Did the New Chicken Sausage Breakfast Bowl from Trader Joe’s Bowl Us Over?

Breakfast bowls are every sleepy person’s ideal product. You get to hit snooze a few times and still get a decent breakfast in before you have to rush out the door. That said, I think we can all admit to ourselves that we’re not exactly getting a gourmet experience when we heat up a breakfast bowl. Sure, it may have all the components of a hearty, home-cooked breakfast, but it comes frozen and is ready to eat in two minutes flat. Suffice it to say, Trader Joe’s won’t be getting a Michelin star for its new Chicken Sausage Breakfast Bowl, but it has its virtues.

I will say that I was a little worried about this thing even before I opened the box. Look at Sporked’s favorite frozen breakfast bowls and tell me what’s missing from TJ’s. That’s right: potatoes! This thing only contains scrambled eggs, cheddar cheese, and chicken breakfast sausage. I want this thing to conquer my hunger, and potatoes are an unrivaled stomach filler. Strike one.

A point in the positives column: As a breakfast bowl should be, this Trader Joe’s breakfast bowl is extremely easy to prepare. The instructions make no mention of stirring the ingredients halfway through the cooking process—just set the timer and forget about it until it’s done.

The first whiff of the bowl gives major hotel breakfast bar vibes in the best way possible, mostly because the sausage is so fragrant. The aroma is very reminiscent of sausage stacked in a chafing dish over a Sterno flame. I mixed up all the bowls contents as quickly as possible to incorporate the melty cheese into the sausage and eggs before it hardened. With only three ingredients to work with, I wanted to make sure they all got a chance to shine.

trader joe's chicken sausage breakfast bowl review

New Product!

Trader Joe’s Chicken Sausage Breakfast Bowl

Pros: For what they are, all three ingredients play their parts well. Not perfectly, but well. The chicken sausage is pleasantly herbaceous—I picked up notes of parsley, sage, and fennel seed. It’s not a spicy sausage, so it doesn’t overpower the eggs or the cheese. I was really worried about eggs getting rubbery in the microwave, but they actually cook up pretty nicely—fluffy rather than chewy or mealy. And the cheese adds a touch of creamy flavor while acting as a binder for the other ingredients. I like to imagine that gooey cheese makes this easier to eat this in the car—less bits to fall off your fork and between the seats.

Cons: Trader Joe’s Chicken Sausage Breakfast Bowl is just so uninspiring. There’s nothing exciting about this thing. Some country gravy or even some diced onion and bell pepper would have been a nice addition. As for what we do get in this bowl, the sausage tastes good but it turns out a bit mushy and didn’t really win me over. The eggs, on the other hand, are the right texture but don’t add much flavor to the bowl. The cheese is great for bringing things together, but pray it solidifies to the food and not the bowl or you’re screwed. Ultimately, this Trader Joe’s breakfast bowl is missing just a few things that might’ve made it a perfect 10.

Rating:

7.5/10

Sporks


About the Author

Vinz Karl

Vinz Karl is a freelance contributor to Sporked and self-proclaimed Guy Fieri superfan. He believes in breakfast supremacy and is on a never-ending mission to try every flavor of Oreo out there. Originally from the Midwest, Vinz now resides in Los Angeles, where you can find him going on hikes, checking out new restaurants, and preparing for his eventual casting on CBS's Survivor.

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