Trader Joe's Okonomiyaki

Sonia and I both love most Japanese food: sushi, tempura, yakitori, ramen, you name it... Trader Joe's Karaage wasn't what we were expecting or hoping for, but we're grateful to TJ's for introducing us to it, and we're eager to try other versions of it.

Okonomiyaki? Never heard of that one, either. But we'll gladly try it. It's a Japanese vegetable pancake. Apparently "okonomi" means "as you like it" or "your preference." I imagine there are a few Burger Kings in Japan and they have an ad campaign that goes something like "At K of the B, you can have it okonomi." Sorry, sorry. Bad joke. <ahem>

Anyway, this particular version of okonomiyaki contains cabbage, onion, wheat flour, and yam—and it comes with a sweet soy sauce and dried skipjack tuna flakes as toppings. Interesting. We'll air fry this product at 360°F for about five or six minutes on each side. Folks online said to add Kewpie brand mayo for an authentic Japanese experience. Fortunately, Sonia loves Kewpie mayo and has a bottle on hand for just such an occasion.

The verdict? We like the taste and texture a lot. It's savory and succulent. The texture reminded me of a crab cake in a way. Sonia likened the product to a latke but with cabbage and onion rather than potato.

They actually give you enough sauce and tuna flakes in the package. The Kewpie mayo wasn't a bad pairing, but Sonia and I both prefer the product without it. It's plenty wet with the okonomi sauce alone—plus the product itself is quite moist even after a good 10-12 minutes in the air fryer.

$4.99 for the 10 oz package, found in the frozen section. Would buy again. Eight out of ten stars from me for Trader Joe's Okonomiyaki Japanese Vegetable Pancake. Sonia will go with nine out of ten.

Bottom line: 8.5 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Tom Yum Seasoned Snack Mix

I've had Tom Yum soup from a legit Thai restaurant exactly once in my life. It was a vegetarian version, while traditional Tom Yum is usually served with shrimp. I remember it being somewhat spicy. There were lots of veggies and tofu swimming around in a thick, flavorful Thai soup. It was delicious. I've tried plenty of other Thai curry dishes, too, and in general, I'm a big fan.

If you'd have told me that there was a dry snack mix that flaunts all the complexity and richness of real Thai soup, I'd have told you that it wasn't possible. And if you'd have told me that said snack mix was even spicier than your typical restaurant Thai curry, I'd have said "I gotta try this snack mix!"

And in my opinion, this mix comes dangerously close to capturing the sweet, spicy taste of Thai Tom Yum. Of course, the format is totally different than a bowl of soup, but the flavors are all there: lemongrass, chili powder, lime juice, garlic, coconut, paprika, soy sauce, and shallots. 

The main chunks in the mix are cashews, fava beans, sticky rice, and peas. Of course, they're all dried and crunchy, in the manner of your typical snack mix or trail mix.

Please note: there are dried red peppers in the mix that are VERY spicy. I got one in my very first handful. Fortunately, I recognized the little bugger as something extremely hot and took the tiniest nibble of it. I may have falsely attributed a higher level of spice to the rest of the mix since my mouth was on fire after sampling the red pepper. 

I will admit, this mix would be terrible for taking on an actual hike since it makes you so thirsty and the risk of throwing one of those peppers in your mouth whole would stand to ruin your entire day. Perhaps it's for the best that there are only a few of them scattered throughout the bag.

All things considered, Sonia enjoys the mix too and thinks it's a good approximation of Tom Yum soup. She thinks it's something she wouldn't be in the mood for very often, however. Me? I think I found my new favorite snack mix of all time. I might not eat it every day, but I'd definitely like to have some on hand in the pantry on a full-time basis.

$3.49 for the 5.29 oz resealable bag. Product of Thailand. Would buy again. Nine out of ten stars from me for Trader Joe's Tom Yum Seasoned Snack Mix. Sonia will go with eight out of ten.

Bottom line: 8.5 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Teriyaki Mushroom Mini Bao Buns

There are only two sets of heating instructions on this bag and one of them involves a steamer, which we don't have, so we opted for the microwave this time. Just plop three of the miniature bao buns on a plate lined with parchment paper—that's right, they want you to put parchment paper in the microwave—sprinkle with water and cover, heat on high for one to two minutes. Ours took about 1:50 to reach the perfect temperature and texture.

