I mean, we pretty much assumed these would be like chocolate covered Corn Nuts and that's pretty much what they are. If that sounds good to you, you might like 'em. I thought they'd be kinda weird...and they are.
Not the worst thing I've sampled from TJ's, but not the best either. Trader Joe's Dark Chocolate Covered Crunchy Corn Kernels are actually imported from Colombia. The resealable bag will run you about four bucks. There's an interesting balance of bitter, sweet, and salty in terms of the flavor.
Texture-wise, the kernels aren't as hard as I thought they might be. They're brittle and crunchy, and they break apart easily enough without shattering violently. Sonia and I both have sensitive teeth and neither of us were bothered by the mouthfeel at all. The chocolate is smooth and there's a fairly generous coating of it on the outside of each morsel.
For us, it's just something that was interesting to try. Don't think we'd buy this product again but it's not like we're returning the bag for a refund either. Sonia and I both agree we'd try a milk chocolate version if they ever offered one. Seven out of ten stars from the beautiful wifey for Trader Joe's Dark Chocolate Covered Crunchy Corn Kernels. I'm down for six and a half.
Trader Joe’s Rice Pudding is one of those quietly divisive refrigerated desserts that immediately exposes a cultural split you didn’t know was sitting at the family dinner table. Growing up, nobody I knew was exactly racing toward rice pudding with excitement. It was always kind of the sad cafeteria cousin of real dessert—soft, beige, and emotionally ambiguous. Meanwhile, all the Hispanic kids were over there living their best lives with arroz con leche made by somebody's abuelita, and it tasted like pure joy with a dusting of cinnamon.
This version from Trader Joe’s lands firmly in the “white people rice pudding” category, and I say that with love and a spoon in my hand. It’s very vanilla-forward, very sweet, and noticeably missing that warm cinnamon hug that usually turns rice pudding into something transcendent. The rice itself is plentiful, leaning starchy and chewy in a way that makes you feel like you’re eating something substantial rather than just dessert-ish air. It’s not trying to be fancy, and honestly that’s part of its charm. It’s refrigerated, ready-to-eat, and $2.99 for four cups. So...it's uber-practical, if nothing else.
What’s surprising is that the overall flavor is genuinely solid. It’s sweet without being cloying, creamy without being heavy, and weirdly comforting in a lowkey kind of way. Sonia and her mom, who are both very much team tradicional arroz con leche with cinnamon, raisins, and generational confidence, both absolutely love it, which says a lot. I like it too, but I have to admit it becomes significantly better with a generous sprinkle of cinnamon.
In short, Trader Joe’s Rice Pudding isn't trying to reinvent dessert. It’s just quietly existing, doing its job, and showing up consistently for $2.99. I’d absolutely buy it again. It’s an eight out of ten affair for this guy. The beautiful wifey will give it a very enthusiastic eight and a half.
