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

Trader Joe’s TOMATO BASIL MARINARA SAUCE

I’m surprised I never got around and actually reviewed this old Trader Joe’s standard. It’s a Classic in it’s own right. I gave Trader Joe’s roasted garlic marinara a very good review. So I thought I would give this one a spin. First let’s just get it out of the way. A 24 oz jar of this sauce costs less than two bucks so great value. I would try both the roasted garlic version and this one and see which of these $1.99 gems is your favorite.

This is a very good what you might call every day tomato sauce, frankly equal to some sauces more than this two dollar jar. You can fix it up easily too to taste more expensive. I add a few cloves of slivered fresh garlic to the pan in a bit of olive oil, let the garlic get a little toasted, then add this sauce to the pan. Add some more herbs to your liking, especially a little fresh basil should you have some. A dash of red pepper flakes?

Even if you do nothing, this is a very tasty versatile sauce which can not only be used for pasta but for making dishes. “Use it as a simmer sauce for chicken breasts or meatballs. Or, let it be the starting point for your own sauce-creation. So many different ways to enjoy this enduring sauce.”
https://www.traderjoes.com/home/products/pdp/tomato-basil-marinara-sauce-045029

If you are on a tight budget Trader Joe’s has you covered. Let’s figure, you buy one of their pastas that still cost just 99 cents. Then grab a jar of this sauce (or the roasted garlic version). You’ve spent three bucks and you have dinner.

If your budget allows that might even leave room for some upgrades to say, one of their “artisanal” pastas ($2) and maybe some leeway to add a bread and salad…. $1.99 for a baguette and maybe a $2.29 bag of arugula.

I doesn’t have a ton of chemical names either. Fairly natural.

ING: TOMATO PUREE, DICED TOMATOES, SOYBEAN OIL, SUGAR, SALT, DRIED ONIONS, DRIED GARLIC, CITRIC ACID (ACIDULANT), EXTRA VIRGIN OLIVE OIL, DRIED PARSLEY, DRIED BASIL, DRIED OREGANO, NATURAL FLAVOR.

I even like the way this one tasted over an organic version I tried a while back.

I don’t know if it can’t go toe to toe with Trader Joe’s really fantastic upscale CARO SUGO sauce. However this costs half what that one does ($5).

DIY Shawarma Chicken (Recipe)

The other day, I wanted SHAWARMA CHICKEN but I was a bit resentful at the current price of a package of TJ’s Shawarma Chicken. It now costs about $11-12 ($6.50/lb. currently) way up from what it orginally cost. I knew I had some boneless chicken thighs in my freezer, and I have spices of course and Greek yogurt. Why not just do a DIY SHAWARMA style chicken on my own and save some dough!? So I did just that. How did it turn out? Delicious! You can easily do a DIY Shawarma Chicken if you want to save some money, and who doesn’t these days with the constant inflation and sticker shock when you go shopping?

I used Trader Joe’s boneless skinless chicken thighs that I had in my freezer (I defrosted the chicken overnight in the fridge) Or buy fresh boneless skinless thighs; they will easily be about $2 cheaper per pound (if not more) Vs. TJ’s Shawarma Chicken which has crept up in price a few times from the original $3.99/lb to $6.49/lb as of this post.

DIY Shawarma Chicken Recipe: Put chicken in a bowl and add 3 tablespoons of Greek Yogurt. Add a few teaspoon of fresh lemon juice. Crush 4 cloves of garlic with a little salt and mix into chicken. Add a few spoons (to taste) of ZHOUG Yemeni spicy green sauce. Mix. Even this very simple version will work fine, however to make this better we should add ground spices with “Middle Eastern” flavors. Here’s some ideas for Trader Joe’s spices you can add :

Trader Joe’s EVERYDAY SEASONING (grinder), Onion Salt, Ground Turmeric, Ground Cumin, TJ’s AJIKA blend, TJ Smoked Spanish Paprika, TJ Zaatar spice blend, Black pepper, PINK SEA SALT. A pinch of cinnamon. A small glug of olive oil. MIX everything well so all the spices are mixed in. Let it marinate in fridge for 2-6 hours or overnight or up to 2-3 days. When ready to cook, just make it as you normally grill TJ’s Shawarma chicken thighs. You can of course also make this instead with CHICKEN BREASTS if you prefer white meat but just be very careful about not overcooking them. I like to cook a sliced onion in the same pan as I grill the chicken.