“A crispy savory and sweet cracker to complement cheeses, dips, and toppings”
Wow, these little Trader Joe’s crackers are just delicious. First off, the texture is great, as they are very well baked and very crunchy, and have both sunflower and flax seeds.
The flavor of these is terrific, just the right amount of both sweet and savory. These are pretty small and delicate. They taste great on their own with nothing on them. You can eat them right out of the box.
However they will be even better if you put something on them. I tried them with cream cheese and loved the combo, then tried them with some Chevre and brie; they will match superbly with any cheese you put on them, or try them with charcuterie too like prosciutto.
These are one of those Trader Joe’s products that you could really impress guests with. Especially one of those cheese boards. Pretty natural sounding ingredients too. These are about $4 / box (5.3 oz)
Another knock it out of the ball park Trader Joe’s item. I would buy them again
“A light roast with notes of dried fruit and orange”
This is the latest “small lot” coffee Trader Joe’s has come out with (Dec ’23). This coffee is from Brazil, called “Cachoeira da Grama”, which comes from Brazil’s Vale de Grama in the Sao Paolo region.
Trader Joe’s describes the beans as a “light roast” on the package and in this case, I agree (we know TJ’s roast descriptions can vary wildly). The package says these coffee beans were “double fermented”: “this innovative double fermenting process brings about the perfect balance of acidity and sweetness, and the light roast unveils lively notes of dried fruit and orange.”
Naturally whenever I taste a new Trader Joe’s Small Lot coffee, I can’t help but to compare it with my memory of other small lot coffee they’ve had. How does this new one compare to the best of their Small Lot coffees some of which were so freaking good, they blew me away?
I neither loved nor hated this; it falls in the middle. This Brazilian one is good and is a decent coffee with yes notes of “dried fruit and orange”. While I thought it was fine I didn’t find it terribly special. Yet when I searched online about this coffee I found some reviewers just raving about it. Me, I would not give this a Rave however lets face it, things like coffee, or wine for that matter, are the most personal of taste preferences. At some point only you can decide what you think.
I found this this a decent coffee but when I thought of others… a few amazingsmall lot coffee gems Trader Joe’s had in the past – I would not put this one up there with at least two others I recall. Not terribly long ago, TJ’s had a terrific small lot coffee that came from the DOMINICAN REPUBLIC – I found that one to be wonderful. A standout. Ditto for another one which was really good, the HONDURAN Small Lot Coffee.
Both of those two small lot coffees were incredible finds to my taste and I cross my fingers I may see someday either of them again someday at Trader Joe’s as I would buy either in a second. But I won’t hold my breath because as we know all too well, one of the first things about Trader Joe’s one learns the hard way is if you fall in love with something you may have your heart broken someday.
Trader Joe’s Brazil Cachoeira da Grama Small Lot Coffee was $9.99 (12 oz) a decent price for a small lot coffee. The small lot are “Limited Editions” so if you want to try it, grab it asap.
I would not buy this again. It was good but not as special as other Small Lot Coffees I’ve tasted. But I saw that some people really liked this, so as the French say, “à chacun son gout“
Just FYI – One of my Go To coffee’s at Trader Joe’s is the AZMARI BUNNI, Afro-Latin blend (light roast). It’s a consistently excellent and well balanced blend which I find to be a terrific all around coffee that never fails to please me in the morning. They carry this regularly now. If you have not tried it I suggest starting there.
UPDATE – Finally some good news! After being M.I.A for a LONG time, and believed to have been discontinued, take a look at what I saw reappear in the butter section at my TJ’s (NYC). The beloved FRENCH CULTURED BUTTER came back.
This terrific French butter from Brittany, France has been Missing In Action for something like 2 years or more. In fact I think I remember a few years ago they put up a sign announcing in would be discontinued (when she saw that my neighbor bought 8 and froze them).
Do we care that the sign calls it “EURO STYLE CULTURED BUTTER” for some reason? Is that an E.U. thing? Or that they aren’t hand painting a sign like they would normally do? Does that mean its temporary.
