The pros: Trader Joe's Colorful Carrot Coins is one of many colorful carrot options available at Trader Joe's. This item is heavily seasoned with thyme, so you'll want something plain to go along with it.
The cons: This is a seasonal item. If you want yours to look more like the bag, then you'll have to use your oven (and there were no directions for these to go into the oven).
The verdict: Even the vegetable section of Trader Joe's is subject to the occasional seasonal product. Now, this item is called Colorful Carrot Coins. Nice alliteration. Not only are there three Cs in that name, but there also are three colorful carrot options sold at Trader Joe's, but only for the season. If you like colorful carrots, then there are two options waiting for you in the produce section. One is whole colorful carrots, the other is a more trimmed variety.
If there has been any noticeable food trend that I've seen, it would have to be the rainbow trend of this past year or two. Whether you call it unicorn or rainbow, it's all referring to out want/need to make everything colorful. Interestingly enough, this is now the second colorful item I've had a chance to review. The other one was the Rainbow Potatoes which are also seasonal.
So, what are you getting for $2.99? Well, you are getting fourteen ounces of pre-cut and seasoned frozen carrots. Now, whole carrots are inexpensive. You are paying a premium here. When I first opened the bag the smell of the herbs hit me right away. The carrots are like so many of the other frozen veggie options. They are coated in oil which has hardened into a little shell over each carrot. There was a LOT of thyme in this. I mean a lot. More on that in a moment.
I prepared mine using the stove top directions. Mine took much longer than the 5 minutes. In a skillet, I was approaching double that. So be warned if you are going to make this. Mine did not look as roasted as they did on the bag which was a bummer. However, when I bit into these, it tasted less like carrot and more like the familiar flavor of lemon-y thyme. Depending on your feeling towards that herb will dictate how much you'll like this. Now, if this were my only side, I would not have been crazy about it. With a side of mashed potatoes, it tempered the flavor of the herbs and it became a delightful bite.
Overall, I liked this, but I would prefer to season my own veggies. I found the seasoning on my bag to be quite strong and a bit too strong for my liking. It's worth a try if you are going to have more than one side. It would be better if that side were plain to balance it out more.
Here is the visual run down of what you get if you buy this product:
The bag of Trader Joe's Colorful Carrot Coins:
The nutritional information:
The ingredients and how to prepare:
How Trader Joe's describes these:
After being cooked you get:
Would I buy this again? No, I wouldn't reach for Trader Joe's Colorful Carrot Coins again. I did find them to be a bit over seasoned for my liking. I'd rather buy the bag of colorful carrots that they have year around and use that instead.
Want to see more items I've reviewed from Trader Joe's? Click on Thoughts & Reviews of Trader Joe’s for a searchable list.
Did you try it? Let me know what you think in the comments section!
We eat a lot of carrots, usually shredded and then steamed, so these do not appeal to me in an ordinary way.
BUT - they do have a strong appeal to make perhaps a company meal a little special without a lot of extra work. I would make a mound of super delicious sour cream mashed potatoes, and pile these colorful coins around the mound for a colorful presentation.
I see these complementing a pork dish of some kind that is not heavily spiced, but maybe with some large chunks of mushrooms, and/or possibly a pineapple-y salsa or chutney across the pork main course.
I would not buy these again. I like carrots, but the thyme is overpowering. I read the ingredients -- "lightly seasoned with a bit of..." -- in no way describes this bag of veggies.
Hey MiaB! Thanks for stopping by and sharing your thoughts on this!
I tried these as a veggie side to TJ's Chicken Tikka Masala instead of my usual roasted cauliflower and loved them. Glad I purchased a couple of bags. Think I will make them with a hamburger with gorgonzola next!
Hey Gina! Thanks for stopping by! Great suggestion on how to use this! Thanks for taking the time out of your day to share.
I tried these tonight. I roasted them in the oven. I too found them over seasoned and very buttery/ oily. Strong pass.
Hey Shawna! I felt the same way about them. Thanks so much for stopping by and sharing!