Trader Joe's Fully Cooked Falafel Review
Product Name: Trader Joe’s Fully Cooked Falafel
Product Description: Premade falafel balls that come frozen and ready to heat and eat!
Brand: Trader Joe's
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VSO's Rating:
(3.5)
Summary
These Trader Joe’s Fully Cooked Falafel balls are a convenient, precooked option to making your own falafel. They come frozen and are great to keep on hand to throw into a wrap or on top of a salad for a quick meal. They may not totally hit the mark with satisfying your craving for traditional falafel, but will definitely do in a pinch.
Trader Joe’s Fully Cooked Falafel Review
Pretty much anyone that knows me knows that I’m a huge falafel fan. My first experience with falafel was as a teenager with the boxed Fantastic Foods Falafel Mix. You know, the dry powdered stuff you mix with water. Boy, I’ve really turned into a falafel snob since then! Not that the powdered mix wasn’t awesome at the time. They carried it at my local grocery store and I had no idea what it actually was. I only tried it because finding vegetarian options circa 1990 in a small town was a little challenging, so I was up for trying any random thing I could find. Of course I had no idea how it was supposed to be served, so I ate it on a hamburger bun with ketchup and mustard. I shutter to think about that now! No tahini?! What was I thinking?! I’m surprised the falafel police didn’t come arrest me. On a side note, I also always used to eat Fantastic Foods Tofu Burgers (a dry mix you just mixed in with tofu). These were awesome and I still crave them to this day. Sadly, they apparently stopped making this mix. I got the ingredient list from an old Amazon listing so I’m going to try to recreate them…someday LOL.
Anyways, back to the falafel. I ended up going away to college in Vermont and my friends and I used to drive up to Burlington to this little falafel shop called Ahli Baba’s Kabob Shop. This is when I fell in love with legit, authentic falafel! Even after I moved back to NY, my best friend Jenn and I would drive up to Burlington all the time just to get the falafel because we were craving it so bad (a 2 hour and 15 minute drive!). Yes, it was that good. I’ve been known to do some crazy things for good food! The place is still there too, so if you are ever in Burlington, VT definitely check it out. I’ve had a lot of different falafel over the years from many different places and made a ton of different recipes but I haven’t found any falafel I like nearly as much as Ahli Baba’s. So since my falafel bar is set pretty high, I didn’t have very high expectations for these Trader Joe’s frozen falafel balls.
They’re a tad bit on the dry side for my falafel tastes and the flavor profile is a little different from what I’m used to. To me they taste more like a chickpea fritter (yeah I know that’s kind of what falafel is haha). I think if someone made these for me and called them “chickpea fritters” and not falafel I’d think they were awesome. Otherwise I was a little underwhelmed at first. I made them with a quick tahini sauce (tahini, lemon juice, garlic powder, salt, and water) and fresh garden cukes and parsley. That’s also Trader’s Joe’s garlic naan in the picture (yummmmm)!
After a few bites the flavor started growing on me for sure! Now that I’ve checked out the full ingredient list I can see that there isn’t any cumin in them, which is a spice I associate with falafel and is probably why I don’t think it has a traditional “falafel” taste. I know traditional falafel recipes vary by region though! I guess I was expecting it to taste like the same falafel that’s in their premade wraps, which I love and crave sometimes.
Trader Joe’s Falafel Ingredients and Nutrition Facts
Would I buy Trader Joe’s Fully Cooked Falafel again?
Yes, I would definitely buy these frozen falafel balls again! I think the convenience factor is huge, the flavor profile is good, and as with most Trader Joe’s products, the price is decent (good value). Have any of you tried these and if so, what did you think?
Nicole
Long time vegan living in upstate NY. Web developer and founder of Vegan ShowOff. She's addicted to ice cream and loves hiking, snowboarding, gardening, and travel. Read more from Nicole!
Very good!
They are good! I bought some here at a local grocery store and these are much better!
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good enough because I'm lazy.
I buy them regularly to snack on, are they great? No, but they are plant based and decent nutritionally. I am kind of surprised the reviews say they lack flavor as I find the garlic and cilantro very much at the front, not even trying to blend or be subtle, a little too salty, a little too much acid, a good kick of chili and some coriander and turmeric in the back, the turmeric could use some more balance, you get a rather obnoxious turmeric aftertaste fighting with the garlic and cilantro. The lack of source might explain why they taste appropriated.
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It can use some flavour
These are better than many other brands that I have had. But they lack flavor, however I eat them with Schug that trader Joes sell and it comes out good.
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Pretty good for not freshly made!
Real time saver and really pretty tasty. Not quite like the ones grams used but pretty good 🙂 Qiockk to make too.
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These are a great and tasty time saver!
I used to make falafels using a mix and then frying, so I had to make a lot.
Not any more.
I’m fling solo nowadays so three balls in a micro for only 30-90 seconds does the trick.
Get your salad and pita handy and a quick lunch or light supper is fast and very satisfying… and I’m a porkchoparian.😉
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Just OK...
These may do in a pinch, but they are far from great. Very dense, heavy preparation. Very little flavor. Quite dry. Like a dry, dense chickpea hushpuppy. I’ve heard the mix is better, but takes way more time …..
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Just ate these last night!
I recently moved back to an area with a Trader Joes and one of my first stops was to buy their frozen falafel. It’s my absolute favorite product of theirs and I will be stopping in regularly to purchase more.
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LOVE this, my all time fav!
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Easier than trying to make your own
You have to stand in line at the Falafel drive-in in San Jose, California.
I used to be surprised when I saw a bag of these on a co-worker’s desk late at night…
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Convenient
Convenient, we pop a few in the air fryer when we don’t have time to make a meal
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Blandness at its finest
My adult kid and I were excited to find these falafel!
Smelled great cooking!
Tasted bland!! It was baffling how bland they were! Did they mix it wrong and all of the seasoning was skipped.
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Thanks!
Thanks for the review! If you’re ever near Albany, there’s an amazing place for falafel and baba ghannouj – Mamouns. Just like the famous one in NYC. Saratoga also has a falafel restaurant that’s ok but they did give me food poisoning, which I did not expect from vegan food!!
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I’ve been to the falafel place in Saratoga once a couple of years ago, it’s cute inside but I’ve never been back since it didn’t really hit the spot for me. Yikes to the food poisoning though…luckily that didn’t happen to me! I’ve heard of Mamouns in NYC but had no idea there was one in Albany! Thanks for letting me know, I’ll definitely hit it up the next time I go to Albany for a Trader Joe’s run!! 💚
Fantastic
I always have these in my freezer for a quick, easy meal.
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So delicious !
So delicious and healthy. I love the taste and texture. I would definitely buy this product again.
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Gluten & chemicals
Without barley & wheat flour it would be gluten free Why is it necessary for so many chemical preservatives it’s a frozen product & folic acid is synthetic body doesn’t recognizes it should be folate you took a healthy recipe & made it unhealthy
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Delicious
This was so delicious. The taste pops and is very filling.
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Interested
I hope to try one day
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Ingredients changed
TJ’s frozen falafel no longer have any wheat flour – this is good for people staying away from higher glycemic foods and ingredients. I microwave them and then finish off in the toaster oven – though a tad dry, they are delicious.
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