ingredient | Trader Joe’s Rants & Raves (mostly raves, a few rants)

Trader Joe’s All Natural Cooked BONELESS BREASTS OF CHICKEN (Was Discontinued!!)

(Update Jan 2025: M.I.A. for some time. Are they Out of stock or possibly Discontinued?) March 2025L Well its official from Trader Joe’s. UNFORTUNATELY THIS PRODUCT WAS DISCONTINUED ) Too bad as these were really good!

(Though not at all the same as these at least the Grilled Frozen Chicken Strips continue to be available)

This post for Archival purposes.

ALL NATURAL CHICKEN, FULLY COOKED, LIGHTLY SEASONED, BONELESS SKINLESS CHICKEN BREASTS

Trade Joe’s has quite a few, cooked, ready to eat, chicken items in the refrigerated section. Some of those are chicken breasts that have been already sliced . These however are whole cooked boneless chicken breasts, plain and simple, ready to use how ever you like. “All Natural, Minimally Processed…”

So convenient when you don’t feel like cooking but want a fast, easy protein. My review of these is that these boneless breast are super tasty. They are as juicy as possible, as they have not already been cut up, plus they are sealed up with the cooking juices. These are of course super convenient to have in the fridge. They will last at least a week, maybe more. For longer term storage you can freeze them and leave them overnight in the fridge to defrost.

Of course you are paying a bit more here per pound for boneless breasts as naturally one pays for the convenience of having it prepped and cooked. However the taste and quality is quite high. I even am pretty sure too these have been cooked Sous Vide (more on this later) Inside the package are four vacuum sealed pouches containing one perfect looking 4 ounce boneless breasts of chicken like you can see here. They even have grill marks on them, meaning they got some time over a grill.

WHAT IS SOUS VIDE?

Some people look down on boneless chicken breast, and think of them as dry and flavorless, but I promise you the way this is cooked proves otherwise. These are perfectly juicy.

My hunch how they make these: I believe these are cooked two ways: First they grill the outside a tiny bit to get those attractive grill marks but then they vacuum seal the breasts and cook them Sous Vide. Naturally I am just guessing but these kinds of pouches look exactly like how sous vide food looks. I also say this especially at how perfect the cook is on these boneless breasts. These are perfectly cooked. Juicy, tender, flavorful. If you are in the food game, let us know in the Comments if you too think these are cooked sous vide.

I gave one of these to my neighbor to taste. She thought they were delicious and immediately said she would be sure to buy them the next time she goes to TJ’s.

“Fully Cooked” – To me this is cooked just perfectly a point. In French cooking “à point” means “exactly right” meaning being “ideally cooked, no more, no less”. These breasts are just cooked just like that. Not overcooked. They are plump and juicy and there is a bit of natural cooking juices in the pouch – which you should be sure to save! This little bit of juice/stock can go over the chicken.

I sliced up a breast and ate it right out of the package as again, these are “fully cooked”. The cook on this is what you might call “medium rare”. If you’re someone who says they like chicken breast cooked until its “well done” you may not find it . Trust me it is. Its Perfect and is done like this so you can reheat it as they state. I put the sliced breast meat on top of a salad and it was delicious. Especially with some Magnificsauce on top. The package states you can “Reheat” this by simmering the pouch in water (or microwaving it). They suggest “simmering for 10-12 minutes”. It comes cooked “a point” so honestly I wonder if simmering this for 12 minutes might ruin it by overcooking it. I would simmer for 5 minutes tops ! Maybe if this is actually sous vide, 12 minutes might be OK. But once again it is already fully cooked. Though “just cooked” in the center which is personally the way I make boneless breasts. Your call on this point.

So I found these breasts very good and very tasty. The downside is of course the price is $9.99 for 1 pound of chicken however of course you don’t have to lift a finger to cook or prep it. You are paying for the convenience of having it ready to use, plus lets face it in a nice deli that sells cooked boneless breasts I’m sure would pay that much a pound if not more for cooked boneless breasts of this quality: perfect.

So when you want a perfect breast of chicken all ready this is very convenient.

The nutrition label says one breast is 150 calories with a whopping 27 Grams Protein and only 4.5 gr of fat. Sounds pretty healthy, no?

You can dress the chicken of course with sauce of your choosing. Some ideas? Magnifisauce, Sweet Chili Sauce, Garlic Dip, Tzatsiki….

I would buy this again.

IDEA FLASH! Mix with these with mushrooms, fresh or just use TJ’s frozen mushroom medley

Trader Joe’s WHITE MISO PASTE

“With a lighter sweeter flavor than other miso pastes, this tasty miso offers nutty, sweet umami to any dish” – TJ

This is very nice white miso paste which is not quite as thick or strong or salty as many Japanese miso’s pastes in tubs are. This one is lighter and not as thick so its a bit easier to use just as is out of the package.

The squeezable pouch make is very easy to squeeze out as little or as much as you need.

This light white miso adds really delicious flavor.

This is a light white miso and I really like this to cook fish or chicken or what have you, usually spread this on and then broil it so it gets a little bit of a char. I used it recently to make some broiled salmon and another time with some mahi mahi and it worked great with both of these fishes. But you could use it on chicken of course as well.

MISO COATED SALMON (or any fish) Coat the fish with a layer of this white miso, then let it marinate it for about 30 minutes or more. Broil (or bake) the fish as usual but keep a close eye on it as the miso will brown and you want it a little browned but not burnt of course. When your dish looks golden brown, remove and let it sit for a few minutes before serving.

Optional: Mix up a bit more of the miso with a little honey and lemon juice to make a light glaze. During the last minute or so of cooking, take out the fish or chicken or tofu your are baking or broiling under the grill. Spread on the miso paste glaze, put it back in and let it cook for 30-60 seconds until the glaze looks perfectly browned. Option: You can also serve some of this miso glaze mix as a sauce alongside your protein.

In addition to fish I find the miso marinade works just as well using chicken and broiling it. It can also be used in soups, as well as in salad dressings, add to ramen or noodles, etc. A little miso added to some butter is great with veggies and other things. I bet it works well even with TOFU.

TJ’s White Miso comes in a handy squeeze pouch. I find this very convenient and easy to work with, to be able to squeeze out some quickly, and its much more convenient compared to the 1 lb tubs of miso I usually buy from a Japanese market. Frankly I usually find one of those tubs somewhere at the back of my fridge a long time after I bought it and maybe it expired six months back (but honestly Japanese miso is so salty it doesn’t really go bad, it can last a year easily)

Trader Joe’s Miso Paste is $2.99 (5.3 oz)

I would buy this again.

“Trader Joe’s White Miso Paste is made of fermented rice and soybeans, and like many fantastic, fermented foods, it has a complex flavor—a mix of savory, salty, and umami. Our supplier is a 5th generation miso maker in Japan. Their process involves a shorter-than-standard fermentation period to yield a delicate, umami flavor, making this a very versatile Miso. Most commonly used in savory preparations, White Miso adds depth to soups, sauces, and dressings. You can use it in marinades for meats, fish, and tofu, or as a dip”

https://www.traderjoes.com/home/products/pdp/white-miso-paste-073814