Trader Joe's Products (2017–)

[rotuts]

its not that Im anxious about this 

 

its a sunny day , and the sun is streaming in the room Im in

 

so I called TJ's , as i couldn't stand it any more :

 

those missing taquitos !

 

chicken will be back in stock in a week or so , and

 

Bean : TBD  .   they are not cancelled .!

 

SO

 

Edited February 9, 2022 by rotuts (log)

[Maison Rustique]

I'm going to TJ's today. Last time I went, I felt like they didn't have much but I can't remember now what was missing. Not sure I have tried their taquitos but maybe I will. If they have them. 

[rotuts]

beware of taquitos ' alone '

 

they need help.

 

then they are very nice.

[heidih]

A friend used to do the taquitos for parties but in the countertop fryer (Fry Daddy?) with salsa and avocado dips. Snarfled up. I've never seen an unfried one in a restaurant.

[rotuts]

exactly :  hot , crunchy , greasy  avocado-ey

[Maison Rustique]

They did not have taquitos. They also did not have the cultured butter from Brittany that I have gotten addicted to. I saw no place on the shelf for it, so it has probably been discontinued. Harumph.

 

I picked up a jar of this tomato soup with dumplings to try but I see now it got mixed reviews. I'll taste and doctor accordingly.

 

I also got pre-mixed Negroni on a whim.  I tasted it last night. It is a little sweeter than most Negronis are when I order them out. I almost never drink cocktails at home, so I will likely end up tossing most of this at some point, but it seemed like a good idea at the time.

 

Got a new bag of the dark russet potato chips. Also was happy to see that they had dukkah again. I got hooked on it a few years back, then they discontinued it.

 

Now, if only they would bring back the fennel, propylis and myrrh toothpaste...

[rotuts]

 

I finally got around to trying the PorkBelly :

 

 

I was quite surprised .

 

 

the contents .  note at the bottom the ' pork jell '

 

 

take care when you open the vac'd pack  the jell fly's everywhere   jell on R

 

 

sliced about 1/4 " thick

 

 

in the 10 " fond-less , cold start

 

 

that can't possibly be Fond in the Fond-less ?   some  of this is caramelized sugar , the

 

the meat didn't taste sweet.

 

adding some jell :

 

 

sur le plate :

 

 

this is just the contents of the packet , no seasoning or oil added

 

this was delicious , and plain - neutral  Porky flavor

 

not very salty whi9ch surprised me.

 

this , seasoned , would be very nice on top of something .

 

this is a keeper for me.  it must have been SV'd in the bag.

 

nice pork flavor , not smoked , salted or seasoned.

Edited February 16, 2022 by rotuts (log)

[blue_dolphin]

The pasta section at my TJ's has been a bit sparse of late.  Shelves are completely filled but a lot varieties are missing.  No spaghetti or fettuccine for some time.  Dan Pashman's said that the TJ's version of cascatelli is in stores but may take a while to make it to all locations, particularly on the west coast.  I haven't seen it here yet.  I'll continue to check.  

I did purchase this fusilli corti bucati recently.  Like bucatini, the little spiral shapes are hollow so they cook quickly - the package says 7-9 minutes.  In my hands, 7 min was plenty and I'd go with less if finishing will take more than a min or two. 

 

I saw someone recommend them for soup.  To my taste, they're a little big for that but maybe I should try before deciding that. 

Here they are with hot sausage, baby kale and Parmesan from a recipe adapted from Julia Turshen's Small Victories (she uses orecchiette and baby spinach):

In addition to the named ingredients, this dish gets its flavor from caramelized onions and lemon zest. 

 

Edited February 16, 2022 by blue_dolphin
un-autocorrect (log)

[rotuts]

TraderJ's has had these Thai dumplings for some time.  there is a vegetable one also

 

 

they have two Thai bottled sauces , a yellow and an orange-ish.  both good

 

I like these sorts of things , steamed buns etc , steamy and pliable., if you get the idea

 

ive recently discovered a way that works well for me :

 

decide how many you want , then place in cold water :

 

 

3 to  4 minutes .  lightly drain ( using your hands ) and place on a plate

 

a little water left on the dish is fine , and might be helpful

 

and cover w you micro cover , and Micro u til hot 

 

Im trying to stop buy jars of dips etc as I use 1/4 of each and then its 10 years later !

