1) Kraft didn’t actually advertise that it takes only 3 1/2 minutes to prepare. They put on the box, “ready in 3 1/2 minutes,” inside a sketch of a microwave oven. I totally would read this as “takes 3 1/2 minutes in the microwave.”
2) I bet I could put water in it and stick it in the microwave in less than half a minute. That’s less than the normal variation of microwave cooking times.
3) If Kraft says it takes 4 minutes to prepare, people will see “4 minutes” and cook it for 4 minutes.
4) The box also describes necessary preparation and THEN cooking it for 3 1/2 minutes. It’s not like she tried it after 3 minutes of cooking, when her time ran out.There is no intent to deceive. She can’t say she read the box and had no idea additional prep time was needed.
5) She says she wouldn’t’ve bought it if she knew it took “so long” to prepare. She wouldn’t’ve bought it if it said, “Ready in 4 minutes.” Bullshit.
I’ve never seen or tried the product. Tempted to give it a try now. We do not know what the microwave settings have been or the cook times. If it takes 5 minutes in the microwave, then that’s what it should say on the packaging. The distinction between preparing and cooking is not readily ascertained in reading the label. It would be easy to interpret it as 3-1/2 minutes from the time the package is opened.