Trader Joe's Products (2015–2017)

[Shel_B]

Trader Joe's Chicken Drumellas:  These puppies are great!  It took me a couple of tries to get the time/temp right for my oven, and once I did, I was able to get the 100% chicken interior to a hot and juicy state while the breaded exterior was nicely crunchy and brown.  I keep a package in the freezer and enjoy them once a month or so.  Biggest problem for me is to curb my enthusiasm and not eat the entire package in a day ... highly recommended!  The neighbor's kids love 'em, too!  And they are so much better than the fast food McNuggets like at McDonald's, BK, and others.

 

http://traderjoesreviewer.blogspot.com/2012/05/and-now-for-some-chicken.html

 

 

 

Edited October 7, 2016 by Shel_B (log)

[rotuts]

TH's was demo'n this today :

 

 

and before one gets Testy i know Chili should not have beans in it.  TJ' didn't ask me first.

 

however , this was tasty , beef was tender and the beans were cooked !  ( not like little pebbles, the way my mother used to make 'em )

 

they also spooned this over a chunk of a turkey dog.  Yuk.   the TD was awful.

 

I got a can and will fine better ' sausage ' to spoon this over or even mashed potatoes " In and Emergency "

 

nice bit of heat too.

Edited October 10, 2016 by rotuts (log)

[scubadoo97]

On September 29, 2016 at 0:01 PM, rotuts said:

indeed.   TJ's  has a lot of Uncured stuff .

 

Im of the age that its not going to matter.

 

still , Id wish they slowly cut down all the Commercial salt  .  That's going to matter for sure some day.

I wish they'd cut with the uncurred nonsense and phrases like "no added nitrates" since the product is replacing one nitrate with another but in the end it's still cured with nitrates/nitrites.   Just one of my soapbox issues, sorry 

[MelissaH]

I returned a box of mango Joe-Joe's cookies yesterday. They still had a couple of months left on their use-by date. But when I opened them on Wednesday, the cookies had gone soggy. The guy I talked to claimed that it was because they don't use preservatives. I don't buy that: if the cookies had oxidized, well, maybe. In this case, it was more that either the packaging was flawed or there is a mismatch between the cookie and the filling that allows the filling to leach its moisture into the cookie, to the detriment of both. Whatever the reason, back they went, and I'm sorry I didn't eat them sooner, when they were still good.

[dscheidt]

14 hours ago, scubadoo97 said:

I wish they'd cut with the uncurred nonsense and phrases like "no added nitrates" since the product is replacing one nitrate with another but in the end it's still cured with nitrates/nitrites.   Just one of my soapbox issues, sorry 

I wish the FTC would enforce the rules that make those claims illegal. (Claiming you have no added nitrates when you have added an ingredient because it's full of nitrates is a false claim, and they used to go after such lies.) 

[Thanks for the Crepes]

Well I respect your opinions on nitrate/nitrite, @scubadoo97 and @dscheidt. I suppose the marketing "scam" as you all perceive it, is due to folks like me who are more comfortable eating celery juice or extract than I am with something the food chemists and bean counters have been turned loose on.

 

I don't aspire to become a food chemist; I just want affordable, wholesome, safe food, made from plant and animal products I don't have to be afraid of. TJ's is a great help with that.

 

For all I know, they may indeed be getting more concentrated and processed nitrates from celery, but as long as they don't explain it to me, I automatically don't trust it. I'm not alone, and that's why "uncured" products are appearing in even mainstream grocers. As far as I'm concerned, good, less processed, better food is becoming more popular and available because the more people that want to know what is in what they are eating, the cheaper it becomes. I just don't see how that could be a bad thing. 

[scubadoo97]

I understand and respect your position.   I object to the use of the word "uncured" since its false advertising.  "Naturally cured" is what should be used.  Again a soapbox issue, I hate false advertising and scamming the public 

[dscheidt]

16 hours ago, Thanks for the Crepes said:

Well I respect your opinions on nitrate/nitrite, @scubadoo97 and @dscheidt. I suppose the marketing "scam" as you all perceive it, is due to folks like me who are more comfortable eating celery juice or extract than I am with something the food chemists and bean counters have been turned loose on.

 

 

It's not "celery juice".  It's "celery juice that the food chemists have been turned loose on, to make a high sodium nitrate extract that we can tell lies about".   Trader Joe's is the home of processed food. 

