Credit: Liv Averett / Trader Joe's
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I’ll never forget what a huge deal the frozen aisle was when I first started shopping at Trader Joe’s. I was living alone and I was in my 20s, so I was basically living off Charles Shaw wine, the occasional chocolate bar a TJ’s cashier would give me for free, and Trader Joe’s frozen meals. While I used to mostly stick to the “guilt-free” mac and cheese, spinach lasagna, and chicken and bean burritos (BRING THEM BACK), I’m currently living high on the hog as a professional food taste tester, and my knowledge of Trader Joe’s full frozen lineup has expanded almost as rapidly as my waistline. I’ve sat in on taste tests of Trader Joe’s frozen meals for one, frozen pasta, pizzas, and Indian food. After all that taste testing, these are the six frozen meals that stand out the most.
Best Trader Joe’s Pasta
- Trader Joe’s Cacio e Pepe Gnocchi
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We were as surprised as you are that of all the bagged frozen pasta meals at Trader Joe’s, a frozen gnocchi was the tastiest. The gnocchi are big, soft, and pillowy rather than gummy like so much store bought gnocchi. And the sauce is way better than the sauce that comes on their bagged cacio e pepe spaghetti—this sauce has genuine, zesty black pepper flavor. This is a meal unto itself, but it makes a good side, too.
Read the full ranking of the best Trader Joe’s frozen pasta
Credit: Merc
Best Trader Joe’s Frozen Meal for One
- Trader Joe’s Vegan Green Curry
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I’ve said this a million times since I first tried this Trader Joe’s frozen meal, but this green curry for one is DRAMATICALLY better than most microwave meals. This isn’t a sad desk lunch. You get fluffy white rice (it comes in a separate compartment so it doesn’t get mushy in the curry sauce), tasty veggies (green eggplant! wth!), and tofu skins in a creamy, perfectly spiced green curry sauce. This is one of the best Trader Joe’s frozen meals if you really want takeout but don’t want to wait for a Dasher.
Read the full ranking of the best Trader Joe’s frozen meals for one
Credit: Liv Averett
Best Frozen Pad Thai
- Trader Joe’s Vegetable Pad Thai
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Good microwavable pad thai is NOT easy to come by. So often it’s weirdly saucy and sweet and filled with vegetables you’ll never find in the pad thai from your local Thai restaurant. This one is way more accurate (and at $3.49, it’s pretty dang cheap, too). We do wish it had some more peanuts in the mix, but that’s an easy fix if you have a canister of Planters around. Oh, and this is totally vegan.
Read the full ranking of the best frozen pad thai
Credit: Merc / Trader Joe’s
Best Trader Joe’s Frozen Pizza
- Trader Joe’s Uncured Pepperoni Pizza
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Trader Joe’s makes pretty good frozen pizzas, but nothing satisfied our pizzeria pizza cravings quite like this pepperoni pizza. The sauce is savory and zesty, the crust is well seasoned, and the cheese and toppings go almost all the way to the edge of the crust. As long as you enjoy pepperoni, you’ll enjoy every bite of this.
Read the full ranking of the best Trader Joe’s frozen pizza
Credit: Merc
Best Trader Joe’s Frozen Indian Meal
- Trader Joe’s Channa Masala
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I spent years buying Trader Joe’s shelf-stable Indian food pouches, but I was REALLY missing out by not trying their frozen Indian meals. The channa masala comes really close to tasting as good as takeout. The chickpeas are nice and firm, and the spice blend is aromatic and perfectly balanced. Stir in a spoonful of yogurt and this is a really good frozen meal for one.
Read the full ranking of the best Indian food at Trader Joe’s
Credit: Merc
Best Frozen Quiche
- Trader Joe’s Broccoli & Cheddar Quiche
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Trader Joe’s snagged the top two spots on our ranking of the best frozen quiche, and I specifically think about this broccoli cheese quiche on the regular. Have you ever dreamed about eating rich broccoli cheese soup out of a pastry crust? That’s what this is giving, with eggs for stability and added protein. Grab a few of these for Mother’s Day brunch.
Read the full ranking of the best frozen quiche
Credit: Merc / Trader Joe’s
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About the Author
Howdy! I’m Gwynedd, Sporked’s managing editor. I live in Los Angeles and have access to the best tacos the U.S. has to offer—but I’m a sucker for a crunchy Old El Paso taco night every now and then. I’ve been at Sporked since 2022 and I’m still searching frozen mozzarella sticks that can hold a candle to restaurant sticks.
Why you should trust me: I’ve been a journalist for 20 years (yikes), a consumer of food for 40-plus years, and I’m truly hard pressed to think of foods I don’t like (or that I can’t tolerate at the very least). Oh and one time I cooked my way through Guy Fieri’s cookbook and wrote about the journey through Flavortown.
What I buy every week: Trader Joe’s Original Savory Thins. Fat free plain yogurt (usually Fage or Nancy’s). Honeycrisp apples. Sweet cream coffee creamer for my at-home Americanos. A frozen cauliflower crust pizza and some jarred mushrooms to top it with. Old El Paso Stand ‘N Stuff taco shells and Gardein Ground Be’f, even though I think “be’f” is a nightmarish contraction.
Favorite ranking: Stouffer’s frozen dinners. I don’t own a microwave (I get my cancers the old fashioned way!), so I love taste testing things that I don’t really buy to eat at home.
Least favorite ranking: Soy sauce. Don’t get me wrong, I love soy sauce—but consuming that much sodium in one sitting is probably illegal in some countries. Our frozen enchilada taste test was a close second; the smell of microwaved corn tortillas still haunts me.
Gwynedd Stuart
Jordan Myrick
Hebba Gouda
Ariana Losch
Danny Palumbo
Thoughts? Questions? Complete disagreement? Leave a comment!