They say this: “Trader Joe’s Butter Chicken with Basmati Rice is the ultimate #Cookinghacks for this dish. Our Butter Chicken showcases chunks of chicken enrobed in a mild, mouth-watering curry crafted of crushed tomatoes, cream, onions, garlic, ginger, butter…Spiced just so, and partnered with delicate, fragrant grains of Basmati rice, it’s ready to heat and enjoy. Serve it with our other frozen Indian fare – TJ’s Palak Paneer, TJ’s Channa Masala, TJ’s Tandoori Naan – for a feast. Don’t forget the TJ’s Mango Ginger Chutney & sliced cucumbers!” https://www.traderjoes.com/home/products/pdp/butter-chicken-with-basmati-rice-099032
Search for this, and you learn that it comes up as one of Trader Joe’s most popular items with a pretty loyal following. Trader Joe’s has carried this forever, and it seems to have quite a lot of fans. I had not tried it till now though. Here’s my honest review with what I liked about it, plus as well as things I think could be improved on.
The Good: This is actually quite a tasty Indian chicken dish. The price is very attractive at $4.49. The flavor of this is quite good, with a rich tomato-y sauce. The chicken (I think white meat?) is perfectly cooked and not at all dried out; it’s tender and juicy coated with a tasty, creamy tomato sauce, which includes concentrated tomatoes, cream, butter and spices. The package says this whole thing is just 400 calories. I mean the portion is not huge. They give you mostly rice of course.
I think NAAN is worth eating with this, so you might want some with this too, to scoop up the sauce.
(THEIR PICTURE FROM THE TJ WEBSITE)(you can see about 3 or 4 pieces of chicken)
The Not So Good: I was surprised at the small amount of chicken they actually give you. I wish they gave you a bit more of it, as will you. Which makes me wonder, was it always so? I wacked a picture, probably old, off their website about the product. In that product picture, it looks like they show about six decent sized pieces of chicken. In the package we got, I counted about 4 pieces. Has the amount changed over the last year or so, as ingredient costs have gone up? Someone let me know please via the Comment section, if you’ve gotten this for years, if you think they cut back on the amount of chicken now as opposed to in the past. I just kind of suspect to keep the price the same there may be some shrinkflation ?
I found the basmati rice that comes with this just OK. Less flavorful than if I made my own Trader Joe’s Basmati Rice, which I assume might be a better quality Basmati rice. The taste of this one seemed less and its a bit under seasoned and maybe even undercooked.
A main selling point of this “whole meal” is of course, convenience in that it comes with rice already made. Me, I’m a rice freak, I make rice, daily many times. So frankly I’m not the typical target audience as I can put up a pot of rice in minutes. Hey, my wife’s Asian, and we can have rice 5 days in a row.
I think the rice could stand for a pinch might stand for a pinch of salt. Or put the sauce over the rice as it may balance out. I did not find the dish as a whole salty, nor spicy. I think I would call this “mild” Indian, not spicy, nor has a ton of seasonings and cream of course which mellows things. Ingredients include garlic, ginger, spices….
TIP: If you want to make this into a more substantial meal you could add a can of drained chick peas (99 cents) into this. I did. After the sauce is defrosted enough to take out the chicken, add a half (or whole can) of drained chick peas. Or you could add another dish perhaps make the excellent CHANNA MASALA chick peas in a tasty sauce to serve along with this. With that two people might be able to enjoy the two dishes as a meal.
Ingredients look pretty normal and natural without additives.
If for example you took this to work for your lunch, it would make a nice easy meal, only needing tossing into the microwave. Or don’t feel like cooking, add a salad and this could suffice as dinner. Drizzle perhaps with some greek yogurt and serve with their very good Mango Chutney.
(I think they dropped this for a new product, Roti with sauce)
I love this product but unfortunately just when I was going to post this, I could not find it at my Trader Joe’s. Checking the website, it’s listed at the moment as “currently unavailable”. Maybe its even been discontinued? Who knows? But I am crossing my fingers it comes back sometime in the future! If it comes back however I do highly recommend this product – and Authentic Indian bread which is a bit unique and different from typical Naan type Indian breads.
This Paratha is both flaky and crispy and quite delicious. Its kind of similar to some Chinese scallion pancakes (but no scallions) in style and texture.
“Heat our Malabari Paratha from frozen in a lightly oiled, non-stick pan until golden, and you’ll find a bite that is crisp on the outside and soft & moist on the inside. It’s the perfect partner for our Indian Fare meals, or any of our frozen Indian entrées.”
