Trader Joe’s most beloved products revealed — from soup dumplings to new potato chips
It’s the ultimate snackdown.
Trader Joe’s has announced the winners of their 16th Annual Customer Choice Awards after fans voted for their favorite items offered in store.
Some of the supermarket’s products have won so many years in a row that they’ve now been relegated to the Trader Joe’s Product Hall of Fame, meaning they were excluded from this year’s competition.
They include Trader Joe’s Mandarin Orange Chicken, Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups, Unexpected Cheddar, Soy Chorizo and Peanut Butter Filled Pretzel Nuggets.
That left hundreds of other TJ’s products in the running across various categories.
Read ahead to find out whether your favorites took home top prizes.
#1 Overall Trader Joe’s Product
Winner: Chili & Lime Flavored Rolled Corn Tortilla Chips
For the fourth year in a row, Trader Joe’s Chili & Lime Flavored Rolled Corn Tortilla Chips topped the list for the best overall product, according to customers.
This win marks the snack’s induction to the Hall of Fame, meaning it won’t be eligible for an award next year.
It’s now the most recent product ever inducted into the Trader Joe’s Product Hall of Fame, leading the grocery store to dub it the “Rookie of the Decade.”
These gluten-free chips are “spicy, ire-zest-tible little scrolls made from stone ground corn masa” and “cut and rolled a little thicker for additional crunch.”
Runners-up:
- 2. Steamed Pork & Ginger Soup Dumplings
- 3. Butternut Squash Mac & Cheese (Limited)
- 4. Kimbap
- 5. Vegetable Fried Rice
#1 New Trader Joe’s Product
Winner: Cashel Blue Cheese Irish Potato Chips (Limited)
This limited-edition chip was the most popular new product at the grocery store — which is quite a compliment considering Trader Joe’s is always adding original items.
The chip combines two of the exports that Ireland is famed for: potatoes and creamy, full-flavored cheeses — and Cashel Blue is largely considered to be Ireland’s most popular cheese.
But you can’t get this snack on any given day. Trader Joe’s Cashel Blue Cheese Potato Chips are only available during the holidays.
Runners-up:
- 2. French Onion Popcorn (Limited)
- 3. Garlic Gondolas
- 4. Strawberry Hold the Cone!
- 5. Crispy Potato & Poblano Pepper Tacos
#1 Trader Joe’s Beverage
Winner: Spiced Cider (Limited)
Cider is the apple of Trader Joe’s customers’ eyes. This year, fans voted that their favorite beverage was Spiked Cider — a limited-edition drink that’s only available during the fall season.
Tara Miller and Matt Sloane, co-hosts of the store’s podcast “Inside Trader Joe’s,” said on an episode revealing the winners that people love this product not just because it’s good, but also because it signifies the start of a new season.
“It’s a fall classic at Trader Joe’s, and so we know when it shows up in stores that fall is about to arrive,” Sloane said. “It is a symbol, a signal of the season and in and of itself it is absolutely delicious, too,” adds Sloane.
Runners-up:
- 2. French Market Sparkling Lemonade
- 3. Sparkling Honeycrisp Apple Juice Beverage (Limited)
- 4. Triple Ginger Brew (Limited)
- 5. Villa Italia Italian Blood Orange Soda
#1 Trader Joe’s Cheese
Winner: Goat Cheese
For the second year in a row, Trader Joe’s customers believe that goat cheese is the GOAT.
The grocery store has a range of Goat Cheese options, including Crumbled Goat Cheese, Goat’s Milk Creamy Cheese and Sliced Dutch Goat’s Milk Cheese.
Runners-up:
- 2. English Farmhouse Cheddar with Caramelized Onions
- 3. Syrah Soaked Toscano Cheese Spread & Dip (Limited)
- 4. Burrata
- 5. Saint André Triple Crème Brie
#1 Trader Joe’s Produce Item
Winner: Teeny Tiny Avocados
While this is the fourth time Trader Joe’s Teeny Tiny Avocados have topped the produce spot, it’s the first time in several years that the winner is not bananas.
The single-serve Hass Avocados have swapped with bananas for the top spot this year.
Runners-up:
- 2. Bananas
- 3. Honeycrisp Apples
- 4. Organic Persian Cucumbers
- 5. Blueberries
#1 Trader Joe’s Appetizer
Winner: Creamy Spinach & Artichoke Dip
Trader Joe’s Creamy Spinach & Artichoke Dip is once again the fan-favorite appetizer, with a blend of artichokes and spinach, with Swiss and Parmesan cheeses.
It’s a versatile item that customers eat with tortilla chips, on top of a burger, tucked into a tortilla or even as a pasta sauce.
Runners-up:
- 2. Jalapeńo & Cream Cheese Crispy Wontons
- 3. Parmesan Pastry Pups
- 4. Greek Spanakopita
- 5. Vegetable Bird’s Nests with Soy Dipping Sauce
#1 Trader Joe’s Breakfast & Brunch Product
Winner: Hashbrowns
Hashbrowns were given the top spot for the second year in a row, with the convenience of the heat-and-eat product being part of what makes it so beloved.
The potatoes, grown in Idaho, are fully cooked.
Runners-up:
- 2. 4 Chocolate Croissants
- 3. 4 Almond Croissants
- 4. Dutch Griddle Cakes
- 5. Chicken Sausage Breakfast Patties
#1 Trader Joe’s Lunch & Dinner Product
Winner: Butter Chicken with Basmati Rice
This is the second year in a row that Butter Chicken with Basmati Rice topped the list for favorite lunch and dinner.
The meal consists of “chunks of tender, tandoor-style Chicken in a rich, tomato & onion-based sauce—along with authentic Indian spices, and fragrant rice.”
Runners-up:
- 2. Chicken Tikka Masala
- 3. Steamed Pork & Ginger Soup Dumplings
- 4. Kimbap
- 5. Buternut Squash Mac & Cheese (Limited)
#1 Trader Joe’s Bath, Body & Home Product
Winner: Brazil Nut Body Butter (Limited)
The mega-moisturizing, salted-caramel & pistachio scented body cream is available for fans to get at Trader Joe’s during the summer season.
For those looking for a body butter outside of summer time, Trader Joe’s Coconut Body Butter is also available.
Runners-up:
- 2. Daily Facial Sunscreen SPF 40
- 3. Coconut Body Butter
- 4. Leave In Conditioner
- 5. Lavender Spray Hand Sanitizer
#1 Trader Joe’s Snack
Winner: Chili & Lime Flavored Rolled Corn Tortilla Chips
No surprise here that the overall winner of the CCAs is also the winner of the favorite snack category.
The chips reached the top spot six different times over the years, in both the Overall and Snack categories.
Runners-up:
- 2. World’s Puffiest White Cheddar Corn Puffs
- 3. Organic Corn Chip Dippers
- 4. Horseradish & Chives Ridge Cut Potato Chips (Limited)
- 5. Organic Elote Corn Chip Dippers
#1 Trader Joe’s Sweet Treat
Winner: Sublime Ice Cream Sandwiches
TJ’s Sublime Ice Cream Sandwiches are the winner of this category for the second year in a row.
These sandwiches are chocolate chip cookies sandwiching vanilla ice cream and rolled in even more chocolate chips.
Runners-up:
- 2. Almond Kringle (Limited)
- 3. Hold the Cone! Chocolate Chip
- 4. Jingle Jangle (Limited)
- 5. Dark Chocolate Covered Almonds
