The Trader Joe's Product Discussion Thread (S/D)

harbl is always otm! <3

i'm otm about groceries and food products 99.99% of the time

My wife is reducing her sodium intake so she bought something called 21 Seasoning Salute (that tehresa raved about upthread). I'd never heard of it, it's kind of like a zesty onion powder. Now all of us put in on everything and we need more.

not sure I like the idea of hot and sweet jalapeños

I will try them. I ended up liking their green dragon sauce, sort of, but most of Trader Joe’s salsas and hot sauces are too sweet

Anyone tried the refrigerated pickles they have near the salads and salsas?

― blood, loud screaming and nudity (GOTT PUNCH II HAWKWINDZ), Friday, March 8, 2019 6:24 AM (one year ago) bookmarkflaglink

These might be the crunchiest supermarket pickles I have ever eaten, A+++

Oh nice

it's these bad boys
https://sonomabrinery.com/kosherdill-sketch-1

ooh those are good pickles -- I'm used to getting them at regular grocery stores (Safeway, Whole Foods) -- is that true nationwide?

It turns out they get less crunchy FAST once you break the seal, like one day, so I'm gonna go ahead and recommend eating an entire bucket at a sitting

will do

First-time caller here endorsing the super burrito (debated a few years ago here). Also dug the Everything But The Bagel almond/cashew mix until I saw the corn syrup in the ingredients list.

Also have been shopping early-mid evenings to avoid the lines.

I think TJ is discontinuing the stevia packets -- when I went this weekend, they didn't even have a space on the shelf for it anymore.

don't they swiftly remove shelf tags and fill w nearby product like even when something is just out of stock at the moment?

i like the traitor joe t shirts from infowars!

Stevie, I have no idea but hope that's the case!

I've seen that happen (champagne vinegar better not be gone!).

Yeah, when something is out of stock they just remove the tag and shift stuff over. Doesn't mean it's gone for good, though sometimes it does!

I was sent to TJs specifically to buy Sumo oranges yesterday. I guess they are a thing?

Lately my wife swears by the Toffee Chips.

Checked again this week, and still no stevia packets -- looks like I have to order on Amazon for my non-sugar sweet fix. :\

In other news: https://www.amazon.com/Trader-Chocolate-Sandwich-Cookies-Filling/dp/B01MQZ2OJS

I cannot stop eating these.

Ha, we just discovered those cookies a couple weeks ago and are obsessed. We picked up the chocolate hazelnut sandwich cookies last night but they were disappointing - too sugary and not much real flavor.

The new frozen French onion Mac n cheese is gross btw.

oh shiiiiiiiiii those are good!!

New “Aussie Style Biscuits” = TimTams

Just heard about those, how do they compare?!

A rare miss for me was their frozen pho. It's usually a red flag when something is "inspired" by its place of origin, and in the case of TJs specifically when the food in question does not actually come from its place of origin. The soup was from Canada, but TJs is usually pretty good about sourcing from, well, the source. The cultured butter is from France, the paella is from Spain, the satay noodles from Thailand, etc. Anyway, the pho was gross. Oh, also gross were the hatch chili chicken wraps. Skip.

Pretty similar to the real thing? I haven’t had legit timtams in a while though. I think the ones you can get here are actually made by Pepperidge farms or something.

xp Don't know if you're referring to the beef pho, but I liked it after cooking some medium-width flat rice noodles in salt water until just chewy to add to it separately, also adding some chopped up serrano chiles and extra beef stock.

like the chicken stock and chicken pho I make from scratch better though

Yeah, it was the beef pho. It tasted bad and bland to me, though I'm sure it could be doctored.

can't stop eating the organic stone ground blue corn tortilla chips with sprouted amaranth, quinoa & chia seeds.

stop and get some sleep!

the cacio e pepe ravioli is great but the wrapper is a lot thinner and more delicate than all their other ravs, so be cautious bcz it cooks quickly. I cooked a bag of this + an entire bag of tuscan kale sauteed and wilted down w some olive oil, garlic, and red pep and it was the perfect veg-heavy low-effort meal.

