I am a pretty loyal Trader Joe’s shopper and do the majority of my weekly shopping there. I know a lot of people feel like its tough to do all of their shopping there since they don’t have EVERYTHING like a standard grocery store but unless I need a specialty item or household products, I can pretty much get away with making TJ’s my sole stop for groceries.

Friends of mine who are new to TJ’s often ask me what I like to buy there, so I thought I’d compile one giant list of almost anything and everything I’ve ever bought  and what I like about it/like to use it for. I wish I had photos of every product so you could know what to look for but take advantage of the super friendly employees who work there to help you locate anything. I am writing this based on the isles at my TJ’s so some of the categories may seem a little random but work with me as a mentally walk around the store while I write this. 🙂

The main reason I like shopping here is that the prices are cheaper than Publix (our big local grocery store) and I love how many unique items I can find there, especially their seasonal items. I wrote a blog post about how I meal plan you can read here but I thought it would also be helpful to know I typically spend about $120-$150 a week on groceries for our family of 4. I cook about 4 nights a week and we do leftovers at least once.

Produce

I find that their lettuce and salad options go bad (or even start off bad) really fast so I usually go elsewhere if I need greens. As a whole,  their organic produce is much more affordable than other grocery stores so these are the items that I like to buy organic there:

• Fuji Apples, D’Anjou Pears, Strawberries, Blueberries, Bell Peppers, Squash, Zucchini and Carrots.

Non Organic

• Lemons and limes

• Onions, Potatoes, Sweet potatoes

• Avocados- Most of the time I buy them individually but I also like the bags of 4 smaller ones that are the perfect size for individual servings.

• Pre cut bags of broccoli. butternut squash, and brussels sprouts for roastings. The brussels sprout kit is really good.

• Steamed and peeled beets- Quint eats one of these a day. I may forget to pack a water bottle for him most days but by gosh he gets his daily beet so I must be an alright mom 😉

Bread

• Pain Au Lait Rolls – great for turkey/cheese sandwiches for the kids or just a snack.

• Organic Soft White or Wheat bread-perfect for grilled cheese or avocado toast. it is so yummy grilled in a skillet with butter.

• Homemade Tortillas- We don’t have access to good tortillas here (this is when I miss HEB) but these are much better than the ones you can find in most grocery stores.

• Sliced Brioche- perfect for the most amazing french toast or if you just want to indulge a little more with your BLT or grilled cheese

• Cinnamon Roll Bread- SO good for breakfast toasted with butter. I keep it in the freezer so it lasts longer.

  Oils/Sauces/Pasta/Spices/Nuts/Baking

• Spanish Olive Oil. I love this for roasting veggies, salad dressings, etc. I buy this one because of the price and the large size of the bottle. I know there are better quality olive oils out there but this one works great for me.

• Spaghetti Sauce. Their roasted garlic marinara is good for a basic red sauce to add to recipes and for an actual sauce to use with noodles or ravioli, I like the three cheese pomodoro sauce.

• Macaroni and cheese- The kids love the organic white cheddar boxed mac-n-cheese and we go through about 3 boxes a week.

• Pasta- Their organic artisan pastas are awesome. They make three varieties and I’ve tried two (gigli and orecchiette).

• Nuts-Their nuts are such a good price and good quality. I like the roasted and salted pistachios without shells, pecan pieces and thai lime and chili almonds are good.

• Seasonings- Everything But the Bagel is amazing on literally everything. We love it on eggs, avocado, veggies, proteins, etc. I use their Himalayan pink salt and black pepper grinders as they are a great value and I also like their 17 Seasoning Salute as a catch all seasoning. 

• Sugar- I love both their organic brown and white sugar

• Chocolate chips- Their chocolate chunks are a favorite for cookies and the semi-sweet chips are great too.

• Dark Chocolate and Turbinado Sugar with Sea Salt Almonds- I love these. So good and the kids like them too.

• Almond Butter- Creamy Salted Almond Butter. I use it for my morning smoothie or as a snack with apples, pretzels, etc.

• Baking Soda and Baking Powder.

Kid’s Items

• Fruit Leather Strips

• Fruit Crusher Pouches (Apple/ Carrot & Apple/Strawberry)

• Juice Boxes (Typically I get apple and lemonade)

• Yogurt Smoothies- I get the whole milk option (peach) for Quint and the lowfat option (strawberry) for Sutton

• Yogurt- My kids love the 8 packs of “and cream” yogurts. We get the blueberry/vanilla and strawberry/banana options. They are the perfect small serving size for them to where I’m not having to throw away a half eaten cup.

• Organic Silver Dollar Pancakes- These comes frozen and Sutton will eat about 6 of them for breakfast.

• Individually wrapped Cheddar Cheese Sticks

• Letter Cookies- Not only delicious but educational too. They can sound out the letter sounds and I help them spell simple words when we eat them.

• Frozen Waffles

• Italian Meatballs- Such an easy item for quick protein for lunches or dinner.