[Shel_B]

On ‎10‎/‎23‎/‎2016 at 5:57 PM, dscheidt said:

 

It's not "celery juice".  It's "celery juice that the food chemists have been turned loose on, to make a high sodium nitrate extract that we can tell lies about".   Trader Joe's is the home of processed food. 

 

And what have the chemists done to the celery juice?  You've quoted "celery juice that food chemists have been turned loose on ..."  Would you be kind enough to post the source for that quote?  Thanks!

[Wayne]

 

http://blogs.mcgill.ca/oss/2013/04/04/is-celery-juice-a-viable-alternative-to-nitrites-in-cured-meats/

 

Chemical compounds, whether they are produced by inorganic synthesis or by extraction from a 'natural source', are identical.

The only difference is labelling regulation.

Caveat emptor.

 

 

[rotuts]

here are the Uncured HD's I tried :

 

http://www.traderjoes.com/fearless-flyer/article/1123

 

note this 

 

""     no added nitrates or nitrites (except for the naturally occurring nitrates in celery juice and sea salt)  ""

 

they do not say if the celery juice is manipulated  , and do not give the amount of ' natural ' nitrates added / Dog.

 

however , no one else does either , nor would any food producer voluntarily want you to know this.

 

what they want is your money.   TJ's is no different , no worse , and no better than any producer using  and implying that celery juice is

 

a natural ( therefore healthier ) addition to processed foods.

 

it would be helpful to know the amount of nitrites ( from any source ) in the foods we might eat.

 

I can't imagine the food industry allowing this sort of lnformation to be required by law.

Edited October 25, 2016 by rotuts (log)

[Kerry Beal]

From the McGill University Blog - Office for Science and Society - "Separating Sense from Nonsense"

 

 

"Celery has a very high concentration of natural nitrate, and treating celery juice with a bacterial culture produces nitrite.  The concentrated juice can then be used to produce “no nitrite added” processed meat.  Curiously, regulations stipulate that the traditional curing process requires the addition of nitrite and thus “organic” processed meats that are treated with celery juice have to be labeled as “uncured.”

Such terminology is confusing because most consumers look to “organic” processed meats in order to avoid nitrites, but the fact is that these do contain nitrites, sometimes in lesser, sometimes in greater amounts than found in conventional products.  That’s because the amount of nitrite that forms from nitrate in celery juice is hard to monitor, while in conventionally cured processed meats, the addition of nitrite is strictly controlled by regulations designed to minimize nitrosamine formation and maximize protection against botulism.  This means any risk due to nitrosamine formation or bacterial contamination in the “organic” version is more challenging to evaluate."

At least you know how much nitrate you are getting in pink salt cured items.

[dscheidt]

6 hours ago, Shel_B said:

 

And what have the chemists done to the celery juice?  You've quoted "celery juice that food chemists have been turned loose on ..."  Would you be kind enough to post the source for that quote?  Thanks!

 

It's fermented with bacteria, and then has water removed to further concentrate it. it's pretty well indistinguishable from a nitrate solution added in traditional meat processing.

 

It's somewhat more dishonest then concentrating sea water to a nearly saturated salt water solution, adding it to food, and claiming "no salt added" would be. 

[IndyRob]

10 minutes ago, dscheidt said:

 

It's fermented with bacteria, and then has water removed to further concentrate it. it's pretty well indistinguishable from a nitrate solution added in traditional meat processing.

 

It's somewhat more dishonest then concentrating sea water to a nearly saturated salt water solution, adding it to food, and claiming "no salt added" would be. 

 

Beer, bread, sauerkraut, kimchi are all fermented.  Fermentation in and of itself is not bad.

 

Removing water is also referred to in cooking as reducing.  Except, perhaps, with curing meats where it's referred to as 'making it safe to consume'.

 

Traditional meat curing has been practiced for over 2000 years.

 

The 'no nitrates added' thing is a bit deceptive,  However, it could be a reaction to the pseudoscience from the other side.

[Martin Fisher]

On 10/23/2016 at 7:35 AM, scubadoo97 said:

 I object to the use of the word "uncured" since its false advertising.

 

It's not false advertising or sneaky marketing tactics, they're doing what the 'rulers' at the almighty USDA tell them to do as far as labeling goes.

 

From USDA materials.....

