15 Products That Show Why Canadians Are So Obsessed With Trader Joe’s
About 80 percent of Trader Joe’s shelves are filled with private-label goods, many of which have a huge following. Trader Joe’s doesn’t advertise and it’s very selective about where it opens its homey neighbourhood stores. And there are none in Canada (though there are certainly plenty of Facebook groups lobbying the company to come north). In keeping with its folksy agenda, TJ’s best marketing is word of mouth or lately, the word of Instagram. You may have seen them, your Canadian friends flaunting the TJ’s haul from their latest trip stateside. Maybe you’ve requested they bring you back a jar of Everything But The Bagel Seasoning. Or perhaps you once booked your U.S. hotel based on its proximity to a TJ’s (not us, but we’ve heard of people who do that). Because the shopping experience–and the food–is that good. Consider this roundup your future wish list—and pack an extra empty bag.
Everything But The Bagel Sesame Seasoning Blend
What it is: A spice jar mix of sesame and poppy seeds, dried garlic, onion flakes and coarse salt. (You can recreate it with our recipe for everything bagel seasoning here.)
Why we love it: A few shakes add big flavour to soft scrambled eggs, a tomato salad or popcorn. You can use it to top dips, salads, a loaf of homemade bread and yes, even avo toast. (Just be sure to check your teeth.)
Chocolate coconut almonds
What they are: Almonds wrapped in coconut, wrapped in chocolate.
Why we love them: Chocolate-covered almonds are pretty delicious on their own. But the layer of coconut in between the two adds extra resistance to the crunch, and more rich sweetness.
Salt and Pepper Pistachios
What they are: Shell-on pistachios dusted with salt and pepper–on the outside and inside of the shell.
Why we love them: These are almost sneeze-makingly spicy–for only the most serious pepper lovers. Do mix a cold, sweet cocktail to balance the heat.
Rose Oil Ultra-Moisturizing Hand Cream
What it is: A hand cream made with real damask rose oil, shea butter and coconut oil
Why we love it: Lush without being greasy, musky without smelling cloying, it’s rich, non-greasy and comes in a slick metal tube.
Dark Chocolate Mint Coins
What they are: Loonie-sized chocolate-mint cookies coated in dark chocolate. TJ’s introduced them as star-shaped holiday cookies, but the response was so overwhelming they rolled them out in rounds for the rest of the year.
Why we love them: Super crisp and perfectly balanced, we don’t want to be charmed by the size of these tiny rounds. (But we are totally charmed by the size of these tiny rounds.) Crumble them over ice cream (they’re especially good cold), use them to top cupcakes, or stack them like a roll of coins and eat them one by one.
Almond Windmill Cookies
What they are: Buttery shortbread cookies studded with skin-on flaked almond.
Why we love them: They’re tender and crunchy, not too sweet, charming on a plate and nice for dunking into milky tea, if you’re into that kind of thing.
Ghost Pepper Potato Chips
What they are: Thick, lattice-cut ghost-pepper flavoured chips.
Why we love them: If you didn’t know, lattice-cut is the superior chip, better than rippled and kettle for shattering crunch. There’s more texture in every bite, and more surface area for even seasoning distribution. These chips are hot, but in a surprisingly mellow way. Other hot chips can be harsh and aggressive, announcing their intensity on the first bite, but these build a deeper, slower burn–the kind that warms the soul as much as the palate.
Cornbread Crisps
What they are: Chips? Crackers? Diamond-shaped, one-bite and made of cornbread.
Why we love them: Hyper crunchy, easily grabbable, addictively sweet-salty. Delicious alongside a bowl of chili. Or with apple slices.
Smoked Trout Fillets
What they are: Savoury little fillets, packed in oil and tucked into cute tins one might display on open kitchen shelves.
Why we love them: Not as overtly fishy as tuna, but just as versatile, they have a subtle smokiness. Lay them on buttered toast (or saltine crackers–just try it), or stir with sour cream and crème fraiche, sprinkle with minced chives and set out as a chic dip with thick-cut potato chips.
Gluten Free Norwegian Crispbread
What they are: Large seeded (sunflower, sesame and flax) crackers made with oat flakes, rice bran, rice and potato starch
Why we love them: Each sizeable cracker has 4 grams of protein and 3 grams of fibre, a satisfying crunch and slightly soft chew. Schmear one with something unctuous–cream cheese, smashed avocado, or peanut butter and jam.
Neapolitan Puffs Cereal
What it is: Chocolate, strawberry and vanilla cereal puffs
Why we love it: Made from garbanzo, navy and pinto beans–beans!–these puffs are gluten-free, incredibly nostalgic and practically made for late-night cereal snacking. Bonus: the leftover milk is millennial pink and delicious.
Organic Watermelon Jerky
What it is: A pouch of dehydrated watermelon pieces
Why we love it: Fresh watermelon is such a risk–it might be mealy, not juicy or sweet enough. As jerky, it’s very sweet, with a pleasant soft-chewy texture. It’s been called the snack of summer.
Mushroom + Company Multipurpose Umami Seasoning Blend
What it is: A savoury spice shaker mix of ground porcini and white button mushrooms, dried onion flakes, ground mustard seed, crushed red pepper, black pepper and dried thyme.
Why we love it: It brings salty-funky edge wherever you need it–soup, scrambled eggs, grilled meat and roasted vegetables.
Lemongrass Coconut Body Oil
What it is: Aromatic moisturizing body oil made with coconut, jojoba and almond oils.
Why we love it: The citrusy scent is bright and fresh and it absorbs quickly–so you can get dressed without delay and not leave greasy fingerprints on your phone.
Jingle Jangle (seasonal)
What it is: A long-running TJ’s staple sold only during the holidays, it’s a tin of delicious bitty things–pretzels, caramel popcorn, cookie pieces and chocolates–bathed in more chocolate.
Why we love it: Were we unclear? It’s a tin of delicious bitty things–pretzels, caramel popcorn, cookie pieces and chocolates–bathed in more chocolate.
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