Trader Joe’s ORGANIC BAKED TOFU

15 Jan 2019 17 Comments

by promacnyc in All Natural, General, Products, Rave, recipe, Recipes, Trader Joes, vegetarian Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,


RAVE

How about this for a review? Though I am not vegetarian, I buy this all the time. This is a terrific product for anyone. It seems to be one of the more popular products at Trader Joe’s. I often notice shoppers grabbing 2 or 3 packages at a time and sometimes its even sold out. Clearly there is a reason.

TJ’s ORGANIC BAKED TOFU is healthy, tasty and versatile. Its high in protein. It can work as a protein/main that one can use in many ways, so is great for vegetarians and non-vegetarians. BAKED TOFU as the name implies is tofu that’s been marinated then baked, which removes a lot of the water in it and gives it a pleasant, firm, and satisfying, well, “meaty” texture, which is why its great for non-vegetarians and vegetarians alike. Though I’m not vegetarian I buy this all the time because its a great ingredient. This can make a very good substitute for a meat protein like say, chicken? In fact this can be used as the “main” protein in many dishes. This is terrific for use in an Asian Stir Fry dishes (see my Tofu with Broccoli stir fry below for one idea). It can be eaten on its own as the Main. You can eat this just As-Is, cold or room temp, with a nice sauce or dressing such as their Sweet Chili Sauce or Sriracha Ranch Dressing, or Spicy Peanut Dressing…. or make up your own. As you can see from what I did with it, it can still be cooked (see pic below). I sometimes grill it, which I think improves it’s flavor even more. There are two flavors available, TERIYAKI and SRIRACHA. Though I am a big fan of Sriracha sauce I find the Teriyaki version is my preferred of the two versions they have. So if you are trying this for the first time, I suggest trying the Teriyaki version first, then the other. But honestly both flavors are good, do try both at some point and see which of the two you like best. Perhaps you will always buy one of each kind, as I see many people do!

What I did with it here (pictured below) is just cut it into slices and sautéed it in a non-stick pan with some Toasted Sesame Oil for about 5 minutes a side until it was golden brown. I then added Soy Sauce and a little raw Sugar (the two basic elements of Teriyaki sauce) and a good deal of fresh black pepper and cooked that for a few minutes more until the sauce has cooked in and thickened a bit. Basically I wanted some more Teriyaki flavor and some sauce. Fresh Garlic (and fresh ginger) would be great to add too, of course for even more flavor.

If I had added more soy sauce and sugar and cooked it down, that would have made more Teriyaki sauce. I think thats one good way to make it. This can be served with that sauce on the side or spooned over. You can use almost any sauce, prepared ones at Trader Joe’s such as Teriyaki, Dumpling Sauce, SoyYaki, Sriracha, Green Dragon Sauce, or even Sriracha Ranch Dressing. Serve the tofu along with some rice, a vegetable, and salad and you have a great tasty, healthy, fast, easy dinner.

If that’s too much work for you, you can just open the package up and just slice it into cubes and throw it on top of a bed of arugula, Power Greens, spinach leaves, etc., and drizzle your favorite sauce or dressing on top, maybe add some peanuts or cashews and voila – you have a nice Lunch or Dinner in seconds.

Chinese Style Tofu with Broccoli

Roughly I would say one 7 oz. package serves about 2 people, if you serve with above other stuff. So get another package if you are 4. Some readers report just slicing it up thinly and using in sandwiches, as one might use sliced chicken. As the package says “be creative”.  This would be good with the SOBA STIR FRY KIT. You could also use this, or the Sriracha version, as your “main protein” plus veggies with TJ’s very good  THAI CURRY SIMMER SAUCE for a Thai curry.  In short I find this is great stuff to always keep on hand in the fridge, and I almost always have a package in mine, as it’s already cooked it has a long BEST BY date (about 5-6 weeks) so its not like a meat product. Some more uses: cut into strips, sprinkled with more seasonings (chili powder and garlic powder), stir fried, then added to lots of veggies in an asian stir fry. A 7 oz. package has gone up in price now to $3.69 (current price, May 2019, NYC)