 

"Bacon can be manufactured without the use of nitrite, but must be labeled "Uncured Bacon, No Nitrates or Nitrites added" and bear the statement "Not Preserved, Keep Refrigerated Below 40 °F At All Times" — unless the final product has been dried according to USDA regulations, or if the product contains an amount of salt sufficient to achieve an internal brine concentration of 10% or more, the label does not have to carry the handle statement of "Not Preserved, Keep Refrigerated below ___" etc. Recent research studies have shown for products labeled as uncured, certain ingredients added during formulation can naturally produce small amounts of nitrates in bacon and, therefore, have to be labeled with the explanatory statement "no nitrates or nitrites added except for those naturally occurring in ingredients such as celery juice powder, parsley, cherry powder, beet powder, spinach, sea salt etc."

 

Source: http://www.fsis.usda.gov/wps/portal/fsis/topics/food-safety-education/get-answers/food-safety-fact-sheets/meat-preparation/bacon-and-food-safety/ct_index

 

Applegate has actually petitioned the USDA to have the labeling laws changed....
http://www.fsis.usda.gov/wps/wcm/connect/16cf683e-7b58-4872-88c0-d800d58c6aef/Petition_Applegate_110311.pdf?MOD=AJPERES

 

Edited October 26, 2016 by DiggingDogFarm (log)

[Martin Fisher]

USDA's FSIS response to Applegate here.

[scubadoo97]

I stand corrected.  Ok my beef (no pun intended) is with the USDA

[Shel_B]

La Boulangerie Bounces Back and Into Trader Joe's (and Costco)

 

CLICK HERE

 

I love their Pain Pascal ... had some for breakfast just this morning.  It was gone for a while, but now it's back.  If it's in your store,uy some and try it.

[Toliver]

I can't recommend TJ's Salted Caramel Coconut Cookies (click).

They're basically thumbprint cookies. Unfortunately, they must have used the thumb of a two year old when making these cookies because the cookies are shockingly tiny and you don't get that many in the box (don't believe the box cover drawing...the cookies are nowhere close to being half as large as a coconut!). The cookie itself tasted stale. I was expecting something crisper like a coconut macaroon except this macaroon tasted like it had been through a monsoon.  It was quite soft and overly sweet. They might as well put sugar cubes in the middle of the cookies because I couldn't really discern the flavor of the caramel. 

I should have bought the Maple Leaves instead.  DOH!

[Kerry Beal]

15 minutes ago, Toliver said:

I can't recommend TJ's Salted Caramel Coconut Cookies (click).

They're basically thumbprint cookies. Unfortunately, they must have used the thumb of a two year old when making these cookies because the cookies are shockingly tiny and you don't get that many in the box (don't believe the box cover drawing...the cookies are nowhere close to being half as large as a coconut!). The cookie itself tasted stale. I was expecting something crisper like a coconut macaroon except this macaroon tasted like it had been through a monsoon.  It was quite soft and overly sweet. They might as well put sugar cubes in the middle of the cookies because I couldn't really discern the flavor of the caramel. 

I should have bought the Maple Leaves instead.  DOH!

You know what rotuts is going to say - don't you?

[Toliver]

1 minute ago, Kerry Beal said:

You know what rotuts is going to say - don't you?

"Take it back."    Too late...I "gifted" the remains to my coworkers.

[Kerry Beal]

1 minute ago, Toliver said:

"Take it back."    Too late...I "gifted" the remains to my coworkers.

Still got the empty box?

[rotuts]

 

Empty Box !

[Thanks for the Crepes]

11 hours ago, Toliver said:

I should have bought the Maple Leaves instead.  DOH!

 

Hate to be the harbinger of bad news, Toliver, but last time I bought the maple leaves (if you mean the white leaf-shaped embossed cookies with white maple cream between two of them) they weren't very good either. Very little maple flavour, and they seemed unpleasantly sweeter to me, perhaps to compensate. 

 

Thanks for the heads up on the Salted Caramel Coconut Cookies. They would not be for me.

 

Have you ever tried the big tubs of Chocolatey Cat Cookies? They are low fat, and pretty low cal, unless you go crazy on the tub. They are crispy, and remain that way for the months it takes us to finish them, and not too sweet for my palate. Also, you can tell yourself it's a virtuous indulgence because of the antioxidants and fiber in the cocoa, right? 

[Toliver]

TJ in the news...the bloom is off the rose, so to speak:

"Your local Trader Joe’s workers might not be so happy after all"

Quote

But in recent years, the patina of good cheer has masked growing strife and demoralization in some stores on the East Coast, far from the company’s base in California. A number of workers, known at Trader Joe’s as “crew members,” complain of harsh and arbitrary treatment at the hands of managers, of chronic safety lapses, and of an atmosphere of surveillance.

The times they are a-changin'...