COCONUT CHICKPEA CURRY – “a creamy recipe with tumeric and aromatic spices” (PRODUCT OF INDIA)
I saw this in the NEW ITEMS shelf yesterday and tossed a pouch in my cart as I’ve found some of “Trader Joe’s Indian Fare” dishes pouches decent. Not to mention super convenient. For example the yellow tadka dal (which I’ve since learned to make on my own watching some YouTube videos).
This new one is COCONUT CHICKPEA CURRY with coconut milk as the first ingredient, followed by chickpeas.
Here is what TJ’s has to say about the product on their website:
“Made with a relatively simple recipe that includes coconut milk, chickpeas, chopped veggies, and spices like turmeric, cinnamon oil, and dried curry leaves, this heat-and-eat Curry achieves a remarkably complex, yet beautifully balanced mix of flavor, texture, and aroma—and all after a single minute in the microwave, or a few minutes submerged in boiling water.”
The Indian Fare pouches are easy to make and convenient to keep in your pantry. These are a bit faster even than frozen Indian meals perhaps by a few minutes – so not a huge difference. Be sure to try some of TJ’s frozen Indian items, many of which are VERY GOOD. See… Palak Paneer, Channa Masala, etc
MY REVIEW: You can microwave this or cook it on the stove. I did the latter. The Coconut Chick Pea curry was pretty good. Its mild from a simple, coconut milk sauce. This will be good with say Naan and Basmati rice. The dish is simple not complex, but fairly tasty with chick peas, some carrots, some onions in a coconut milk curry. However compared to say that other chickpea dish, I didn’t find this one as tasty as TJ’s excellent Channa Masala sold in the Frozen section. That dish is tastier, more complex. It tastes almost like it came from a restaurant. It is just tiny bit more expensive (50 cents) than this, but worth it. The Channa Masala is a 9. This is a 5.
However if you prefer your tastes for Indian dishes run toward mild and simple than perhaps this Coconut Chickpea curry may be to your liking. If you can, try both and decide which you prefer. My choice of the two is the frozen Channa Masala, which I adore.
$2.49 (10 oz pouch)
I believe this is VEGAN as it doesn’t list butter or ghee ?
Another of the Indian Fare Trader Joe’s stuff in a pouch, Madras Lentils
Roasted Eggplant Curry “Northern Indian dish from Punjab. Bharta means Charred grilled/smoked smashed vegetables”
NEW ITEM: Trader Joe’s recently added one more very good “Authentic Indian Recipe” entrée to the frozen Indian dishes they carry.
Baingan Bharta (a spiced roasted eggplant dish) is dish I’ve had many times in Indian restaurants and one I really enjoy. Trader Joe’s version of Baingan Bharta is quite decent, almost like something you could get at a restaurant, though maybe not quite as smokey. But TRADER JOE’S VERSION does have a bit of the classic smokey taste this dish is well known for, and it is very nicely seasoned with lots of authentic spices and flavor.
This dish, BAINGAN BHARTA, joins two other very good frozen entrée vegetarian dishes Trader Joe’s carries which I’ve reviewed and buy regularly: the excellent PALAK PANEER and CHANNA MASALA. I love having any of these in my freezer. For whenever the mood strike for an easy yet very tasty Indian meal. Just FYI, the ones I mention are the ones that are “entrées” meaning just that dish and they don’t include basmati rice (some dishes do) I make my own Basmati rice. Plus I like that that Trader Joe’s put this dish in an Eco Friendly (reclyable) paper base instead of plastic as some other dishes use.
HEATING: Use Microwave, Oven or Stovetop (even though they don’t say that). I made it on the stove and it worked fine just heating in a pan. You can leave it out on the counter for maybe a 1/2 hr, to defrost slightly then put frozen puck in a non-stick pan and heat it on low heat, covered, till its defrosted and heated thru, stirring every five minutes. It may take 15 minutes like this.
This dish of course goes well with Basmati rice and especially some Naan or other bread to scoop it up. I made a quick Raita with greek yogurt and cucumbers on the side. Naturally a nice chutney will go well too and one can not go wrong with TJ’s excellent Sri Lankan ORGANIC MANGO CHUTNEY
Cook up this entree up with Palak Paneer or a package of Channa Masala and some rice or naan and you have an Indian feast that will easily serve two for about $7-8.