Recipe – Chinese Tofu and Broccoli; cut up broccoli into bite size pieces (don’t throw out the stem! Just peel the stem and slice it up thinly) Par-boil the stems first for one minute in salted water. After a minute throw in the rest of the broccoli and cook for another minute or so till bright green. Immediately remove and rinse veg with cold water; put aside. Cut up the tofu into bite size pieces and saute in a wok (or pan) 4-5 minutes till brown then flip and do the other side. While the tofu browns, make the sauce (2 teaspoons soy, 1 tsp oyster sauce, 2 cloves garlic crushed, 1 inch ginger sliced julienne, 1/2 cup water. Mix in a large rounded tsp of corn starch and stir. After the tofu is all brown remove. Add another tsp oil and stir fry the broccoli till crispy tender. Add the tofu and sauce and cook for about one minute until the sauce is slightly thickened and serve with rice. Optional: top the dish with Lao Gan Ma or TJ’s Chili Crisp.

https://amzn.to/40JQOCI

TJ’s High Protein Organic Super Firm Tofu

07 Jan 2019 7 Comments

by promacnyc in General, organic, Products, Rant, Trader Joes Tags: , , , , , , , ,


 

 

Let me begin with saying I really like Trader Joe’s Firm Organic Tofu. I found that it’s pretty good, and priced fairly resonably compared to other stores. That is the tofu I usually buy at Trader Joe’s. Its got a pink label and comes packaged in water. This SUPER FIRM tofu on the other hand called HIGH PROTEIN ORGANIC SUPER FIRM TOFU is not sold package in water the way almost any tofu you have bought comes. This one is just sold wrapped in a plastic wrapper. I gave it a try but I wasn’t crazy about it. I found the texture too tough as a tofu lover, not to mention I am married to an Asian woman (She hated this tofu and made me promise never to buy it again!)

Still other people here have written in, via the Comments section saying they really like this Super Firm tofu. Therefor I think this may be one of those things that you will just have to try for yourself to see if you like it or the regular firm tofu. Some folks apparently really like it. I did not but then as the French say, “A Chacun Son Gout” (To each his own)

To me TJ’s frozen “Mandarin Chicken” is terrible but I know that it’s Trader Joe’s biggest selling product. Go figure.

 

Trader Joe’s RICE CRACKER MEDLEY snacks

16 Nov 2018 6 Comments

by promacnyc in General, snacks Tags: , , , , , , , , ,


These are very tasty, very crunchy cracker type snacks. I would say these are one of my very top Trader Joe’s products. I usually buy a bag whenever I am there.

A favorite snack food in Japan are SENBEI (pronouced Sen-bay).

Senbei are a variety of snacks made from rice which is baked into a crunchy cracker and come in a variety of shapes, sizes and flavors. In Japan there are probably hundreds of kinds. I’ve been to special Senbei shops in Kyoto that are over 150 years old (the shop, not the snacks!)

These “Rice Crackers” that TJ sells are a mixed variety of typical Japanese Senbei snacks. The package says that they are Made in Thailand. If I didn’t see this I would swear these were made in Japan as they are exactly like Japanese Senbei, of which I am really fond of and have tasted plenty!

In the bag are a mixed variety of shapes and sizes as you can see in the photo here. There are both the flat cracker style ones, some short stick type ones, some plain and some coated with “nori” (seaweed). You don’t get more Japanese than these! There are even some of the typical spicy “Wasabi Peas” you probably have tasted, in this Rice Cracker Medley. Every different kind is tasty. My favorite ones are the biggest round crackers, which are a little thick and SUPER crunchy.  Trust me, when I say “super crunchy” you may not believe how “crunchy”, crunchy can be until you eat these. I’m talking LOUD, noises going off inside your head, you can barely hear, turn up the tv 10 notches, that crunchy, dig?

These rice crackers have a great deal of “umami“, the “5th flavor” that Japanese covet, and which every chef in America is currently interested in. These crackers go great with beer, they match well with cheese, or you can just eat them on their own. To me, they’re so good, I classify these as a “dangerous” TJ product – meaning a bag in my house can go really FAST between myself and my wife (who’s Japanese, aha!). I could almost eat a whole bag (but I don’t). If you try these you will probably also love them, and want to buy them every time you visit TJ’s. A bag costs $2.29, not a bad deal.

