50 Best Trader Joe’s Products to Add to Your Shopping List

Are you overwhelmed when you go to Trader Joe’s? Like you hear all these great things about it, and then when you go…you can’t seem to find anything? Me too!
I rarely shop at Trader Joe’s. But I wanted to start shopping there more often–I like their concept of a small store with higher quality items. People rave about Trader Joe’s, so I asked my friends, on Facebook, of course, what their favorite items to buy at Trader Joe’s are.
I was chatting with my Aunt on the phone and she mentioned the Facebook post and we were trying to remember what was on the Trader Joe’s shopping list. So I figured out the Facebook search feature and made it into a post to make it easier to find in the future.
I also created this as a pdf printable so that I (ahem, I mean you, of course) can print it and take it with you. I left the names off of the printable. Scroll down to see it.
February 1 update: I have updated both the blog post and Trader Joe’s printable shopping list to include the recommendations that my blog readers left me in the comments. It’s one document but two pages, so when printing, just decide if you want to print both.
Best Trader Joe’s Products
- Chocolate covered sunflower seeds! Oh and freeze-dried fruit. Their chip aisle is good too! man I don’t sound very healthy..~Audrey
- Chocolate covered caramels with sea salt. The best!~Donna
- Pork, their sweet and sour bags of chicken (kids love them) their version of pirates booty, their brand turkey bacon and so much more!! Oh, kids love their mac and cheese balls too~Sarah
- Cheese puffs (pirate booty-type, but 1/3 the price!) Frozen eggplant! Cookies (whose ingredients all make sense!) Tapenade! Frozen meals! Ooh, my mouth is watering!~Megan
- Spicy black bean dip. We always stock up!~Erica
- Their pizza too! OH and their apple bars~Sarah
- My husband loves raw almonds, they have good prices on nuts. I buy frozen organic spinach, frozen blueberries, frozen mango, frozen burritos, they are DH go to for lunch on weekends. Their cheese prices are really good as well. Skip the produce – not the best.~Shannon
- I also buy their sunflower butter for when kids have to bring peanut free lunches. Not so much anymore now that we left KSPS. ~Shannon
- Sesame sticks~Judi
- Spinach dip, their cheese section is awesome, make your own pizza with the ciabatta bread and sauce and cheese, frozen Mac and cheese, cheese puffs, cookies! French vanilla ice cream. I could go on…~Jackie
- Dark chocolate peanut butter cups! And almonds! They also have a good frozen veggie fried rice that is great the bag is orange I believe. I get that along with a frozen teriyaki chicken that is a quick easy meal and really tastes good.~Jen
- Cookie butter!!!~Mary Fran
- The bars- like nutrition but no chemicals and Cheap! Nutrigrain not nutrition #Stupidphone~Lynn
- And the frozen rice Chinese things, potstickers~Lynn
- Chocolate covered sea salted almonds.~Blake
- We like the sparkling lemonade and the flaxseed chips.~Karen
- Coconut spray~Cheri
- Joe’s O’s. What Cheerios used to taste like (yummy and crunchy) and 1.99 a big box. Any of their cheeses, especially the roasted pecan blue cheese dip. Yogurt (any), Turkey meatballs, any frozen veggie, the big bottle of olive oil with the bar pour spout attached, any cookies or candy. Lots of good stuff without crap like HFCS added.~Janice
- They have several of the exact specialty products in Aldis…owned by the same company but in a much less interesting package. I’ve cross-compared. Amazing. http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trader_Joe’s ~Stephanie
- potstickers, black bean dip, all sorts of ravioli’s, granola bars, cheeses, olive oil, cinnamon and sugar grinder … and of course, the stuff to make lentil salad (the fresh lentils in the produce section, lettuce/greens and the lime dressing)~Jen
- Some tasty frozen eggplant dinners and other vedge things for fast meals. Plus loaves of bread.~Deborah
Well, there you go! That makes about 50 of my friends’ favorite “must buy” items from Trader Joe’s. What are some of your favorites? Tell us in the comments!
Trader Joe’s Recommendations from my Readers
- Chai tea bags, Rosemary snack crackers go great with cheese, pumpkin coffee, gingerbread coffee, the frozen scones, especially pumpkin, and the flavored olive oils are good.
- quinoa and black bean tortilla chips, TJ hand and foot balm (my most recent discovery) works if you have eczema and every other cream burns!, just mangoes, roasted cashews, crushed garlic, lemon cookie thins (close comp to girl scouts)
- If you love garlic you have to try the Many Clove Garlic Sauce! It’s in the aisle with the pasta sauces.
- Peanut butter and jelly chocolate bars. The BEST ever! The great coffee selection also. Love the sweet potato chips and blue cheese pecan dip.
- Frozen cauliflower rice!!!! It’s been healthy and delicious and super easy.
- I only use their 100% White Whole Wheat Flour. Like their baking section, good cocoa powder, vanilla extract and last week I found coconut flour for fun. Also, they have a great price on coconut oil.
- I’d walk if I had to….to get the 3 seed sourdough bread @ Trader Joe’s! Makes such yummy toast!
Call ahead to make sure they have it in stock…..it goes fast!!! - I don’t get to go to Trader Joe’s often but here is what I love to buy when I do go:
Mandarin Orange Chicken
Crushed garlic
Honey Pretzel Sticks
Kettle Corn
Blueberry Goat Cheese log
Ginger Mints
Sweet Basil chicken sausage
Pesto Tortellini
Corn Salsa - Non-Food:
Tea Tree Oil Face Wipes