• Go-gurt style yogurt sticks- I put these in the freezer and the kids think they are eating a popsicle.

• Babyel Cheese

• A Strawberry Walks Into A Bar- TJ’s version of a nurigrain bar. I think these are goof for myself too for a snack on the go.

• Honey Wheat Pretzel sticks

• White Cheddar Corn Puffs

• Crunchy Curls- these are a chip made out of lentils and are SO good.  A healthier alternative to a typical potato chip.

• Joe Joe’s- Their version of oreo’s but the ingredients are a little better than oreos.

• Hold the Cone! Mini Ice Cream Cones- a drumstick style cone (without the nuts) that is the PERFECT size for little kids. they come in a chocolate and vanilla and have seasonal varieties too like pumpkin

• Joe’s O’s Cereal

Frozen Foods

• Frozen Organic Microwavable Rice- I am obsessed with this rice. It comes out perfect every time and it so easy. I usually just get brown rice but have tried the jasmine and the quinoa.

• Organic 3 Cheese Pizza- great for a quick meal and pretty good.

• Burrata, Prosciutto, and Arugula Flatbread- This is SO good. Perfect for a party served as an appetizer or just a easy weeknight meal.

• Orange Chicken and Fried Rice- Probably their most popular frozen item, its  so yummy and easy. Not the healthiest but even if you were eating this in a Chinese restaurant, its not going to be healthy there either.

• Frozen Garlic cubes by Dorat- Makes cooking so much faster by not having to mince garlic. They also make it with basil, cilantro and ginger.

• Acai Packets- Come in a 4 individual packages and perfect for Acai bowls

• Brownie Crisp Coffee Ice Cream Sandwiches- yumm.

• Sublime Ice Cream Sandwiches- also yumm.

• Melange a Tois- A blend of red, yellow and green bell peppers that are perfect to throw into a recipe that calls for chopped bell peppers or to use with fajitas.

• Uncured Ham & Cheese Flaky Croissant Squares- would be great to serve for a party or shower cut up or just for a fun Saturday morning breakfast treat

• Croissants-both the chocolate and plain are divine.

• Argentinian Red Shrimp- a good product for a great price.

• Organic Superfood Pilaf- a delicious and healthy side that takes little to no effort. Its filled with quinoa, kale, sweet potatoes and carrots.

• Pie Crust- Comes in a pack of two and its my favorite kind to use

• Frozen Roasted Corn

• Frozen English Green Peas

• Frozen fruit- for smoothies

Dairy/Refrigerated Section

• Organic Whole Milk

• Eggs- I usually just get the cheapest ones

• Heavy Whipping Cream

• Kerrygold Butter- love that they carry my favorite (the best!) butter.

• Fage Yogurt- My favorite yogurt

• Canned cinnamon rolls-I make breakfast for dinner once a week and these always make an appearance at that meal.

• Caramelized Onion White Cheddar Cheese- This stuff is SO GOOD. I shred it and use it as my cheese for quesadillas. It will blow your mind.

• Shredded Cheeses- Cheddar, Parmesan, Swiss & Gruyere and  Mexican Blend are my typical selections.

• Orange Juice

Meats

• Organic Grass Fed Lean Ground Beef- They sell these in 1 lb packages and I always keep it in my freezer. I believe its $5.99 per pound which is a pretty good price.

• Individually wrapped Organic Chicken Breasts- Again, I like to keep my meat in the freezer and so since these are individually wrapped, its perfect for storing in the freezer.

• Smoked Turkey Breast- This meat is without added preservatives like nitrates. Its delicious and perfect for sandwiches or just a turkey roll.

• Pork Baby Back Ribs- I use these for my oven baked rib recipe and they are delicious and priced well.

• Salmon Filets- Not wild caught but its pretty good.

• Chicken Thighs- I get these for my favorite lemon butter chicken thigh recipe.

• Pesto Genovese Chicken Breast- Easy pre-seasoned chicken that you can bake or grill with roasted veggies.

• Dry Rubbed Uncured Bacon- My favorite bacon to get. Thickly sliced and amazing flavor.

Snacks/Desserts/Indulgences

• Dark Chocolate Truffles

• Raspberry Star Shortbread Cookies

• White truffle Oil potato chips-this are a new item and I am buying them three bags at a time.

• Plantain Chips

• Cookie Thins-Toasted Coconut and Meyer Lemon are my favorites

• All Butter Shortbread Cookies with Chocolate Fudge Filling

• Smashing Smores- individual bites of a smore.

• Daelman’s Waffle Caramel Bites- they will blow your mind. I could eat the whole bag in one sitting.

• Cookie Butter- They are known for this sweet/cinnamon-ny spread and its certainly delicious.

Beauty Items

• Rose water Spray

• Rich Hydrating Sheet Mask

• Rose Oil

That about wraps it up! The flower section always sucks me in and I usually get one or two new things to try each week. Also, did you know your kids can get a lolipop from their treasure chest when you are there? That keeps my kids happy for most of the visit 🙂

What do you like to buy from Trader Joe’s?

Blaire