the cajun alfredo is fucking HORRIBLE, jarred alfredo is often bad in a way where it's clearly inferior to homemade but still usu tastes good in its own weird way, so I figured this would be at the very least edible, but it is not. I'm shocked this made it thru testing.

the new fruity gummy candies are excellent, though I'm quite miffed because my bag had one (1) grapefruit gummy and at least 30 watermelon gummies >:( though they do have a disclaimer on the pkg that's basically like "warning: you get what you get", and the watermelon tastes more like actual fresh watermelon than any watermelon-flavored thing I've ever had

Been waiting for the Portuguese egg tarts. But the Tim Tam knockoffs were back.

the May peonies at Trader Joe's have been spectacular this year. I've bought three separate bunches, they have all been different but were equally amazing. I really don't want the season to come to an end

The spicy Thai eggplant (frozen section) appears to have been discontinued, and I'm bummed.

Hmm, let's see:

Ube tea cookies: mostly taste like sugar, C.
Southern Peach Crisp: Tastes exactly like peach cobbler with cream, A
"Aussie-style Chocolate Crème Sandwich Cookies" (aka Tim Tams): Pretty good knock off! A-
Dill pickle potato chips: didn't try them because others ate them too fast, which is a default B+

Bought but TBD: dill pickle mustard, tangerine cream bar, frozen carrot cake

MIA: Those Japanese wash cloths, I liked those.

Focaccia Primavera: cardboard. D
Dairy-Free Mozzarella Style Shreds: thought I could skip a trip/expense to get the Daiya. A mistake. C
Vegan Jackfruit Crabless cakes: not as convincing as in the Yellow Jackfruit Curry. B-
Bamba peanut crusted corn puffs: I struggle to not buy a $1 bag for the drive home. B-
Aloo Chaat Kati Pouches: masala hot pockets, a value at $2.50. B
Chicken-Less Mandarin Orange Morsels: needs some quick veggie veggies for a meal, but decent. B
Thai Vegetable Gyoza: filling's a cut above the veggie gyozas at the Korean grocer, and good sauteed in sesame oil before steaming. B+
Greek Spanakopita: the pie tin one is much better than the triangle wraps. A-
Soy Chorizo: really flexible ingredient for soups and cassaroles, and a value. A
2018 Punto Final Malbec: dry but balanced, at $9 B; but at $4 clearance, I got 6.

Greek Spanakopita: the pie tin one is much better than the triangle wraps. A-

If this is the one that I’m thinking of, then whole heartedly agree. So good!

I forget what they’re called but the mixed-bag chips are great - it’s a mixture of bbq, ketchup, salt and vinegar, and dill (I think)

patio chips?

Tried the frozen almond croissants last weekend - nice, not as flaky as the same from a favorite bakery but an easy option.

the frozen fiorucci pasta in the pink cream sauce is amazing

I bought the butter they claim is from New Zealand but I think it’s bullshit because it’s the exact same color as American butter - but NZ butter is actually a deep yellow

Also tj’s ramen is somehow terrible? I have eaten many brands of chicken and beef ramen in my life and they all taste exactly the same. Despite coming with a giant bag of seasoning this was the blandest ramen I’ve ever eaten

I suspect TJ
secretly banned MSG
hence the weak ramen

true haiku, nice

at first i thought the mesquite almonds were too salty but now they're the only nuts i get (i love nuts har har), highly addictive and no diminishing returns as in the other flavored nuts.

I've only seen the knockoff Tim Tams a couple of times but once everyone started raving about them, I haven't seen them on the shelves at all. Last time I asked them, they said there were supply problems, so maybe this is like a West Coast problem?

It's that time of year when the coconut cold brew hits the spot!

a couple new items I'm trying out:

Key Lime Popcorn - very unusual flavor, and I'm not a key lime fan, but I found these strangely addictive
Dill pickle mustard - taste like... mustard with dill pickle in it

I recently bought a jar of awesome Spicy Kosher Dill Pickles (made in Bulgaria) that were seriously spicy.. but I haven't seen them since.

Same I loved those! Never to be seen again!