KE7GKP:
you could use the ARef input and analogReference() function to scale the Arduino input to 25 or 30 millivolts full scale
The minimum recommended reference is around 1 volt. Below that Arduino is too noisy to produce reliable results.
Note also that any attachment to a real thermocouple must use an "ice-point" reference compensation or else you will never know whether you are measuring the temperature at the thermocouple, or the temperature at the junction point. That is one of the downsides of using real thermocouples.
Thanks, wasn't sure about the noise floor, thats why I inserted a caveat.
Good point about the ice point, too ... most OEM instrumentation fakes this automagically.