Trader Joe’s Thai Green Curry Simmer Sauce

14 Oct 2018 5 Comments

by promacnyc in General, Products, recipe, Trader Joes Tags: , , , , , , , , ,


“Trader Joe’s Thai Green Curry Simmer Sauce is a delicate blend of coconut milk, shallots, lemongrass, garlic, galangal, coriander seed, Thai lime peel, ginger, turmeric, cumin and basil”

I should start with the fact that I actually can make a decent Thai curry from scratch, having been taught by a Thai friend. It’s pretty easy actually IF you use a pre-made Thai canned curry paste like MAESRI brand from Thailand, sauté that, and add in coconut milk.

But when I saw this jar of “Thai Green Curry Simmer Sauce” which says “Made in Thailand” on the label at TJ’s I wanted to try it for a taste test.

Here’s a link to TJ’s own Fearless Flyer post about this simmer sauce so you can see what Trader Joe’s themselves have to say about it.

My review is : well TJ’s “Thai Simmer Sauce” is not bad – in fact I like it. However I do need to  warn you, if open this up and expect to get as I did at first, an authentic, powerful Thai-level SPICY Green Curry, you will be disappointed. Lets be honest, this classifies (to me) as barely spicy. This sauce fits into a mild baby-level Thai spicy level I can easily imagine a Thai Mom feeding this to their two year old ! I’m saying: MILD. Which is why TJ describes its as a “delicate blend” – yes it is a delicate blend, exactly. A not spicy, mildly seasoned coconut-milk-based green curry sauce with a very small level of spiciness. But again, I do like it. Though mild in spiciness this is actually VERY TASTY. It is full of nice Thai flavors. It can be the base for cooking a “Thai inspired” dish very quickly, just by opening up the jar of this and adding some ingredients as the label says:

“SAUTÉ ABOUT A HALF POUND OF YOUR FAVORITE PROTEIN. ADD AN EQUAL AMOUNT OF VEGETABLES AND SAUCE AND SIMMER”.

Now if like it spicy and you happen to have a can of some authentic Thai curry paste (which you can find online at Amazon) you could add a spoonful or two of that paste to this, and make it into a more powerful tasting Thai curry. If thats too much trouble just add a few tablespoons of Trader Joe’s GREEN DRAGON HOT SAUCE if you want to turn up the heat some, this will add some nice cilantro and chile flavors and spiciness.

Last night I used this sauce to make a Thai Seafood Curry and it turned out very tasty. (My “No-Recipe Recipe”: I sautéed some celery, carrots, onions, garlic and cubed potato for 10-15 minutes, then added a jar of this sauce and simmered for about 10 minutes till all was barely tender, then added some shrimp and simmered it for another 2 minutes, serving with some white rice. Yummy!)

You could use just about any protein to make your Thai Green Curry: Chicken, fish, beef, pork or tofu, plus a slew of veggies. Experiment. Pair the finished curry with rice or rice noodles.

TIP: The label says “add a 1/2 pound” of your main ingredient. So figure this jar is for about 2 servings? So for 4 people, I would double everything: a pound (or more) of the main ingredient/protein, equal amount of veggies, and 2 jars of sauce.

A 12 oz. jar costs $1.99. “INGREDIENTS – Coconut milk, water, green curry paste, sugar, rice bran oil, food starch, green chili, salt. Product of Thailand.”

This is worth a try if you like Thai flavors. Its a good thing to have in the cupboard for whenever you get in that mood.

 

RAVE

UPDATE 2023 – They seem to have discontinued this. They do still have “Thai Style Curry Sauce” in a Yellow and Red versions.

Trader Joe’s ORGANIC SUGAR

05 Jun 2018 6 Comments

by promacnyc in General, organic, Products, Rave, Trader Joes Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,


“Trader Joe’s Organic Cane Sugar contains only one ingredient: pure, natural, organic evaporated cane juice…”

…Grown in plantations in Paraguay, the sugar cane is cut by hand…. and delivered to a facility where the cane juice is extracted and evaporated into pure sugar crystals. The evaporation process produces perfect sugar crystals, rich in flavor and molasses.”

