime,” while others still crave the classics.
Here are 14 of their most memorable creations:
Hot dogs
“Hot dogs in the microwave.” – Fabulous-Airline-473
“I ate 2 hot dogs after school every day of either 6th or 7th grade. Couldn’t eat them again for at least a year.” – Second_City_Saint
Canned pasta
“Raviolis from the can. I remember housing the family size can all the time.” – hey_suburbia
“Spaghetti O’s with a Kraft single melted into it.” – joy_to_the_world_
“Wow, look at rockafella over here. Beefaroni 4 life, my friend.” – n10w4
Eggs
“We used to have ‘eggs in a basket’ as my Mom called it all the time as kids. The best part is taking the little circle of bread and making a mini French toast with it.” – Kronos1A9
Cinnamon, sugar, and butter on toast
“Cinnamon, sugar, and creamed butter mixed together to form a sort of cinnamon icing, spread onto slices of bread, bagels, whatever, and then toasted in the broiler until the sugar caramelized and turned into a crunchy crust on top. That was my childhood go-to for breakfast or snacks.” – ilikeaffection
“Latchkey kid food was cinnamon toast.” – kathatter75
Frozen pizza varieties
“Pizza Rolls.” – RojoRugger
“Or bagel bites if I was extra good.” – Prestigious-War-1825
“Frozen pizza for me.” – JD_tubeguy
Ramen
“For us, it was Top Ramen” – blueyedwineaux
“I used to make a cup noodle/top ramen on the stove and add a sautéed hot dog. I was 10 thinking I was a chef.” – Euphoric_Management8
Quesadilla
“Sometimes a tortilla with shredded cheese microwaved for the worst quesadilla ever.” – blueyedwineaux
Frozen dinners
“Starting the Schwanns frozen dinner if you were fancy.” – Weekly_Library9883
“As a Latchkey Kid this delight from Swanson [fried chicken dinner] fed me, many a times after school, while watching reruns of The Little Rascals, waiting for my parents to come home from work.” – CharlieMcN33l
“Micro Magic (discontinued brand from the 80s) burgers and fries. These were so good. All you did was open the box and nuke it for 90 seconds. These hit hard. Good old Gen X stuff that doesn’t exist anymore.😥” – Setsuna00XN
Canned soup
“Canned beans/soup with toast for this guy!” – skinnyminnesota
“My other go-to was a family size can of Campbell’s beef vegetable soup with an entire sleeve of Town House crackers dumped into it.” – hey_suburbia
Chipped beef on toast
“This was called ‘sh*t-on-a-shingle’ in our house.” – po_ta_toes_80
Nachos
“My latchkey go-to was microwave nachos.” – billskns5th
Sandwiches
“Saltine crackers and peanut butter, always the full sleeve because nobody was there to stop me.” – SaskatchewanKenobi
“I was a grilled cheese or Spaghettio kid.” – PlatypusFreckles
Cereal
“Yep, I put way too much sugar in a bowl of cheerios, collapsed in a sugar coma for about 25 min and skateboarded the rest of the evening.” – Combatical
Pot pie
“Frozen pot pie made in a toaster oven” – hisamsmith