The buns came out soft, supple, and slightly moist. The "meat" of this dish features oyster, king oyster, and shiitake mushrooms. Sonia is a fan, while I...um, I just don't really like mushrooms. The filling has carrots and onions and a tasty spice blend that includes garlic, ginger, and soy sauce among many other ingredients.

Honestly, I think I really would have loved this product if it contained anything other than mushrooms. I did taste it though, and all the elements are high quality and most folks would probably enjoy it. One drawback: it doesn't come with a dipping sauce. We experimented with a couple different condiments in the video below including soy sauce and yangnyeom sauce.

$4.79 for nine bao buns. Vegan. Product of Vietnam. Sonia would buy again. She'll give Trader Joe's Teriyaki Mushroom Mini Bao Buns nine out of ten stars and I'll sit this one out, score-wise, due to my bias against mushrooms.

Bottom line: 9 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Yangnyeom Sauce

What I knew about yangnyeom sauce before purchasing this bottle from Trader Joe's: zero, zip, zilch, nada.

What I know about yangnyeom sauce now that I've tried it: it's a Korean-inspired product that's got a lot of robust flavor and sass. It's slightly sweet, slightly spicy, and surprisingly not very thick—thinner than your average American barbecue sauce. It goes great with fried chicken and it's absolutely delicious.

Sonia took the opportunity to whip up a Korean hot chicken pizza. We documented the whole thing on video and put it up on YouTube, as we are wont to do these days. It involved pizza crust, cheese, chicken nuggets, cilantro, and this yangnyeom sauce instead of your typical tomato sauce.

It was tasty. We'd absolutely buy this product again and we'd make that Korean hot chicken pizza again, too. Next time we might even follow the instructions and buy all the legit ingredients. At any rate, this sauce gets our seal of approval and an official induction into our Trader Joe's product hall of fame known as "The Pantheon."

$3.99 for the 15.5 oz bottle. Kosher. Not actually from Korea. Both Sonia and I give Trader Joe's Korean Style Yangnyeom Sauce nine out of ten stars.

Bottom line: 9 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Shrimp Noodle Rolls

Alrighty then. That's another unscripted video review down at the bottom of this post, so I'm just throwing out some bullet points about the product for you folks that enjoy my demented written ramblings or don't do YouTube for whatever reason...

The noodle rolls were very delicate by my estimation. They really wanted to stick to my pan and the shrimp even fell out of the rolls in a couple instances. There were plenty of shrimp and veggies, but there wasn't enough flavor. The bag even says to serve them with soy sauce or dipping sauce (not included). It was Trader Joe San Soyaki to the rescue. They were quite bland on their own.

$3.99 in the frozen section. Product of Vietnam. Listed as "Limited Time" on traderjoes.com. This item isn't awful, but we would not buy it again. Six and a half stars from me. Five and a half stars from Sonia for Trader Joe's Shrimp Noodle Rolls.

Bottom line: 6 out of 10.

Trader Joe San Soyaki

A quick internet search will reveal that Trader Joe's is just about the only place that sells "soyaki" sauce. Plenty of other folks are peddling bottles of teriyaki with sesame seeds as a primary ingredient. It seems fairly self evident that "soyaki" is a mashup of the words "soy" and "teriyaki," but if regular teriyaki has soy in it anyway, then wouldn't all teriyaki be soyaki? Seems to me that the sesame seeds are the things that make this product unique, but I guess "sesameyaki" doesn't exactly roll off the tongue.

Trader Joe's Soyaki is bursting with the umami flavor of soy sauce, but behind it there's a surprising amount of cane sugar sweetness along with garlic and ginger purees. You can taste sesame, vinegar, and tamari, and the whole thing is nice and savory. There are enough sesame seeds that they not only provide a bit of nuttiness to the flavor, but they add some texture, too.

My instincts would gravitate towards poultry or fish as the perfect pairings for this sauce, but I suppose steak wouldn't be out of the question. We used our soyaki as a marinade for salmon and it was scrumptious. We served it with rice and salad, and it was just perfect for dinner.