EXACTLY. Keep It Natural! The less you do (process) to food products, generally the better it is. For this sugar, the result is a high quality sugar with sugar crystals that have a distinct flavor and slight crunch to the tooth (crystals of this sugar are bigger than refined white “regular” Domino sugar). Its very similar to some sugar I usually look for in Hispanic grocery stores called AZUCAR MORENO (Blond Sugar) which is a “special” sugar that I find especially delicious in coffee. Its kind of hard for me to find Azucar Moreno consistently and this TJ product is almost an exact match for just a tiny bit more per bag, so its a good find for me.

What does this taste like? Very good. It has a very subtle taste of brown sugar but it’s lighter in flavor and color than say “light brown sugar” – which is actually regular refined “white sugar” that has had molasses added back to it. It is molasses, a by product of sugar refinery that has the taste we think of as “brown sugar”.

TJ’s ORGANIC SUGAR has more flavor than regular (white) sugar, but its not as “strong” as brown sugar. It will add just a bit more flavor but not overpower the ingredient it is added to. I think this is especially excellent in coffee, and I also like it sprinkled on plain yogurt, or oatmeal. On yogurt, I like the way it crunches a little bit when you bite it, it doesnt melt immediately, as the grains are bigger than regular white sugar.

A 2 lb. bag of ORGANIC SUGAR costs $3.49, ($1.75/lb) So compared to regular white sugar like Domino I would not call this cheap (Domino or other regular sugar usually costs about 50-60 cents a pound…?) So I personally don’t use this to replace all the regular sugar I use. I still use regular sugar in some things, but I use this stuff in my coffee for example, on my yogurt in the morning, my tea… on cinnamon toast….really whenever I want to taste a premium sugar. So you can use this perhaps as an “affordable luxury” where a little bit kind of goes a long way.

PS – Trader Joe’s does sells molasses, the leftover product that is what is normally extracted in the sugar making process. It has a very strong flavor, and is frequently used in baking. A little molasses also goes a long way. It’s delicious, especially used in baking. They also carry TURBINADO sugar. A bit darker than this one (has more molasses in it) and that is also really excellent!

UPDATE: When I bought this recently the back of the bag no longer says its “Grown on sugar farms in Paraguay”. It says something more generic. the bag had “PRODUCT OF ARGENTINA” electronically printed on it. This sugar compared to my last bag was noticeably a lighter shade in color than the previous bag I had. So it’s a bit different now.

 

 

 

 

 

Trader Joe’s Organic Sriracha Ranch Dressing

24 Feb 2017 5 Comments

by promacnyc in Changed, Discontinued, General, Products, Trader Joes Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , ,


UPDATE: AUG 2020 – Discontinued during Covid-19!

BALLPARK: PERI PERI & Suzie’s MAYO mixed up in whatever “hot” ratio you can take or like is a workaround I am trying. It’s not exactly the same but pretty tasty!

This is one of those “only at Trader Joe’s” products, or at least I’ve never seen another type of product like this one.

I’ll start by saying one could say I am a little bit of a “Sriracha freak”. I mean I love the stuff, and in general I love “the Spicy” but in no way would I deem myself to be one of those chile-head types who go for sauces with “Death Head” logos on the label.  No thanks.

Me, I want a balance of heat AND flavor. Therefore I love – and I mean LOVE – the original Huy Fong Foods SRIRACHA sauce, which is one of the greatest food products on the planet. Its a product who’s fan’s are legion. I will put it on lots of different things. Still I never tried it on SALAD. So guess what? Sriracha Salad Dressing is actually a terrific idea! And Trader Joe’s Organic Sriracha Ranch Dressing  is a terrifically marvelous unique product.

