Real Food! Trader Joe's has finally graced us with something other than a snack food or dessert item. It's been too long. On the flip side, I can say that this was worth the wait.
Taste
I'm not overly impressed by a lot in the produce section. A lot of times, things spoil relatively quickly. But every now and again they hit us with a gem. And honestly, this is one of the best items to grace the fresh produce section since the addition of the Butternut Squash Zig Zags.
Not only is this tasty, but this is also a quick and easy way to put a healthy meal in front of you in a matter of minutes without much effort.
For $4.99 this runs laps around takeout.
So, in this bag are veggies and two other plastic bags: one with the soba noodles and the other with a ginger sauce.
Now, what I don't agree with: this bag being 7 servings. Try two or three. Please don't buy this bag hoping to share it among 7 people. They'll be hungry.
Now, there is no protein like tofu or animal protein here. But that is easily solved.
This is a healthy meal in a bag. It's loaded with veggies. And if you need some carbs to feel full you have some delicious soba noodles waiting to be reheated here. You can easily have this on the table in about 10 minutes or less.
Now, a few things you should be aware of all deal with the sauce. The sauce has a nice ginger-soy flavor. So if you are gluten-free, you are out of luck on this product.
But the sauce is also spicy and a bit on the saltier side. So, my recommendation is to add some taste. It's between mild and medium, but it was a bit unexpected if you didn't read through the ingredients list first.
I told my husband I made this from scratch. He believed me. Score.
Overall
He enjoyed this. So did I. It's about time we had some fresh veggie kits that made dinner a breeze. Even lunch the next day was a breeze too.
Would I buy this again? Yes, I would buy Trader Joe's Vegetable and Soba Noodle Stir Fry Kit again. It was a healthy flavorful option without a heavy calorie count.
Did you try it? Let me know what you think in the comments section!
Product photos
The bag of Trader Joe's Vegetable and Soba Noodle Stir Fry Kit:
Calories
Ingredients
How to prepare:
After being cooked you get:
A view from the side:
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Trader Joe's Vegetable and Soba Noodle Stir Fry Kit
Product Name: Trader Joe's Vegetable and Soba Noodle Stir Fry Kit
Product Description: Trader Joe's Vegetable and Soba Noodle Stir Fry Kit contains veggies, noodles, and a ginger sauce.
Price: $4.99
Currency: USD
Availability: LimitedAvailability
Summary
Trader Joe's Vegetable and Soba Noodle Stir Fry Kit makes a meal quickly, but don't count on it being 7 servings.
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Taste
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Value
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Worthy of Repurchasing
Pros
- Healthy meal that is real food
- This eats more like a meal than a side.
- Fresh and flavorful
Cons
- I'm not sure how they figure servings sizes, but you'll probably want to figure 2-3 servings in this bag.
- Add sauce slowly to estimate how much heat and saltiness that you would enjoy.
- You might want to add a protein to make this more of a complete meal.
- Not gluten-free for those who watch these things
Alek says
It is a great side dish for beginners. Also the protein offering is flexible can add meat or tofu whatever you like to.
Dagmar says
So glad you were viewed this. I've been hearing good things about it and have been meaning to pick it up. Just eyeballing the bag I would say two servings at best... lol.....unless you're adding some sort of protein. I love soba noodles and I love veggies so this is definitely up my alley. And I'm pretty sure I would add some rotisserie chicken or something to it
Dagmar says
Oh and I forgot to mention in my last post that I so agree with you about things spoiling quickly from the produce section. That also goes for some of the cheeses in the refrigerated section. Wondering if they're not keeping them cold enough or if they are sitting out too long as they are unpacking it.
I was also just looking at the ingredients of a veggie stir-fry and was thinking I might add some shredded carrots are julienne carrots for some beta carotene vitamin A
judilyn says
You peeked into my kitchen for tonight's dinner, yah? Mushrooms, onions, broccoli, pork pieces over diner's choice of angel hair or pilaf.
Virtual hugs,
Judie
Patricia dokos says
Can you freeze the bags. We love the veggie bag
becomebetty says
Hey Patricia! I'm not sure if you can on this one for a couple reasons: 1) there is a lot of air in the bag, this might lead to freezer burn 2) the pasta inside the bag is already cooked. I'm not sure how its going to handle another thaw/reheat. I haven't tried it, but I'm not 100% sure if I would. I hope that helps!
Lindsay says
Did I miss a trick with the soba noodles? I let them soak in hot water for a few minutes but they just broke into tiny pieces when I tried to break them up.
becomebetty says
Hey Lindsay! I used my electric tea kettle and two forks to pull them apart
Hadley says
hahahahahahhahha 7 servings?! I made this the other night as a quick dnner for the boyfriend and I and it was two small servings. 7 babies maybe.
becomebetty says
Hey Hadley! I totally agree with you. Totally 2 servings in this bag. I don't know how they determine servings. Thanks so much for stopping by and sharing!
Melly says
The FDA is actually who determines what constitutes a "serving size" and makes it a standard measurement companies have to use. Trader Joe's doesn't get much say.
On a positive note, the calorie count is pretty good... Even if you ate the entire bag that would be 560 calories, which is pretty reasonable for a large dinner (the average person needs around 1500 - 2500 calories a day)
Mia says
I followed the instructions and let it sit in hot water for 2 minutes, and it remained a block. So then I simmered it for another minute or so while pulling it apart with chopsticks, and that worked with no breakage.
becomebetty says
Hey Mia! Thanks so much for sharing this tip! Thanks also for stopping by!
jcs says
It was really good but needed to be a little more spicy so added some chineese peppers. I also had some xtra veggies so i added even more. Have made with Chicken Tofu and shrip
becomebetty says
Hey JCS! Thanks so much for taking the time to share your thoughts on this.