I hear it goes quite well with tofu as well, so if you're prepping a plant-based meal you're in luck because Trader Joe's Soyaki is certified vegan. It's also kosher. $3.99 for 21 oz. Would buy again. Eight out of ten stars from both Sonia and me for Trader Joe's Soyaki Sauce.

Bottom line: 8 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Squiggly Noodles with a Spicy Garlic Sesame Sauce

Can you believe it's been over a year and a half since we reviewed the original Trader Joe's Squiggly Noodles? Neither can I. The general consensus was that they were nothing to complain about, but also nothing to write home about. On their own, they weren't very exciting, but they made a great base for a larger Asian meal with veggies and/or meats.

Since reviewing the original squiggly noodles, we've also tried numerous flavors of Momofuku brand noodles. They are indeed quite similar, but there were certain flavors that we enjoyed more than others. Sweet & Spicy was among our favorite styles of Momofuku, and likewise, I think ratcheting up the spice level might also help with the overall flavor of Trader Joe's brand. So spicy squigglies have to be a step in the right direction from their predecessors, or so I'd assume.

Packaging-wise, they're very similar. The originals were clad in bright red while these spicy ones come in a black cellophane outer wrapper. Once again, there are four individual packs in the bag and the total price is $4.99. Interestingly enough, the spicy noodles pack a bigger punch in the calorie department, boasting 460 per serving as compared with the original squigglies coming in at 310 per serving. We've also got more sugar, more overall carbs, more protein, and more fat with the spicy version. That's a significant deviation as far as nutrition info is concerned.

And after taking a bite, I can tell you that, yes, the extra calories and carbs do indeed translate to more flavor. It's a much more exciting taste than the original squiggly noodles. It's not super spicy, heat-wise, but it brings a rich garlic soy flavor. It's got a punch for sure, but it's not a mouth-searing chili type spice. It's much more filling than the original and also much more satisfying in my opinion.

These function as a standalone meal much better than the other squiggly noodles from Trader Joe's, but we still added some egg for extra flavor and protein. If you wanted to throw in chicken or beef, bok choy, cabbage, mushrooms, carrots, or spinach, I'm sure any of those would blend seamlessly with the noodles and sauces here.

I gave the original squiggly noodles six out of ten stars and Sonia gave them seven out of ten. She's disappointed that these "spicy" noodles aren't really all that spicy, but she agrees that the overall flavor is a step in the right direction, and she also likes that these are cheaper than the Momofuku brand. She'll give these seven and a half out of ten stars. I'll go with eight out of ten. We would buy Trader Joe's Squiggly Noodles with a Spicy Garlic Sesame Sauce again.

Bottom line: 7.75 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Hoisin Sauce

Those of you who've been following us for a long time know that our whole schtick is basically that we're "foodie-hacks." We're not culinary experts. We're just normal folks who enjoy food and are generally curious and adventurous. I honestly think we're the type of customers Trader Joe's is perfect for. It's not optimized for health nuts or highfalutin highbrow food snobs as some may think at first. It's for people who see food as art and want to try novel stuff for reasonable prices. All that to say, in all likelihood, you the reader know more about any given item than I do. I'm just giving you the honest opinion of one man and one woman. No more, no less.

In that same vein, while I've heard of "hoisin sauce" before, I couldn't tell you much about it other than it's Asian and they sometimes put it in stir-fry. Sonia has made a few stir-fry dishes with other brands and I have to say I've enjoyed Trader Joe's the most so far.

It seems sweeter and also more flavorful than the other hoisin sauces that she's used. It pours thick and dark, and it coats everything it touches. It tastes like brown sugar, soy sauce, and sesame sauce all mixed together, with a hint of vinegar in the background. It went beautifully with the ground turkey, broccoli, onion, and noodle dish she whipped up recently. We're excited to try it with other stuff very soon.

A quick Google search will reveal that hoisin sauce is typically a Chinese ingredient used in Cantonese cooking, while this Trader Joe's product hails from Thailand. It's $1.99 for just over 10 oz. Vegan. We like it. We would buy it again. Eight out of ten stars from me for Trader Joe's Hoisin Sauce. Sonia will go with nine out of ten.