“Our latest foray into the world of frozen entrées inspired by Indian cuisine combines the mild, slightly sweet flavor and creamy consistency of roasted eggplant with aromatic alliums like onion and garlic, savory seasonings like turmeric and fenugreek leaves, and a nice level of heat, courtesy of fresh green chili peppers. Hearty, flavorful, and satisfying, each bite of Trader Joe’s Baingan Bharta is layered with a pleasantly complex mix of tastes and textures. And though the eating experience may be complex, our take on this iconic Punjabi vegetarian dish (also known in some parts of the world as baigan chokha) is surprisingly simple to prepare: just heat, serve, and enjoy”
You can learn about this dish here which includes a recipe if you are feeling ambitious!
It’s wonderfully flavorful with just the perfect blend of sweet and spicy. Naturally it will go great with your Indian dinners such as your PALAK PANEER , or your Butter Chicken and Rice and some Naan and yogurt raita or tzatziki. However it will match well with many other types of food. Its great served on the side with grilled chicken or fish – or tofu for that matter. I even love it on top of cottage cheese! Great on a grilled cheese sandwich.
A jar is $3. I would buy this again. TIP: save yourself a trip and buy two jars!
“Made for us by a supplier in Sri Lanka, this magnificently Mango-forward Chutney is made with a thick, yet smooth and spreadable base of organic cane sugar and organic coconut sap vinegar, to which our supplier adds big, toothsome chunks of organic mango. They then flavor each batch with a suite of awesomely aromatic (and organic!) spices and seasonings that includes cinnamon, cardamom, chili powder, and garlic. Expertly balanced between its savory, sweet, and heat-based elements, the sky’s the limit with this vibrantly versatile Chutney. Try spooning a bit over pizza or pork chops, onto a freshly baked Organic Biscuit or toasted Tandoori Naan, or into a grilled cheese sandwich.“
Here’s my “honest review” of Trader Joe’s “Palak Paneer,Spinach and Paneer Cheese Seasoned with a bit of curry and chili“.
It’s so good that Vegetarian or not, you should try this!
Trader Joe’s PALAK PANEER is good. Make that very very good. In fact I’d say this is one of my top 5 favorite frozen items Trader Joe’s has. This and at least one other Indian entrée, the equally tasty CHANNA MASALA. Both have a pretty authentic real McCoy Indian taste. Pretty much comparable to what you might get if you ordered takeout from an Indian restaurant.
Trader Joe’s really has some pretty decent frozen Indian dishes. I buy these frozen entrées constantly when shopping at Trader Joe’s (update: now along with the also good new eggplant entrée dish Baingan Bharta) I like to always have these dishes in our the freezer along with a package of Naan of course. If I have those in the freezer I know I can have a delicious really easy Indian meal ready quickly that tastes pretty much as if we ordered in from a restaurant and for a lot less!
PALAK PANEER is a surprisingly good vegetarian dish consisting of spinach cooked with spices and the Indian cheese called paneer.
Paneer is a fresh Indian cheese that is great to cook with as it is firm and doesn’t melt.
Some of the Indian dishes at TJ’s include a portion of rice. A few do not. This dish doesn’t have rice ; it’s an entree only and you get more of the spinach dish here. For me preferable. I just make my own rice. You can make some Basmati rice, which is not very hard, actually that is pretty easy and only about 15 minutes.
TJ’s Palak Paneer is cooked with a lovely combination of spices and a bit of chili giving it an authentic Indian flavor. My only complaint if any is I wish they put more more paneer in this, as I love that. But at least there is just enough so that you don’t feel like they cheated you (side note: one reader writes to say they did used to give you more paneer back when…!
The dish has a little kick from chile but just a tad. I find the spicy level just right, i mean its a little spicy, but just a little bit. It is NOT crazy spicy though of course this is a personal taste preference. If you want it spicier, that’s easy to do, just add something spicy like (Bomba or Peri-Peri)
We eat this whenever we are in the mood for some “real Indian” food because it just that. How can you tell something Indian at TJ’s is any good. Well I have seen Indian people buying the Palak at Trader Joe’s along with some other dishes.
Sometimes alongside this Palak Paneer, I like to make TJ’s CHANNA MASALA (spiced chickpeas). Also quite good, and the chick pea dish and this spinach dish make a good combo with Basmati rice.
If you serve up these with Naan or Paratha for bread and some rice you have a tasty balanced Indian dinner that almost tastes like you ordered it from a decent Indian restaurant, and for a lot less. Maybe 8 dollars for a feast that serves two well? If I’m not too lazy I will make some raita to go with these (just slice up cucumber and mix with garlic and Greek yogurt to make a cooling Raita to go with the above dishes). For a shortcut, you could just buy some the Tzatziki. That will match well too.