Its a ranch-style salad dressing, which is very spicy. How spicy? Well in its original version, which Trader Joe’s has changed and toned down since I first tasted it, I would have to use this stuff sparingly, as mere dollops. It was actually far, far spicier than actual Sriracha or most hot sauces for that matter. I used to mix it with some yogurt or mayo to tone it down a wee bit, but that is no longer the case. I’m talking about when it originally came out – a year ago? Can others please confirm this change to tone down the heat? I have a feeling people complained it was just too spicy, and they reformulated it with much less of a heat level. Anyway I just bought a bottle and it doesn’t seem nearly as spicy as it used to be, though it is still spicy, and still very good! Not only is  this ranch dressing good on salad or greens of course but it has many, many more uses on all kinds of foods. You can put a little on the side as a sauce for most anything, for instance grilled chicken, or shrimp, or fish, or grilled tofu, or what have you.

In fact you can use this as an ingredient to cook with it. For instance, try brushing this stuff on chicken which you would bake, broil, or grill. Its awesome on hamburgers, mixed with some ketchup for some homemade spicy “special sauce”. Try a little on some asian style noodles… with some chunky organic peanut butter on top? In fact try this on just about anything you think might be better with some spice to it. You will come up with some interesting tests.

So congratulations on a fantastic product, Trader Joe’s. Some chile-heads might be disappointed that you toned down the heat a bit for mere mortals. (But folks, you can mix some Sriracha sauce with this, if you want it spicier still, or add some cayenne pepper and it will be like it used to be). It sells for $2.99 (16 oz. bottle) which is not bad since most TJ salad dressings are 8 oz bottles?

So try this, its one of those love it or hate it type TJ products! Do I love it? Yes, yes, yes! I’m giving this product a:

RAVE

54860-organic-sriracha-ranch-dressing

By the way, the story of HUY FONG FOODS SRIRACHA and it’s founder Vietnamese refugee David Tran, is one of the best American immigrant success stories there is!

ADDITIONAL LINKS

http://nextshark.com/sriracha-hot-sauce-david-tran-vietnamese/

https://www.thrillist.com/eat/nation/14-things-you-didnt-know-about-sriracha-including-its-proper-pronunciation

https://www.pri.org/stories/2013-10-22/story-how-one-hot-sauce-huy-fong-sriracha-got-so-hot

 

Almondina Cookies

24 Jun 2016 Leave a comment

by promacnyc in General, Products, Rave Tags: , , , , , , , ,


alm-originalBesides the products sold by Trader Joe’s under the “Trader Joe’s” brandname, TJ’s also sells some carefully selected products which which are sold under their own original brand.

Trader Joe’s team of product selectors are know to be pretty picky about what they select to sell in their stores. In fact, TJ has a fairly well known reputation as a retail outlet where its not only hard to get them to sell your product, but also many times if they sell it they may want to put their own TJ brand on it, as they frequently rebrand and repackage products. So one can assume existing brands and products they sell under their original name probably are established brands with a long history and their own reputation for quality. As an example of one such product sold at Trader Joes are “ALMONDINA” original cookies which TJ carries in its stores. A review of them follows (Full disclosure: I was sent some cookies by Almondina’s for review. Rare? Beyond rare, its a first! (Product managers –hint, hint — please feel free to send me stuff for review!) Naturally rest assured this will not sway me in any way from giving a totally unbiased review.

In short, these are really good! ALMONDINA original cookies are essentially a biscotti type of cookie. Their tagline is “The Delicious Cookie Without The Guilt”. What makes these rather unique compared to normal biscotti cookies is how thin they are. They are very thin, maybe a 1/4″ wide, which is way thinner than any biscotti type cookie I have ever had.  A regular biscotti is about 4 or 5 times that width and as you know are typically quite “hard” and crunchy and very typically you eat the regular biscotti’s by dunking them in some coffee or tea. With the Almondina cookies theres No Dunking Required — though I tried them that way too — and they are excellent dunked in tea or coffee or milk.