 

but soy etc seems to overwhelm these as they re flavors are ' delicate

 

I finally came up w what they need :   a sprinkling of rice vinegar , and

 

a shaking of Tj's green dried Hatch chili's :

 

 

this looks dry but its not !

 

I might pull out some frozen ginger , and using a very fine microplane

 

grate a little of that over this.

 

delicious !

 

Edited February 18, 2022 by rotuts (log)

[rotuts]

I like chocolate

 

and have been getting Tj's 1.5 lbs dark chocolate for some time

 

I discovered these , on different trips recently :

 

 

 

commenting on chocolate on eg , well , ......

 

both are a bit bitter , but not overly so

 

and fruity.  it says so right on the box !

 

I have not had them both at the same time

 

but will tonight !

[rotuts]

@ TJ's this AM

 

maybe not the fastest ' blitz ' 

 

but more like ' At Speed '

 

I was advised @ checkout of a new red ,

 

blindly tested by the staff and pegged  @ 10 USD

 

Is asked :

 

did it fit my ' profile ' :   for RTW  :

 

 flavor : grapes

 

dry 

 

no Benzene 

 

[ed.: ' Benzene ' = flavors chemical-like , common  < 10 bucks if not higher ]

 

 

 

Im sipping it now 

 

 

Im drinking from an opened bottle

 

from the refrig !

 

 

I like RTW  a bit cool.

 

I was surprised , but that's what my TJ's wine buds said they were :

 

its ' full-bodied ' , tastes of grapes , no benzene and dry

 

remember , TableWine

 

Ill call them , get a few cases 

 

did I mention , here in MA  

 

its  $ 2.99 ?

 

I thinks that's as the MA price for 2 Buck ?

 

this you can actually drink , and enjoy it

 

as a vern nice table wine.

 

Im curious if anyone, here or there , seesthis

 

wine  @ TheirLocal 

 

regional purchase , or more nationanl

 

one time purchase , then done !

Edited March 9, 2022 by rotuts (log)

[Smithy]

@rotuts, that's a heckuva good price for a good Red Table Wine. (I had to think hard about what RTW could be.) I do wish there were a TJ's close enough for me to visit!

[rotuts]

I called to place my order

 

my wine buds weren't there 

 

but a message was passed to them 

 

my local gets 40 cases a week

 

it sells out quickly

 

Ill hear from them tomorrow

 

its is very unusual to get this sort of wine

 

for that price .

 

 

[Martin Fisher]

Wine isn't sold in grocery stores in this shit-hole state (NY). GRRRRRrrrrrrrr! 

[heidih]

10 hours ago, DiggingDogFarm said:

Wine isn't sold in grocery stores in this shit-hole state (NY). GRRRRRrrrrrrrr! 

Oh my! as the original TJs (Pasadena, CA) pretty much was all about wine.

Edited March 10, 2022 by heidih (log)

[rotuts]

wine  and liquor sales are determined by town in MA

 

also I think the State ( capital S ) limits each business 

 

to a limited number of licenses .

 

Brookline TJ's sells wine , beer , and booze .

 

myTj's only wine and beer .

 

an affluent town near me for the longest time was ' dry '

 

you could get wine / booze in restaurants , but not buy it in the town.

 

so , at each end of the town ship , just across the town line

 

there are large liquor stores .  one is called " Town Line Liquor '

 

that changed several years ago for some reason

 

and RocheBrothers , a high end grocery store , cleared out an entire 

 

aslie , both sides , for w & b.   same stuff as anywhere else 

 

but significantly more expensive.

 

in MA there is no doubt a lot of Under the Table 

 

machinations .

 

 

[blue_dolphin]

10 hours ago, DiggingDogFarm said:

Wine isn't sold in grocery stores in this shit-hole state (NY). GRRRRRrrrrrrrr! 