TIP: Though they don’t mention Stove-top as a cooking method I have made this that way. Take the frozen slab out on the package and put it in a pan with a tablespoon of water. Heat on low, covered, stirring every 5 minutes or so for about 15-20 minutes till nice and hot.
$3.99 (10 oz)
I would buy this again.
Again this entree does not include rice; some of TJ’s Indian entrees have rice and some don’t. You get more entree when they don’t include it, so I’d rather make my own Basmati rice and get twice as much of the éntree.
There is just one ingredient in this: “unsalted butter”. This is sold on the shelf as you don’t need to it in the fridge, only “store in a cool dry place”.
Clarified butter is a process where regular butter has been “clarified” (cleared/purified), meaning the milk solids have been separated, and removed. This leaves a clear yellow liquid: (clarified butter). In India there is something similar called, Ghee. One reason for doing this is once butter has been clarified it has a higher smoke point. Another big reason especially in India with Ghee is that ghee does not need to be refrigerated.
Ghee is used all over Indian cuisine. The label on the jar of Trader Joe’s Clarified Butter says that is is “Produced according to authentic Indian practices”
In Indian cooking “ghee” is ubiquitous. Many Indian recipes specify using ghee. A big reason ghee is practical in India is once you clarify to butter it requires no refrigeration which is why you will find Trader Joe’s clarified butter on the shelf along with their oil and such.
Some classic French recipes also call for clarified butter including many classic sauces. Once you clarify butter it raises the “smoke point”. You can heat clarified butter to a higher temperature without burning it. (Sidenote: “Brown Butter” (Beurre Noisette) is the opposite! Called for in some French recipes and classic sauces, brown butter on the other hand is regular butter heated up until it becomes a toasty golden brown color, just this side of being burned/blackened (that’s beurre noire folks). Brown Butter tastes and smells incredible and is simple to make and quite an amazing thing if you’ve never tried it (try it with Gnocchi).
If you wanted to make clarified butter, you do it by heating up butter slowly in a pot, let any milk solids settle and slowly pour off the top yellow liquid on top so you end up with just the clear yellow liquid. That liquid is “clarified butter” or ghee.
Though I’m not vegetarian, I like to try vegetarian foods occasionally and see if they are any good. As far as Indian food goes, well I happen to love, repeat, love Indian cuisine. I think it’s one of the great World Cuisines. Certainly the greatest vegetarian cuisine, and I’ve eaten my fair share of Indian food in some really good restaurants which we happen to luckily have here in NYC.
Trader Joe’s does sell a few quite tasty Indian food items. Some are quite good and I’ve give good reviews to quite a few of them.
So I thought I would try Trader Joe’s VEGETABLE MASALA BURGERS. The picture on the package looks enticing plus they are are called “Masala Burgers with Authentic Indian Spices“.” Masala” indicates “mixed spices”.
To be honest when I tasted this, all I could think was that line, “Authentic Indian Spices?”. I find this very plain and lacking in spices. Yes I agree Indian food is not always highly spiced, but generally very flavorful. So my short review is these are Just OK and not terribly exciting. I gather from the feedback here that these Masala Burgers are actually pretty popular, despite what I think. Vegetarians especially seem to appreciate these vegetarian / vegetable burgers.
I just find them a bit too Meh myself. For example, in a dish like Masala Dosa filled with potatoes is basically mashed potatoes however the potato filling has a ton of flavor with assorted spices. I just wish these were a bit more like most of the potato fillings you would find inside say a Masala Dosa.
Trader Joe’s Vegetable Masala Burgers are made primarily with potatoes and to me, I think of this basically as a mashed potato burger with a few veggies. My wife how eats basically everything told me one was enough for her.
The concept is not bad, I just find the execution not as good as some of TJ’s other Indian foods. Again, many which are outstanding (and I see Indian people buying at Trader Joe’s)
One burger has 140 calories.
HOW TO COOK : These are fully cooked but you still need to brown them. Cook them in a skillet for 3-4 minutes per side in a little butter and oil until they look golden brown and delicious. They should get nice and crispy looking on the outside. The crispy texture makes these. Don’t microwave them as they will not get crispy.
TIP: If I had some curry powder I would sprinkle a bit on next time I made these.