Bottom line: 8.5 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Chao Tôm

If you've been reading this blog for any significant amount of time, you'll know I'm a sucker for appetizers and a lover of seafood. Appetizers made with seafood? It's a done deal. You know we're gonna try them and there's a good chance we'll enjoy them.

That's exactly what happened with this product. Scrump-dilly. After 10 minutes in the air fryer, the skewers came out crispy on the outside and soft on the inside. The bulk of the skewer is shrimp meat, water chestnut, spring onion, green beans, and lemongrass. It's a delightfully savory combo, full of flavor and noshable textures.

Drawbacks? There are a few, unfortunately. The product doesn't come with its own dipping sauce. The pic on the box is merely a "serving suggestion." Boo. Fortunately, we had our own sweet Thai chili sauce to use. The chao tom is good on its own, but it's great when served with sweet Thai chili sauce, Trader Joe's brand or otherwise.

The shrimp and veggies want to slide off the skewer pretty easily. I found myself holding the little shrimp patty in place with one finger so I could pull a bite-sized chunk off the end with my teeth. Otherwise, the whole thing wanted to slide off. Certain specimens were small enough to be eaten in a single large bite, but others were easily three or four bites.

Also, I wasn't a huge fan of the sugar cane skewers. They were much fatter than typical wooden skewers and they didn't really add a ton in the flavor department. I guess it's cool that you can chew on them after you've eaten the appetizer and get that sweet sugar cane taste, but they're a tad mushy after being dipped in sauce and gnawed on numerous times.

Still, this is a unique and tasty product imported all the way from Vietnam. I can't vouch for its authenticity, but Sonia and I will both tell you that it's quite yummy and worth a purchase if you're looking for some Southeast Asian flavors that won't break the bank. 

$5.49 for 8 shrimp skewers. Would buy again. Nine out of ten stars from Sonia and eight out of ten from me for Trader Joe's Chao Tôm.

Bottom line: 8.5 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Ginger Shrimp Lo Mein

Today's product review: Trader Joe's Ginger Shrimp Lo Mein. I'm a huge fan of shrimp, and I like ginger a lot, too, so I'm really excited to try this. After cutting open the bag and all of the secondary packaging, the beautiful wifey will be preparing it on the stove top.

They want you to thaw the noodles with some oil in a pan. Meanwhile, you thaw the ginger sauce and shrimp in water. Then you throw all of it together in the pan and heat until the shrimp is fully cooked to an internal temp of 145° or more. I can smell the ginger already.

Well, looks like it's time to plate it up and chow down.

We tried the lo mein with no condiments first but quickly decided it needed some help. Sonia reached for gochujang and I went with sriracha. Both sauces greatly improved the taste by giving the dish a little kick, which was offset and dampened by the mellow ginger flavor.

Sonia thought there were plenty of shrimp, but I wouldn't have minded more. We both thought a few more veggies would have been welcome. The noodles were fine and the whole dish had a decent flavor, particularly after adding some heat.

If you want to watch our chopsticks skills in action, just click play on the vid below. Have a meal with us, friends. $5.99 for the three serving bag. Product of Thailand. Found in the frozen section. Probably would buy again. We give Trader Joe's Ginger Shrimp Lo Mein seven and a half out of ten stars.

Bottom line: 7.5 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Jumeokbap

Neither Sonia nor I had ever heard of jumeokbap before. It's a Korean dish that usually involves a "rice ball." In this case, they're more like rice pyramids. But anyway, there's usually some veggies and beef mixed in with the rice. In this case, we've got vegan beefless bulgogi—a product we reviewed not that long ago—along with carrots, green onions, and cabbage.

This product comes with three individually sealed pouches, one pouch per serving. You simply snip the corner of the pouch and microwave for 1.5 to 4 minutes, depending on the number of pouches you're heating. Take the product out of the pouch and you're done. Quick and easy.

There are tiny pieces of bulgogi throughout the product. They're much easier to chew that way, but by the end of our meal, we both agreed that more of the delicious fake meat would have improved the dish. The overall flavor was excellent.

$4.99 for the three servings. Vegan. Product of South Korea. Found in the frozen section. Would buy again. Eight and a half stars from me for Trader Joe's Jumeokbap. Nine and a half stars from the beautiful wifey. 

Have I mentioned we're doing videos now? Sonia looks darn good for 45, doesn't she?