Yes, NY State's archaic liquor laws restrict wine sales to liquor stores. And an individual or company can’t hold more than one liquor license in the state so that keeps out the big chains. There's only one Total Wine in the state, though a brother and daughter have applied for licenses, thus far unsuccessfully. 

TJ's set up a separate Trader Joe's Wines at a Manhattan location but that's the one and only for now. 

[palo]

Ontario used to be very restricted

 

My father had an "Individual Liquor Permit" in 1961 that he had to have to buy booze.

 

My first experiences were when you had to look up what you wanted on huge lists - then fill out a request form, take it to cashier, pay and then someone went into a big closed off warehouse-like area in the back to get what you wanted

 

Many years later they had stores where the actual bottles were on display and you took what you wanted to the cashier - still owned and run by the government - PROGRESS!!!

 

Nowadays beer and wine are available in most grocery stores - no spirits though and not a great selection

 

Times have changed, but still not perfect

 

p

[Kerry Beal]

47 minutes ago, palo said:

Ontario used to be very restricted

 

My father had an "Individual Liquor Permit" in 1961 that he had to have to buy booze.

 

My first experiences were when you had to look up what you wanted on huge lists - then fill out a request form, take it to cashier, pay and then someone went into a big closed off warehouse-like area in the back to get what you wanted

 

Many years later they had stores where the actual bottles were on display and you took what you wanted to the cashier - still owned and run by the government - PROGRESS!!!

 

Nowadays beer and wine are available in most grocery stores - no spirits though and not a great selection

 

Times have changed, but still not perfect

 

p

Actually the beer store in Little Current on Manitoulin still has the bottles on the wall 

[palo]

Same with The Beer Store in Orillia

 

p

[rotuts]

when to TJ's this AM

 

inspired by recent TJ's Spices posts :

 

 

hoping the mushroom is not too salty, and the tamarind is tart.

 

note the two preserves :

 

low sugar and tart .  Ive tried the peach very nice if you like 

 

' less sweet '   there is a Strawberry.

 

in the last 6 m or so  there was sa different vern , w dark berries.  love it

 

my mother used to make Santa Rosa plum jam from our trees

 

veyr tart !  loved it.

 

and   

 

my wine buds saved me the last 4 bottles 

 

of N.VO   . completely sold out

 

forever

 

$ 2.99

Edited March 11, 2022 by rotuts (log)

[blue_dolphin]

I went to TJ's this AM in search of @rotuts's Malbec. The guy who orders the wine said he has not seen it. Said it wasn’t uncommon that special wine buys are available in limited areas, especially now - easier to ship it all to one coast than spread it around. 

[rotuts]

@blue_dolphin 

 

maybe its coming to you 

 

on a "" slow boat ""

 

keep one eye out

 

only One

 

 

 

[Smithy]

6 hours ago, rotuts said:

when to TJ's this AM

 

inspired by recent TJ's Spices posts :

 

 

hoping the mushroom is not too salty, and the tamarind is tart.

 

note the two preserves :

 

low sugar and tart .  Ive tried the peach very nice if you like 

 

' less sweet '   there is a Strawberry.

 

in the last 6 m or so  there was sa different vern , w dark berries.  love it

 

my mother used to make Santa Rosa plum ...

 

I'll be especially interested in your opinion of the Ajika and the Green Goddess seasoning. I made a batch of GG dressing yesterday using that seasoning and like it a lot. My first test of Ajika was a disappointment, as you know.

 

It sounds like your mother's jams and jellies were wonderful! Of course, she was starting with good material. 

 

[Maison Rustique]

I'm also not a fan of the Ajika, but I thought maybe I just didn't really know how to use it best. I bought the Green Goddess but haven't tried it yet. I do like the Umami. I used it a lot when it first came out, but it has moved back on the shelf for a while. I'm a sucker for new spices and always trying new things. I need to find some neighbors who also like to try new things so we can split jars to try them so they don't go bad when I get the next new favorite.