Trader Joe’s Customers Have Decided: These Soup Dumplings Are the Store’s No. 1 Item

Every year, Trader Joe’s asks customers about their favorite items. Fans get to vote online, and then the company releases the results as the Customer Choice Awards Winners. 

This is the 17th year that TJ’s has run the survey, and there are some real shakeups and interesting choices in this year’s results, thanks to many perennial favorites being inducted into the product hall of fame and taken out of contention. Here are all the winners, broken down into categories, plus the overall favorites. Did your top Trader Joe’s products make the list? 

Best Beverage

1. Spiced Cider (seasonal)
2. Apple Juice
3. Triple Ginger Brew (seasonal)
4. Sparkling Lemonade (seasonal)
5. 100% Tangerine Juice

If you’ve ever had the Spiced Cider, you know why it took the top spot in the beverage category. It tastes like autumn in a cup, especially once you heat it up. On the other hand, the fourth place Sparkling Lemonade is perfect for summer picnics, proving that there’s really a drink for all seasons.

Best Cheese

1. Goat Cheese
2. Syrah Soaked Toscano Cheese Spread & Dip (seasonal)
3. Cheese Shopping Bag
4. Saint André Triple Crème Brie
5. English Cheddar with Caramelized Onions

People can’t get enough of Trader Joe’s goat cheese logs. It’s creamy, spreadable, and versatile, and while we didn’t give it the top spot in our TJ’s cheese rankings, we did rate some of the other top 5 picks pretty highly. The Syrah Soaked Toscano cheese spread is sublime, and the caramelized onion cheddar is like French onion soup in cheese form. 

Best Produce

1. Teeny Tiny Avocados
2. Gone Bananas!
3. Blueberries
4. Honeycrisp Apples
5. Organic Persian Cucumbers

Teeny Tiny Avocados — which are just adorable, little avocados in a bag — took the top product spot. They’re great when you’re the only one eating, or you just really want to avoid leftover black avocados. Interestingly, number two is Gone Bananas, which are dark chocolate covered frozen banana slices. They’re a great snack, but we’re not sure we would consider them produce.

Best New Product

1. Protein Pancakes
2. Sour Strawberry Candy Belts
3. Garlic Butter Irish Potato Chips
4. Hot Honey Popcorn
5. Ketchup Flavored Lattice Potato Chips

Protein is the latest diet trend, and TJ’s Protein Pancakes are selling like, well, hotcakes. Each serving has 20 grams of protein thanks to cottage cheese and egg whites, and they’re gluten free to boot. On the complete opposite end of the health spectrum is the number two best new product: sour strawberry belts. Wonder how many people purchase them both…

Best Appetizer

1. Creamy Spinach & Artichoke Dip
2. Jalapeńo & Cream Cheese Crispy Wontons
3. Vegetable Bird’s Nests with Soy Dipping Sauce
4. Parmesan Pastry Pups
5. Greek Spanikopita

Trader Joe’s customers can’t resist the creamy spinach and artichoke dip, which comes frozen in cups. Just bake it and serve it with chips or other dippers for a restaurant-like experience. We’re partial to the Parmesan Pastry Pups in fourth place, too, because they’re like the most decadent pigs-in-a-blanket you’ve ever tasted. All these apps deserve a spot on your Super Bowl party spread.

Best Breakfast and Brunch

1. Hashbrowns
2. Chocolate Croissants
3. Dutch Griddle Cakes
4. 4 Almond Croissants
5. Protein Pancakes

Not sure about you, but TJ’s frozen hash browns are in our freezer all the time. They taste just like McDonald’s hash browns, but way cheaper. (Pro tip: Try them topped with sliced avocado, a sunny side up egg, and some hot sauce!) Frozen croissants in both chocolate and almond are popular on the sweet side, and those protein pancakes make another appearance. 

Best Lunch and Dinner

1. Butter Chicken with Basmati Rice
2. Steamed Pork & Ginger Soup Dumplings
3. Chicken Tikka Masala
4. Butternut Squash Mac & Cheese (seasonal)
5. Steamed Chicken Soup Dumplings

Trader Joe’s is well known for its wonderful and convenient frozen Indian food, so it’s no surprise that Butter Chicken took the top spot, and Chicken Tikka Masala came in third in this category. Two kinds of soup dumplings also made the cut, along with super creamy butternut squash mac and cheese. If you’re wondering, though, why the Mandarin Orange Chicken is not on the list, it’s because it’s now in the TJ’s hall of fame, and out of contention. 

Best Bath, Body, and Home

1. Brazil Nut Body Butter (seasonal)
2. Ultra Moisturizing Hand Cream
3. Daily Facial Sunscreen SPF 40
4. Coconut Body Butter
5. Cedar Balsam Scented Candle (seasonal)

Brazil Nut Body Butter makes waves every summer when it comes back on the shelf. It’s made with acai and guarana, and it’s a fraction of the price of similar products. The second and fourth spots in this category are also all about moisturizing, while the relaxing scent of the Cedar Balsam candle wafts through homes leading up to the holidays. 

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Best Snack

1. Garlic Butter Irish Potato Chips
2. Organic Elote Corn Chip Dippers
3. Ridge Cut Potato Chips Seasoned with Horseradish & Chives  (seasonal)
4. Patio Potato Chips (seasonal)
5. World’s Puffiest White Cheddar Corn Puffs

One of the newest snacks, Garlic Butter Irish Potato Chips, is also the top snack this year. It’s got garlic, it’s got creamy butter flavor, and it’s got potato chips, so how can you go wrong? We’re also big fans of the second place finisher, the Elote Corn Chip Dippers. They’re like big, flaky Fritos covered in spicy, tangy seasoning. 

Best Sweet Treat

1. Sublime Ice Cream Sandwiches
2. Almond Danish Kringle Pastry (seasonal)
3. Chocolate Hold the Cone! Mini Ice Cream Cones
4. Chocolate Chip Hold the Cone! Mini Ice Cream Cones
5. Mint Chip Ice Cream

Trader Joe’s Sublime Ice Cream Sandwiches came out on top in our ice cream cookie sandwich taste test, and the rest of TJ’s customers seem to agree. The cookies are delicious and we love the crunch of the mini chocolate chips. In second place is a Wisconsin specialty, the Danish Kringle. Almond won a spot on the list, but there’s a different flavor each month — try the pecan next time you see it.

Best Overall

1. Steamed Pork & Ginger Soup Dumplings
2. Butternut Squash Mac & Cheese (seasonal)
3. Steamed Chicken Soup Dumplings
4. Sourdough Bread
5. Butter Chicken with Basmati Rice

Trader Joe’s customers couldn’t get enough of soup dumplings this year. The Steamed Pork & Ginger variety was voted the best overall product, and the Chicken version was only two spots behind it, proving that these are a really great version of the Chinese specialty. Creamy Butternut Squash Mac & Cheese snuck in between them, while Butter Chicken rounded out the top five overall. Somehow, good old sourdough bread made its way to number four, which means it must be a staple in many customers’ homes.

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• 6 Trader Joe’s Product Changes That Fans Actually Like — Fans on Reddit shared a few of their favorite new and improved items that still hold up and are worth trying again.