Bottom line: 9 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Kimbap

Good morning, folks! It's time to look at Trader Joe's Kimbap. Neither Sonia nor I had ever tried this dish before, but we both like sushi so we decided to give it a whirl. This one's primarily a video review in stunning 4K resolution but for those of you who just want to relax and read, here's a few paragraphs on our findings...

This Asian dish comes frozen and it thaws in 2-3 minutes in the microwave. The packaging recommends serving it hot or cold while Koreans who know the dish say it should be served at room temperature. I found hot or room temperature worked great while chilling the kimbap in the fridge made the mouthfeel a little funky.

Still, the taste and texture are remarkable considering it comes frozen solid. There's an unexpected sweetness to the dish—akin to sesame sauce—plus all the rich veggie flavors you get from tofu, burdock root, carrot, radish, spinach, and seaweed. It's filling, satisfying, convenient, and reasonably priced at $3.99 for nine big sushi roll discs.

Product of Korea. The packaging and traderjoes.com only specify that it's vegetarian, but there's nothing in the ingredients that wouldn't be vegan, and other actual vegans out in cyberspace have declared that it is, in fact, vegan. I give Trader Joe's Kimbap eight out of ten stars while the beautiful wifey will go with nine out of ten.

Bottom line: 8.5 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Mango Sticky Rice Crisps

I realize we're a little late to the party with these mango sticky rice crisps, but we've had a bag sitting in the pantry waiting for review for a month or two now, so better late than never, right? They're still a long ways before their expiration date, and they've been sealed up the whole time. I assume this review will be relevant for summer 2025 and beyond...or will TJ's discontinue the item?

Hard to say. Speaking of "hard," these circular snacks are somewhat hard to chew. The rice is fine. It's crispy and brittle just like you'd assume from a rice "crisp" or a rice cake. But the mango is dried and it's pretty tough. Fortunately, most of the pieces are very small. They're like pebble-sized pieces of mango infused into discs that are roughly quarter-sized in terms of diameter and about a quarter inch thick.

The flavor is amazing. It's very similar to real mango sticky rice. The sweetness level is just about perfect and there's plenty of mango taste. There's even real mung beans and coconut milk in the mix. No complaints there.

Unfortunately, half the pleasure of mango sticky rice is the soft, creamy texture. It can be somewhat chewy, but there's nothing tough or leathery in the original dish. I feel like a jerk being critical of such a delicious snack, but I just wish there were some way to soften those mango pieces a bit. I'd almost prefer a refrigerated version that used fresh mango instead of dried mango.

Still, if you have mandibles of steel or a really great dental plan, I won't tell you not to buy these because they taste great. I'll go with something like 7 out of 10 because the flavor would get a 9 and the texture'd be more like a 5.

Sonia gives Trader Joe's Mango Sticky Rice Crisps seven out of ten as well, but she's not quite as thrilled with the taste as I am. $3.29 for the resealable 4.5 oz bag. Product of Thailand.

Bottom line: 7 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Taiwanese Green Onion Pancakes

Below, you'll find another video review featuring both the beautiful wifey and me.

I'm not sure if I put the nutrition info anywhere in the video, so I'll drop it right here.

$2.49 for 5 green onion pancakes actually imported from Taiwan. Vegan. We would definitely buy Trader Joe's Taiwanese Green Onion Pancakes again.

Bottom line: 9 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Mini Shrimp Bao

Sometimes I'll rack my brain for a few minutes trying to think of some little anecdote or clever story to serve as a segue into my review but all I can think about is how freaking amazing and delicious the product at hand really is. This is one such occasion. These shrimp bao are scrumptious, convenient, and very reasonable, cost-wise.

Just 45 seconds in the microwave had each pair of bao buns piping hot, soft, and nearly perfect in the texture department. The serving suggestion on the box recommended putting cucumber slices and julienned carrots on the buns. We just so happened to have both already chopped up and ready to rock and roll right in our fridge the day we ate these. The box also wanted cilantro, but it's rare we have that on hand. Still, the crisp veggies added the perfect complement to the shrimp meat and soft, fluffy wheat-based bao buns.

