Today's the day! Here are the BEST things to buy at Trader Joe's! My obsession with Trader Joe's is REAL. I insta-story my way around the store on a fairly frequent basis and and it's high time I spill my secrets. So here we go...31 TJ's products you can't live without!
What to buy at Trader Joes:
Greek Feta in the Brine. Trust me, this will change your life. You'll be buying feta in the brine forever and ever - it's the only way to go.
Port Salut - it's the best soft and creamy cheese for your cheese boards!
Dark Chocolate Caramel Balls!! Actually, you probably shouldn't get these if you don't want to eat all of them in one sitting. Addictive doesn't even come close to describing them,
Quinoa! I buy it in bulk because I go through about 1 bag a week!
The organic frozen blueberry selection at TJ's is fantastic. We go through 1 bag a day for our smoothies and these are reasonably prices and VERY delicious!
I know I said I don't buy produce at TJ's but I make an exception for 2 things... one of which is avocados! I buy them when they are rock hard so they can ripen on my counter at home. And if you need to speed up the ripening process, throw them in a brown lunch bag with a banana!
Chocolate Chips!! DUH! In case we need cookies, or banana bread, or melted chocolate... better to be safe than sorry!
And the 1 lb chocolate bars! OMG these are actually incredible
Sometimes we need Mandarin Chicken for dinner that tastes like Panda Express without having to leave the house. No judgement here - I love this stuff!
Refried Beans. Mandatory for nachos!
Some of my favorite crackers ever - perfect for a cheese board! And way cheaper than the variety at Whole Foods.
Easily the best blue corn tortilla chips on the market. The salt ratio is spot on
THIS Dark Chocolate Bar is basically everything you need in life!
The other produce exception I make at TJ's is their Broccolini! Mostly because I eat about a pound of it daily and I use it up so quickly!
Cauliflower Pizza Crust! It took me a while to get on the cauliflower pizza train but I'm into it!
Cauliflower Gnocchi. I didn't want to love it but I actually do!
TJ's has the best nuts at super reasonable prices! Their coconut cashews are my go-to 3pm snack!
Chocolate Covered Grahams. I mean, enough said!
If you've never had Garlic Spread before... you're missing out. It's that dip they put on the side of every order when you go out for Lebanese food. It's like the most pungent garlic sauce that you'll want to slather on EVERYTHING.
Peanut Butter Filled Pretzels. Literally my husbands life line.
Quick cooking farro - because with this dinner can be ready in 10 minutes plus a little prep time.
These savory thin mini crackers are THE BEST for dipping in hummus and my homemade tzatziki!
This is one of my fav nut butters because there is NO PALM OIL in it. Just the almonds. Perf for my morning smoothies!
Prosciutto - cause we need this for cheese boards!
Fresh Mozzarella. No explanation needed.
THIS is easily one of my favorite vinegars ever. It makes a killer salad dressing!
Don't tell anyone but sometimes I buy this spinach artichoke dip when I'm too lazy to make it from scratch and claim that it's homemade.
Sea Salt Butterscotch Caramels!! These are hands down one of the best things to buy at Trader Joe's. Great in cookies, brownies or just by the handful.
Roasted Corn!!! Use it in all of your recipes that call for corn. It's loaded with flavor from fire roasting and I want it all day, every day!
Zhoug Sauce. OMG this stuff is addicting. It's great in addition to hummus, on top of protein, with veggies, mixed into quinoa extra. I am fully hooked.
This Chili Onion Crunch is new and it's VERY delicious when spooned over just about everything.
What should I not buy at Trader Joes:
To be honest, I only buy a few kinds of produce from TJ's because I find that it goes bad rather quickly! So I get produce from the farmers market and other stores. But TJ's wins hands down for just about everything else...)
What did I miss at Trader Joes:
What did I miss? Any of your favorites miss my list? Shout out your best things to buy at trader joe's recs in the comments section so I can snag them and try them next time I pop in!
My favorites are Marcona almonds with truffle salt. They also have them with rosemary salt.
Love your spices Gaby but there chili lime and everything bagel, and umami mushroom seasoning blend. Lastly there small jars of caramel and fudge sauce are awesome
Dark chocolate almond butter cups on the daily. So good crumbled and mixed in with their coconut milk chocolate ice cream! Also love their vegan fresh pesto. Tastes great with the cauliflower gnocchi
I haven't seen this chili onion crunch. Will definitely be trying it.
Same, i will look for it!
Thank you!!! I have just started going to Trader Joe’s and you gave items to try!!!
Frozen section: Wild Caught Argentinian Shrimp
Glass bottle: Juice:To the Power of 7 Organic Juice Blend
The gluten free bread is the best I’ve tasted (for us gluten free”ers”) Totally agree about the produce spoiling way too quick!
Any tips on how to prepare the cauliflower gnocchi? I can’t seem to get it to be anything but mooshy 🙁
Somebody made them in the air fryer and said they were good that way. I’m going to try them as an appetizer that way
In the oven at 400 for about 22 minutes. Watch it for golden color. It’s the best!
I agree about the gluten free bread. I miss sourdough bread and the tj’s gluten free white bread tastes like sourdough to me.
I also love the bourbon vanilla and the bourbon barrel maple syrup. I have both in my latte with oat milk everyday.
you have to roast the cauli gnocchi in the oven on a baking sheet! (can also sautee but roasting is so simple and makes for a one pan oven meal!) add your other ingredients -time-phased- to the tray with the gnocchi too! and no water!!! enjoy!
I sauté them in butter from frozen. Don’t boil at all! Just butter salt and pepper. They’ll get a little crispy and absolutely delicious!
Lay them out on a plate and come to room temperate and break them all apart. Then pan fry in olive oil. Make sure to leave them to get the crispy on the first side and then turn them to get all sides get crispy. Works perfectly every time!
Don’t follow the instructions on the bag. I learned that from a cashier & a few TJ fan accounts on Instagram. I pan fry them. I’ve also heard they come out really good in an air fryer
I don't follow the directions on the bag - this produces the mooshy mess. I put the frozen gnocchi in a pan with some olive oil to get them crispy and if you cover them for a bit they cook all the way through.
What brand of GF bread do you like?
I microwave them for 1 minute and then sauté them on a pan with a little olive oil until golden brown. The instructions on the bag cause them to be mushy!
Air fryer
I’ve heard people say to bake it!
The new shrimp burgers are delicious!
Awesome info! Thanks so much!
Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups. OMG!!!!!
Love it so many items here I hadn’t seen...thanks!!!!!
I will now be spending WAAAAAAAAY more time in TJ's!!!
My most recent discovery is the corn & chile tomatoe-less salsa - it's in a jar. Put it over goat cheese and then sprinkle some diced avacado on top - it's a crowd pleaser.
Unexpected cheddar! Truffle Brie around the holidays. Pita crackers. Their frozen vegetable fried rice (goes well with the mandarin chicken). Heirloom navel oranges (in season- usually January??) I buy four bags at a time. Their ‘ultimate’ ice cream flavors.
let's see - i like the TJ's Almond Butter (and the Tahini Butter), their greens are really good, their riced cauliflower (new item) is really good (and VERY reasonably-priced) - and their gluten-free brown rice penne pasta - the BEST!!
Orange champagne Vinagre was descontinued 🙁