In any case the label looks like it used to, and says “Produced in Brittany, France”. Fingers crossed, they’ve nailed the supply problem and this thought to be discontinued item item is making a permanent comeback. We will see. It went up in price of course and costs $4.69 (last time I got it was 3.69?) But that was 2 years ago? The Kerrygold Irish butter seems to cost $4.49 now so this is not much more than that one.
Just in case you’ve never tried it, the French Cultured Butter is really top notch. Many readers were shaken when we saw it was discontinued 2 years ago. I’ve been getting the Irish Kerrygold butter basically since the French butter vanished a few years back. I like it very too. It costs a bit less (but not much anymore; maybe only a quarter!!).
For us, having options for a few premium imported butter is nice. I still miss the NZ butter they used to carry back when TJ’s actually had 3 kinds of imported butter from France, Ireland and New Zealand!
One of the few products Trader Joe’s sells under the original brand, SYNERGY RAW KOMBUCHA is an all natural fermented drink. My wife mostly buys it and most of the times she goes to Trader Joe’s she will get this. On occasion she will even let me have a few sips if I ask politely.
They have about three different flavors but of all of them this is her favorite. “Gingerade”, which is quite gingery. I like this flavor too.
But first if you are not familiar with it what is kombucha anyway ?
Kombucha has gotten more and more popular over the last few years from the health community as it’s loaded with probiotics.
Its very unique from a taste standpoint. The first time you open this bottle you will get a huge fizz. Like opening a soda. Really fermented with a LOT of natural fizz. Taste it and you get a bit of a natural bite on your tongue. Really zingy. Personally I like the taste and sensation and find it both refreshing and tasty, but it may be an acquired taste. The fizz will die down once you open it after a day.
Kombucha is a naturally fermented drink with lots of enzymes and probiotics. Kombucha is said to have many health benefits. People have made it for a thousand years or so. A little goes seems to go a long way. This 16 oz bottle lasts us a few days. This is made from black tea, green tea, kiwi juice and ginger.
Trader Joe’s sells Synergy Raw Kombucha for $3.49 (16 oz) It’s carried in the refrigerated drinks area.
Seen at Trader Joe’s this “PANOPLY OF ORGANIC ITALIAN PASTA – A box of five uniquely shaped pastas. Serve with a variety of sauces and cheese. ”
its really nice looking. High Quality Artisanal Pasta. All natural, plant based colors. “Striped Farfalline, Striped Papillon, Lemon Flavored Torchietti, Striped Figchietti, Ortolana de Gallo”
Some of these shapes are quite rare to see in the U.S.
$9.99 for the 35 oz box. This box looks very gift-able to me….
UPDATE 2 (1/10/24) After the shortage, I finally saw lots of bottles of olive oil (100% Italian Presidents Reserve) on the shelf back in stock at Trader Joe’s (NYC/Amsterdam 93 St) However I did get a bit of sticker shock when I saw how much it went up. Its was $12 (up from about $8 the last time I got it?). The cheaper one was now just $1 less.
Note: (1/24/24) They seem to have lowered the price down a little from $12 to $11 for the Premium Extra Virgin 32 oz bottle with the spigot (1/25/24).
(12/31/23) What’s going on with olive oil at Trader Joe’s?! Have you had trouble recently finding olive oil on the shelves at Trader Joe’s? Yesterday at my Trader Joe’s (72 St NYC) I saw bare shelves where the Italian President’s Reserve EVOO would be with signs saying “Coming Back”. Yikes! What’s up with this? Well Trader Joe’s and others are experiencing shortages from suppliers in Europe. Unfortunately some countries especially Spain and Italy, have experienced two years with really bad weather, including brutally hot summers, drought (then floods) wildfires, the gamut…. and we’re seeing the results now with shortages of olives and olive oil.
The only bottles of EVOO I saw yesterday on the shelf at Trader Joe’s was the California EVOO. I bought one to tide me over for awhile. Its the same price ($7.49) yet half the size of the larger (32 oz) bottle of Trader Joe’s President’s Reserve Italian EVOO I was hoping to buy.
Expect higher prices for olive oil in the coming year….
