One of the new Trader Joe’s items to hit shelves this spring? Brown Sugar Boba Mochi. Are you into the soft squish of mochi ice cream but absolutely hate the sensation of sinking your teeth into a frigid hunk of frozen dessert? This just might be the treat for you. These individually wrapped little candy morsels consist of sweet mochi dough wrapped around a layer of cream and, in the very center, a single brown sugar boba pearl. Sounds fun, right? We tried them to find out whether boba mochi should be more of a thing, or whether you should stick to bean paste and ice cream.
To be honest, I kind of don’t understand these. They’re not bad. In fact, they taste pretty good. But the mochi dough and the boba within are exactly the same consistency. If this were just a blob of mochi dough—no tapioca pearl involved—I don’t think you’d even notice the difference.
Pros: As I said, the brown sugar flavor is lovely and reminiscent of the mild, almost maple-y sweetness of the boba pearls at the bottom of a cup of milk tea. I really like that these are essentially candy, but that they aren’t tooth-shatteringly sweet. And while it is homogenous, the squish is very satisfying, too.
Cons: A little textural variety would have gone a long way. Honestly, these made me crave mochi ice cream more than they made me crave another boba mochi. Also, the cream that separates the boba and the mochi—which reminded me of a slightly looser version of the cream inside a Goetz caramel cream—tastes good and contributes a little more sweetness, but there just isn’t enough of it. The image on the packaging is a big ol’ lie.
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.
Thoughts? Questions? Complete disagreement? Leave a comment!
Gwynedd Stuart
Jordan Myrick
Ariana Losch
Thoughts? Questions? Complete disagreement? Leave a comment!