Trader Joe’s Handcrafted Black Bean & Cheese Taquitos Review

Trader Joe's Handcrafted Black Bean & Cheese Taquitos

A literal translation of the term taquito would be something along the lines of small taco. In reality, a taquito is typically a deep-fried rolled mini taco, which isn’t exactly the same thing though we suppose it’s pretty close. The Trader Joe’s Handcrafted Black Bean & Cheese Taquitos fall under the latter definition.

The package for these taquitos lists three different ways to cook these — via microwave, stovetop, or oven. Our first instinct was to go with the microwave, as the cook time for two taquitos is a measly 30 seconds. But ours came out a little cold, so we gave them an additional 20 seconds of microwave time. When they came out the second time, they were a bit soggy and they had a weird texture.

Trader Joe's Handcrafted Black Bean & Cheese Taquitos

So we started over, this time using the oven instructions. This required us to preheat the oven to 425 degrees fahrenheit, throw some taquitos on a cookie sheet, then bake them for 15 to 20 minutes. We took ours out a couple minutes early, and they were already nice and crisp.

Trader Joe's Handcrafted Black Bean & Cheese Taquitos

The oven-baked taquitos are definitely tastier than their microwaved counterparts, but they still feel like they’re missing something. The taquitos are extremely dry, and you can barely taste the Monterey Jack cheese.  In fact, the only flavors that stand out are the tortillas and black beans. The label lists other ingredients, like mushrooms and jalapeno peppers, but it’s hard to taste them at all.

That said, we think it’d be easy to spruce up these taquitos. If you were to dip these taquitos in some salsa or sour cream, or even a rich queso, they’d be a lot more enjoyable. We definitely recommend pairing these taquitos with some sort of dip if you can!

The box lists a serving size as four taquitos, which we think is pretty reasonable if you’re eating these as a snack or a side dish. These definitely aren’t intended to be a full meal on their own. One box contains a dozen taquitos, so that should be three servings.

One serving contains 310 calories (100 from fat), which is actually kind of a lot. When you break that down, it comes out to 77.5 calories per taquito, or 930 calories for the full pack. The sodium level is actually lower than we expected, at 180 mg per serving. That’s 45 mg per taquito, and 540 mg for all twelve. That’s pretty low for a frozen food.

Trader Joe’s Handcrafted Black Bean & Cheese Taquitos are a little bland. They’re salvageable if paired with something else, preferably a good dip, but they lack luster on their own. If you’re in the mood for a southwestern treat from Trader Joe’s, we’d recommend the Southwestern Chicken Quesadillas with Seasoned Vegetables over these taquitos any day.

To learn more about the ingredients and nutrition content in these frozen taquitos, check out our package scan below.

Trader Joe's Handcrafted Black Bean & Cheese Taquitos

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