Being so thin makes it more “guilt free” as you will consume less calories per cookie, hence the “without the guilt” tagline on their package.  The best thing about these aside from being delicious is they are made from a short list of real and simple ingredients from a 100-year old recipe that was invented by the owner’s grandmother Dina. They are made with only “all natural” simple ingredients and there are no added fats or oil. They are loaded with Almonds – hence the name. In fact the first ingredient listed : “Almonds”. It says they are 24% almonds! So if you like almonds you will love these as they are so almond-y. They are absolutely delicious on their own or paired with cheese of almost any kind. Brie for one is excellent with them. They would be good to have on hand when guests come over .  I even found a little recipe using the cookies at Trader Joe’s website using Almondina cookies to make some nice little dessert sandwiches with cream cheese. Looks yummy!  High tea, anyone?http://www.traderjoes.com/recipes/recipe/5151mainimage

 

So I really liked ALMONDINA’S and you will too no doubt. Try them, you will not be disappointed.

RAVE

Have you tried this product?  Let me know what you think in the comments section!

Trader Joe’s New Zealand Sweet Apple Rings

30 Mar 2016 1 Comment

by promacnyc in Dried Fruits and Nuts, General Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , ,


apple rings

New Zealand Sweet Apple Rings

“Unsulphered and unsweetened”

These may be a new product, or at least I’ve never noticed them till recently. Anyway I bought them to try and really liked these. Its really good new Trader Joe’s product.

My first impression upon opening the package was my nose immediately caught a very nice “apple-ly” scent coming from the bag, and them upon popping one of these dried apple rings in my mouth… next was that “oh yeah so yummy” reaction to something new you’re trying.  This has a really natural taste and delicious flavor, this is neither too sweet, nor too tart. You are thinking yeah “These are what dried apples should taste like” as you chew and chew a few more. In fact you may find as I did, its really hard to stop eating them!. I could probably devour the bag munching on them. Not that I should do that! But I can see a bag will go fast in my house.

The apples have been dehydrated to just the right point, where they are not too hard or rubbery like some dried apple rings can be, but are wonderfully softish, and chewy and kind of taste what I imagine, if I made my own dehydrated apples, what they would taste like. The ingredients are one thing, and one thing only: Apples! “SELECTED FROM BRAEBURN, ROYAL,GALA, FUJI AND PINK LADY APPLES” Unsulphered and unsweetened. I really like ingredients where one thing and one thing only is listed. You know what you bought come with no hidden agendas.

In sum, try these, you are sure to like them. These could be a healthy snack and treat for you or your kids to have around. Try with some peanut butter and you have something heavenly (could even be put into a sandwich?)
An 8 oz. package sells for $3.49. The package I bought got eaten fast. They are slightly addictive. Be forewarned.

So these get a

RAVE

 

Have you tried this product?  Let me know what you think in the comments section!

 

Simply the #1 Soap for Summertime: Trader Joe’s TEA TREE OIL SOAP

11 Jul 2013 7 Comments

by promacnyc in General, Health & Beauty, Products, Trader Joes Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,


UPDATE – DISCONTINUED 2019. For archival purposes…

Yes I’ve praised this soap before in an earlier post.teatreesoap1

While the rest of the year I keep a bar of  TJ’s HONEY OATMEAL SOAP in the shower, come  summertime, I swap that for TEA TREE OIL SOAP.

Trader Joe’s TEA TREE OIL SOAP  is my #1 Summertime soap. On a hot day there is nothing that cools me off and refreshes me like washing in cold water with this stuff.  It has a slightly astringent quality of course due to the tea tree oil. That’s what must make it feel so refreshing.

Now, the only  soap that feels even more refreshing than this stuff would be DR. BRONNER’S PEPPERMINT OIL SOAP, which Trader Joe’s does sell as well. But lets face it, that cost’s $10/bottle (Will make another post about this famous stuff, with all the crazy writing all over it)

From a listing on Amazon of ingredients for a bar of the Tree Tree Oil Soap ;

Very Basic, Natural Ingredients
Contains No Laurel / Laureth Sulfates
Cruelty Free – Never Tested on Animals; No Animal Products in Ingredients
Made In Connection With An Upscale Boutique
Comes in Double-Pack (Two 4 oz Bars Per Pack)
Ingredients
Sodium Palmate, Sodium Palm Kernelate, Water, Glycerin, Tea Tree Oil, Sodium Chloride, Pentasodium Pentetate.

also saw this about tea tree oil soap in general:

Tea Tree Oil Soap Soothes the skin with its natural healing properties…

reduces bacteria and inflammation

acts as an antiseptic, antimicrobial, and antifungal.