There's just a mild to moderate amount of spice in both the shrimp patties and the included lemongrass lime chili sauce—which is excellent just in and of itself. Sonia and I agree that we'd buy the sauce by the bottle for sure. It's like a good sweet Thai chili sauce but with an unexpected citrusy element and perhaps not quite as thick in terms of consistency.

The shrimp flavor, the array of spices and seasonings, and the subtle savoriness of the steamed buns was one of the best combos I've tasted in a while. Sonia and I plowed through the entire box in one sitting for dinner one evening. I've seldom had appetizers this good even at sit-down Asian restaurants.

$4.99 for eight spicy shrimp bao. Product of Vietnam. Don't confuse this item with Trader Joe's 6 Spicy Shrimp Bao from a dozen years back or so. That one wasn't very good. This one will go in the Pantheon. Perfect ten stars from the beautiful wifey. Nine out of ten from me for Trader Joe's Mini Shrimp Bao.

Bottom line: 9.5 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Bubble Waffles

Oh I get it now. They're just pancakes with mochi rice cakes baked into them. That's what the big lumps are. They come from Thailand.

At first, I didn't get it. Why would anybody want waffles with egg-shaped bubbles baked into them? I assumed it was just air or something, or maybe like wads of waffle batter. Mochi makes sense. Did I mention this is a product of Thailand? They apparently love mochi over there.

I've seen social media posts with people rolling these bubble waffles up into cones and putting ice cream in them. That's fun. I also saw an Instagram post where they just plopped a scoop of that amazing horchata ice cream right in the middle of the waffle on a plate in lieu of syrup or whatever. I've actually heard they go great with condensed milk, too.

Anyway, the horchata ice cream and bubble waffle combo is excellent. Butter and syrup works just fine. The regular flat part of these treats is crispy and soft and the mochi part is even softer and slightly chewy, just like a mochi rice cake you'd get at one of those frozen yogurt places as a topping, except here, they're baked right into the batter.

I think the mochi makes these waffles even more filling than regular waffles or pancakes. There's a nice coconut and vanilla sweetness about them that's not over-the-top but lends a moderate comfort food vibe to these breakfast treats that could also serve as a snack or dessert. The smell and taste of the batter is reminiscent of funnel cake in a way.

$4.49 for four bubble waffles. Vegan. Would buy again. Put Sonia down for 9/10 stars on Trader Joe's Bubble Waffles. I'll go with 8/10.

Bottom line: 8.5 out of 10.

Trader Joe's Chicken Karaage

Sonia and I are both fascinated with Japanese culture. We often watch travel videos from the Land of the Rising Sun and we just finished Tokyo Vice season 2. Good show. Needless to say, Japan is on our bucket list for travel destinations. We both even took a stab at learning a bit of Japanese via the Duolingo app. I've since given up. I can barely learn Spanish.

For the most part, we really enjoy Japanese cuisine, too. We're both fond of good sushi. Sonia is big into authentic ramen dishes, and I love tempura anything. So I figured breaded chicken with some alluring Japanese dipping sauce would be absolutely scrumptious.

And I'm sure this dish has its fan base, but I wound up kinda wishing I just had a box full of Chick-fil-A nuggets and some honey mustard instead of this karaage. It's not terrible, it's just a bit oily and not super flavorful. The sauce, made of canola oil, egg yolk, vinegar, and garlic powder, along with a few other things, isn't too far a cry from plain mayonnaise if you ask me.

The chicken is all leg. I'm more of a white meat guy, to be honest. While most were soft and good quality dark meat, a few of the pieces were unpleasantly gristly and chewy. The breading was nice and crispy, but it didn't add a whole lot as far as taste is concerned.

Sonia was busy with work when I asked for her thoughts on this chicken dish.

"S'good," she blurted flatly.

I'll interpret that as something like 7 out of 10 stars.

$6.49 for the four serving bag, found in the frozen aisle. Looks like it's simply "Japanese inspired" rather than a true Japanese import. I'd love to hear your thoughts if you're familiar with authentic karaage. All I can tell you is that this wasn't my favorite, but you can't say I didn't have a go at it. I'd try the dish again but probably wouldn't purchase this TJ's offering a second time. Six out of ten stars for me for Trader Joe's Chicken Karaage.

Bottom line: 6.5 out of 10.