I think they needed a little something to them to jazz them up. I think you will want some kind of sauce with these. Maybe Sriracha or Peri-peri sauce. Zhough. Bomba. Magnifisauce. At the very least I would add a little garlic or even garlic powder on these if you make them. The thing that perked this up a little bit for me was putting on a little TJ’s TAMARIND SAUCE, basically a tamarind chutney sauce. Perhaps some CHILE CRISP would be good for these?
I think these may really benefit matching with either Trader Joe’s GARLIC ACHAAR or Mango Chutney
My wife told me “one was enough” which was not a good review from her as she likes most anything I cook. So personally we didn’t find these as good as some other Trader Joe’s Indian frozen items. But again, they seem popular and a few readers have written in that they really like these Masala Burgers, especially if they do something to it to jazz it up. I have two good friends who are vegetarian who told me she loves these TJ’s Vegetable Burgers and buys them all the time. As they say, to each his own.
These might be worth checking out to see what you think, especially if you need vegetarian options.
Trader Joe’s does sell quite a few tasty Indian foods which I find quite good in the frozen section. For example, the super tasty CHANNA MASALA (chickpea curry) which I love as well as the BHAINGAN BHARTA (eggplant) and superb PALAK PANEER (spinach) entrees. All three of these I find excellent. Some people really like the Samosas too. Perhaps you could pair these Masala Vegetable Burgers with the Palak Paneer spinach dish, or Channa Masala for a good combo?
Vegetable Masala Burger $3.49 (4 burgers, 10 oz)
(NOTE: Contains Wheat, bread crumbs)
INGREDIENTS: POTATOES, CANOLA OIL, CARROTS, GREEN BEANS, BREAD CRUMBS (WHEAT FLOUR, SUGAR, YEAST, SALT), BELL PEPPERS, ONIONS, CORN, WATER, SALT, SUGAR, SPICES, GINGER, CELLULOSE GUM, GREEN PEPPER, CITRIC ACID, TURMERIC
Popular in Indian cuisine “Ghee” is butter that has slowly cooked to separate its milk solids from the fat so it doesn’t burn when cooking and can stay unrefrigerated. This is a Vegan “ghee” a blend of coconut and avocado oil. Now I’m not vegan myself, but just wanted to check out this product. It’s OK to cook with, neutral in taste. I think I would just prefer regular Coconut Oil which does impart a little coconut flavor. But if you are vegan this might be an option.
Trader Joe’s INDIAN FARE YELLOW TADKA DAL is “A savory, creamy and spicy blend of lentils and spices” (PRODUCT OF INDIA)
Trader Joe’s has quite a bit of Indian foods on offer, some in the frozen foods section as well as some non-frozen ones too, such as this line of Indian dishes which comes in pouches. Some of these I’ve tried are really good, especially this one, TADKA DAL.
We ate this TADKA DAL last night and I have to say I found it surprisingly tasty, I’m mean as in “This tastes like it came from an Indian restaurant” level good. This Tadka Dal was very flavorful and nicely spiced with a wee bit of heat going on. I put it in a pan on top of the stove (they suggest heating in hot water). If you serve this dal with a few other things, you have a nice easy dinner… We had this with another dish plus cooked Basmati rice, some Garlic Naan, Mango Chutney and a salad. (Sidenote: I saw TJ’s has a new Indian condiment, “Garlic Achar” which I want to try)
If you add at least one other dish to the Dal such as TJ’s CHANNA MASALA you can have an easy and quite tasty pretty authentic Indian dinner. These TJ’s “Indian Fare” products come in shelf stable pouches and are not a bad deal at about $2 each (for 10 oz) I find these pouches of Indian items great things to have in our pantry for whenever we’re in the mood for Indian food, or come home and don’t feel like cooking but don’t want to order out either. These plus frozen Naan make fast super easy meals. I have not tried all of these Indian Fare pouches but there are a few varieties on offer. This Tadka Dal one is quite good and worth your trying. By the way, in case you want to know what “Tadka” refers to: Tadka translates as “tempering.” It is a method widely used in Indian cuisine, in which whole or ground spices are heated in hot oil or ghee and the mixture is added to a dish.“
TADKA DAL: ingredients include yellow split peas, butter, oil, tomato, chili pepper, salt, cumin, onion, curry leaves, yest, mustard see, tumeric…. The Sodium level listed is a bit high, so compensate for that with other dishes (such as using less salt to make your rice)
Trader Joe’s Rants & Raves (mostly raves, a few rants) 
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