This would mean you won’t smell as much too!

Two Large Bars of this soap to a pack mean its $1 a bar; WOW! Thats a really good deal for this level of quality health and beauty product. Did you catch that “made in connection with an upscale boutique? in the text above” I bet whoever the original manufacturer really is (any ideas peeps?) they probably sell a bar for $3-4 each when it has their own fancy name on it. But when Trader Joe’s re-brands it under their own label, they can sell for much less (probably the fancy packaging makes it seem worth another $4?! )

Many women use TEA TREE OIL soap in the bathroom basically for the face but trust me, try it in summer in the shower if you haven’t already on the rest of you, too. Its refreshing and feels great and so clean. BUT NOTE: avoid getting it in your eyes (It can sting a bit)

Let me here what you think about this soap for Summer!

UPDATE 2019 – DISCONTINUED ! ARGH!!! RANT!!!!

TJ’s “South African Smoke” Seasoning Spice Blend

19 Jun 2013 51 Comments

by promacnyc in Discontinued, General, Products, Rave Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,


 

SEASONAL ITEM (summer)

20130619-230820.jpg

Trader Joe’s and Spices – TJ’s has shelves of terrific spices which are decently priced if you compare them to a regular supermarket, plus the spices always seem fresh to me.

They move a lot of spices and get restocked all the time. I especially like some of TJ’s seasoning blends, mixed blends of whole spices, sold right in their own cleverly-designed spice grinders. As you know grinding spices just prior to using them, is the best way to get optimal flavor. You can even re-use these as they have screw tops. You can put your own stuff in them or add to the blend which I do sometimes. As far as some good TJ’s blends this is an especially great one

South African Smoke Seasoning Blend

The ingredients listed simply are: smoked paprika (in large flakes), sea salt, garlic, basil. Even though this may not sound so complex trust me when you grind this seasoning onto almost any food, you get a heavenly smoky aroma.

ON THE LABEL: “SOUTH AFRICAN SMOKE adds that wonderful Umami flavor, which can be elusive and difficult to achieve. You will be amazed and delighted at the way a grind or two will awaken any food. 

So, so TRUE! I couldn’t even begin to list all the foods this is good on. This might make even make wet cardboard taste good!

But if you try it on almost any food (meat, chicken, tofu, veggies, rice, potatoes, pasta…. you name it)… then you will agree with that this stuff is the bomb.

A jar costs about $2.29. I even added some coriander and fennel seeds into the jar, which I thought made it even better. So you could experiment a little too with these jars of spices, added some of your own spices too. Here’s what “Trader Joe’s themselves had to say about this on their site:

“Our travels take us to some of the world’s most interesting regions, where we have the opportunity to taste foods we may never have encountered on our home turf. (Full disclosure: this is the royal we, as it refers to our buyers and not, alas, to certain writers of food-related information.) Among our recent “discoveries” is Trader Joe’s South African Smoke seasoning blend, one of the more unique items we’ve come across.

South African Smoke begins with African-grown paprika that is slow-smoked for 48 hours over a sustainable African hardwood called Acacia Saligna, commonly used as barbecue coals. This process enriches the paprika with a smoky, roasted flavor that evokes the South African braai, or barbecue. The smoked paprika is blended with sea salt, garlic and basil and packaged in a grinder, giving you fresh-ground flavor in every twist. Use it as a rub for meats or veggies prior to cooking, or keep it on the table in place of everyday salt & pepper. You’ll find this spice blend only at your neighborhood Trader Joe’s, where we’re selling each 1.76 ounce grinder for $2.29.”

My only complaint about this stuff is it goes too fast in my house!

THIS PRODUCT GETS A RAVE!

UPDATE SUMMER 2014 –

 M.I.A ON THE SHELF. HOPE ITS NOT DISCONTINUED !?

UPDATE : SUMMER 2015 …ITS BACK ON THE SHELF !! GRAB IT WHILE YOU CAN ?! ONE READER REPORTS ITS SEASONAL / FOR SUMMER only (grilling) SO STOCK UP WHEN IF YOU SEE IT

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