UPDATE: (I saw a few bottles of Spanish EVOO there a few days later)
WASHINGTON POST
“Olive oil prices reach record highs as Spain’s harvest is halved
Extreme weather decimates major producers’ yields and some countries ban exports
Extreme heat, wildfires and drought have decimated much of the world’s olive harvest yet again, driving prices for olive oil to a record high of $9,000 per metric ton.
Most home cooks aren’t buying olive oil by the ton. But retail olive oil prices in the United States have risen in recent years because of extreme weather in olive-oil-producing countries, growing 12.5 percent this year atop an 8.8 percent increase in 2022, according to Circana, a Chicago-based market research firm.
Spain, the source of half the world’s olive oil supply and the global price setter, in May reported a drop in production of 48 percent compared with last year. Concerns intensified following the release of the most recent olive oil report from the Spanish government, which showed dwindling supplies in August.”
My wife bought this “MISO RAMEN SOUP”. Now she loves ramen and will usually buy her favorite, Korean Shin Ramen, which is very good. It costs more. She made this and when I asked her what she thought her review was pretty short: “I’ll never buy this again”
Inside the cup there’s some noodles which don’t look like the dried ramen you are used to. These are straight wheat noodles which look semi-dry (pre-boiled?). There’s not a lot of noodles. There’s a dried packet of stuff (the soup) plus a little clear packet, which we thought was one of those drying packets and almost threw it away. Nope, its part of the ramen set; The clear packet contains a little bit of oil you add along with the dry packet of miso soup.
I tasted her ramen and here’s what I thought of this product.
The Good: The broth was actually pretty decent. Better than I expected. It tastes like a Japanese miso soup broth. There was even a piece or two of wakame (seaweed) floating around in the soup. Some umami from seaweed and mushrooms. The Ingredient list reads fairly natural; you don’t see wierd names of chemicals just dried ingredients. Broth 7/10
The Bad: Ramen? Well they really messed up the “ramen” part of this “miso ramen soup”. Noodles are lousy. We both thought the noodles were not very good and to add insult to injury they are very skimpy with the noodles. These noodles are not dry but a little flexible, like a semi-dried, pre-boiled noodles? They barely had any texture or bite to them after the recommended six minutes. Very MEH as they should be the star. Noodles 5/10
The Sodium content is listed as 870, which is almost 40% of your daily recommended level of salt. We cut that down by only using about 3/4 of the packet. Naturally that will make the broth a little less strong. It was fine for us. All instant ramen tends to have quite a bit of sodium. Always check the labels. This really applies to all the Asian products at TJ’s.
If you decide to actually try this, it may be better if you try adding a poached egg and chopped scallions as they suggest.
$1.89
I had an idea that since the broth was not bad but the noodles are Meh I thought one might combine this with the packet of cheap ramen dried noodles you might have in the house. I used to get them 5/$1 a few years back!
If you want good ramen, Korean Shin Ramen runs rings around this and most instant ramen though it costs more.
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.
Trader Joe’s ORGANIC PAPPARDELLE PASTA NESTS. Imported from Italy
“Boils into toothsome bundles of sauce holding pasta”
INGREDIENTS: Organic Durum Semolina
I really like these little pappardelle “birds nests” noodles. When I want to impress people, I make these with a terrific sauce. The dish will always get a rave.
Looking at the rough texture on the exterior of the pasta, you can instantly see they are extruded on bronze dies, which top pasta maker’s use. Made for Trader Joe’s by an artisan Italian pasta company (“…one of the most highly-regarded pasta makers in Italy”) Trader Joe’s says the company also mill their “own local, organic, durum wheat semolina themselves”. Yes these are pricier than most of the pastas at Trader Joe’s however you can pretty much see these are “super premium”. I’m sure they would cost at least double what TJ’s sells them for at some high end market under a premium Italian brand name.
They cook up into a wonderful soft toothsome noodle which almost seem like an egg noodle, but they are just semolina. These noodles really take incredibly well to any sauce you can think of to serve with them. I especially like them with a hearty meaty sauce like a Ragu or Bolognese. They go great with TJ’s frozen “MUSHROOM MEDLEY”. They work for “spaghetti and meatballs” instead of the spaghetti, or with Cacio e Pepe, or Alfredo or a Carbonara sauce. Or add them to a soup.
