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!
Awesome info! Thanks so much!
The new shrimp burgers are delicious!
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!
Frozen section: Wild Caught Argentinian Shrimp
Glass bottle: Juice:To the Power of 7 Organic Juice Blend
Thank you!!! I have just started going to Trader Joe’s and you gave items to try!!!
I haven’t seen this chili onion crunch. Will definitely be trying it.
Same, i will look for it!
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
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
You *must* try their Sweet &Spicy Jalapeños. An employee told me to get them cause “they’re so yummy and they don’t hurt going in, don’t hurt going out!”
This is so funny. That’s why we d
King buy jalapeños. Going to grab some.
I love going to Trader Joe’s , they have amazing prices and a great selection of everything. Everything you said you liked is spot on. Not to mention the selection of wines is wonderful.
Olive tapenade and Italian Bomba Hot pepper sauce. I add to marinara to add salt and spicy or just drizzle over cauliflower gnocchi.
Dark chocolate covered almonds with turbinado salt
The orange muscat champagne vinegar is gone from our Trader Joe’s.
it’s back!!
Brilliant as always. Gaby this is like shopping with you- so helpful. Thank you for the enthusiasm!
All great ones and some new to me! I like their Gorgonzola crackers for cheese boards
Butter Toffee Pretzels. So good.
The cowboy quinoa burgers are amazing!!
Follow you every where!!! Love your enthusiasm!!!
From Bogotá Colombia
The Oriental Veggie pancakes in the freezer section, the pastry pups (better than regular pigs in the blanket) – we keep them in the freezer for emergency appetizers.
Organic Coconut Aminos, Chili Lime Chicken Burgers, Spicy Italian Chicken Sausage, Cocoa Almond Spread, Corn & Chili Pepper Salsa, Mushroom & Blk Truffle Flatbread, Almond Oatmeal Soap (exfoliating), Veggie Fried Rice, Chicken Tikka Masala, Palak Paneer, Naan, Butter Chicken Sauce….I could go on, these are just a few of my TJ’s favs.
Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups
I’ll probably end up picking up several more jars of the Chili Onion Crunch on my next TJ’s trip because it is amazingggg! So far I’ve cooked salmon with it (put it on top of each piece in foil packs), topped scrambled eggs & added it to some veggie soup. Definitely top three TJ buys along with Everything But The Bagel seasoning & their dark chocolate peanut butter cups.
Ooooo so so glad i found your blog/website!!!!! Your recipes look AMAZING. And this post! I didn’t understand the Trader Joe’s hype until a few years ago…and now it’s one of the main places I shop. Thanks for the recommendations, can’t wait to try some of the new (To me) stuff out!!
Rosemary Marcona Almonds on a cheese board – YAASS
Free Range Chicken Broth – really tastes and smells of chicken. Great for soups and sauces
Sweet and Hot pickled jalapenos – nuff said
Pastrami Style Smoked Salmon – so good!
Organic Frozen Brown Rice – Brown rice in 3 minutes!
The Italian Bomba Hot Pepper Sauce is so good. I love it with hummus.
I know you aren’t thrilled with their produce, but I loooove getting their trimmed leeks. Leeks are one of my favorite things to cook with but I typically find them such a pain to cook with. Problem solved with them already trimmed by TJs!
Multigrain Blend with Vegetables, I let it sit out to thaw then add avocados, scallions, and tomatoes. Sometimes I add Greek cheese. I dress it with olive oil, lemon, salt & pepper.
So many things I need to try! Thank you for the list!
Dark chocolate peanut butter cups
Dark chocolate bar filled with speculoos cookie spread
Peanut puffs
How do you eat all this and stay thin?
I’m from Canada so I only get to Trader Joe’s once or twice a year. I was just there on the weekend and bought a ton of goodies! My kids love the Smores Bites. Also really enjoy the Ground Blue Corn Tortilla Chips with Sprouted Amaranth, Quinoa, and Chia Seeds, Pita Crisp Crackers, Cowboy Caviar salsa and Dark Chocolate Almonds with Sea Salt and Turbinado Sugar. This time I also bought the Umami Seasoning, Black Truffle Alfredo Sauce, Buffalo-Style Hummus, Chili-Lime Rolled Tortilla Chips, green Thai curry sauce, 21 Seasoning Salute and more! Plus, I finally was able to buy the Mandarin Orange Chicken because I went to the store right before I drove home and put the bags on ice – can’t wait to try it!
I love the Ancient Grains Granola
The Hummus Dip ( I too use it as a cheat)
The Mirepoix (great soup starters)
Totally agree on the Muscat Vinaigrette! It needs very little oil.
The Organic Rustic Italian bread, makes epic garlic bread.
The GF Rice Crumbs are epic
🙂 Chef Heidi Rae
TJ’s guacamole dip made with yogurt is better than regular guacamole!
Their eggs, orange juice, low fat cottage cheese and Tejava Ice Tea are great. Also their Cold BRew Coffee Concentrate.
OH MY GOODNESS!! Have you tried their Ghost Pepper Potato Chips? Talk about addictive:)
Loving TJ’s Israeli feta! After Pastures of Eden feta was discontinued, i was so bummed! But they kept saying TJ’s version was on it’s way!! I love mixing it with cream cheese and lemon to make a whipped feta dip! SO good on a cheese platter!! Also, love so many of your recipes! Thank you for making meals fun, easy and delicious!
The grape leaves in the can are AMAZING (good for cheese boards too!) and I’ve tried a lottt of grape leaves.
Has anyone tried the pancake bread?
I love trader joes!!! And I have tried alot I rec their bbq chicken pizza, and the thin pizzas in the green and red box!! Their filet mignon is the bomb!!!!!
I love love love Trader Joe’s! There cauliflower tempura Kung pao is delicious.
SO many things I love.
The crunchy cookie butter, the cookie butter sandwich cookies and the salted chunky peanut butter should absolutely be on this list.
How do I order these products on-line?
I don’t think Trader Joe’s does online delivery
TJ’s doesn’t offer online, sometimes you can find stuff resold on Amazon
These days, when you must stand in line for 20 minutes at TJs, I will absolutely do it for these products:
Tjs Mini frozen croissants
TJs chicken soup dumplings
TJs Philly Baos
TJs Campfire smores
Good luck hunting! (because on my last trip, I stocked up on these — 10 each– to load into my freezer!)
The peanut butter pretzels are my husband’s favorite, too!
The frozen scallops are sweet & tender. Convenient to have in the freezer.
We like the mini ice cream cones, and they are perfect for the kids.
The Danish Kringle from Wisconsin is amazing!
And I never leave Trader Joe’s without flowers! Especially in the spring when they
offer tulips and daffodils!
Hardwood Smoked Ahi Tuna and PB & J duos are my new favorites!!!!
Dark chocolate mini pb cups!
Do not leave Trader Joe’s without buying their Corn Elote flavored chips. Pair them with guac or spicy pimento cheese and don’t look back.
The frozen Alsatian tart! So good
The Pumpkin Ginger Hold the Cone mini ice cream cones are my new fav seasonal item. Legit have bought three boxes this season. 10/10 recommend!!!
TJs Spinach Kale Greek Yogurt Dip awesome with crackers or veggies. TJs Cowboy Cavier great with tortilla chips or in tacos or quesadillas!!
Too many good things to name!! But some faves that I didn’t see:
-The round Pita Crisps- perfection
-Crunchy Mochi- worth every salty calorie
-All THE DRIED FRUIT-fresh and best prices but especially the apricots, cherries, baby bananas and pressed banana sheets
-Freeze dried grapes- one bag per serving heaven
-Green monster sauce! – best Breakfast taco addition
-Undercover Cheddar- Sharp and creamy and perfect for everyday