For a really simple fast pasta in a pinch just toss the noodles with good butter and Parmigiano and black pepper for a simple yet sublime pasta.
When making these I usually allow about 2 nests per person/portion. “Boil gently for 12-13 minutes”. They used to be $3.49 but now sell for $3.99 for the huge bag (17.6 oz) TIP: I’ve even used these noodles making Chinese/Asian noodle dishes!
“They’re brought to us by one of the most highly-regarded pasta makers in Italy, who doesn’t just put in the hard work of crafting each batch of Pappardelle Pasta Nests into the tender, delectable noodles that they are — they also mill their very own local, organic, durum wheat semolina to do so.”
Trader Joe’s Korean Scallion Pancakes are savory pancakes made primarily with scallions (green onions) as well as other vegetables.
These are a bit similar to TJ’s popular TAIWANESE GREEN ONION PANCAKES however the KOREAN SCALLION PANCAKES, (“PaJeon” in Korean) contain a lot more scallions than Trader Joe’s Taiwanese scallion pancakes, plus more vegetables such as onions, carrots, king oyster mushrooms and other goodies as you can see in the picture. These pancakes are quite tasty and Trader Joe’s version (made in Korea) are pretty good!
To make these pancakes, you make a egg and flour batter then add vegetables to it, then pour this into a pan to pan fry. I’ve have had them many times in Korean restaurants and those are delicious, really crispy. Naturally I can’t compare Trader Joe’s frozen scallion pancakes to those I’ve had in Korean restaurants but never the less, I enjoyed these. Trader Joe’s frozen PAJEON are quite tasty.
Even my wife (Korean/Japanese) enjoyed them and said they were good for a frozen version. You will enjoy these, especially if you can get them really crispy – which is the trick to making good pajeon.
The package suggests defrosting them before cooking doing either an overnight defrost in the fridge, or you can leave them out on the counter for a 1/2 hour or so, which is what I did. In a pinch they say you could do them from frozen. I didn’t try that way. Just plan a little bit ahead if you can to take them out for at least 20 minutes. The bag does say leave overnight in fridge to defrost, or about 30 minutes out on the counter. Meaning you should cook these defrosted if possible for the best results.
HOW TO COOK TRADER JOE’S SCALLION PANCAKES: Add a teaspoon or two of oil to a non stick, cast iron pan or very heavy skillet. If you happen to have a bottle of toasted sesame oil use that for the oil for the most authentic Korean taste.
Get the oil hot on medium heat then carefully add your (defrosted) pancakes. Let them cook for about 2-3 minutes on the first side checking the bottom occasionally for browning. You want to get them as golden brown as possible. You can press them gently with a spatula to help get them browned everywhere.
When the first side looks ready, flip them over and cook the second side, again getting the PaJeon as golden brown as possible, maybe another 2-3 minutes. When they look ready remove and drain off any excess oil on a paper towel.
Eat them asap while they are hot and crispy.
Other Methods: The package says you can bake them in the oven as well but I didn’t try that method yet. Perhaps then these can be done in an Air Fryer.
To serve these, cut the pancakes into quarters or slices (I actually cut the pancakes up before I cooked them as you can see above). Either way works. You want to eat these with a nice Asian dipping sauce, so get that prepped before you start cooking these. If you have some Gochujang , sesame oil and garlic in the sauce that will give you a real Korean flavor however any Asian dumpling sauce will work.
You could even top them with a fried egg. Or you could put some cooked shrimp on top. So be creative. Pajeon are hugely popular in Korean cuisine and can also be made with additional ingredients such as shrimp, beef, pork, tofu, seaweed, and other vegetables. Seafood pajeon are called haemul pajeon, kimchi pajeon are known as kimchijeon.
What to enjoy along with these to make a full meal? We ate them with fried rice and these go well with that. Maybe TJ’s Japanese Fried Rice or Bulgogi Fried Rice? Add KIMCHI on the side or mixed in for sure.
All in all, I found these SCALLION PANCAKES quite tasty. I would buy them again. They are about $4 for 4 pancakes. A bit more than the plainer Taiwan pancakes but these have way more ingredients.
Trader Joe’s Rants & Raves (mostly raves, a few rants) 
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