The term “superfood” has always struck us as silly. We like foods that are full of nutrients, but calling them superfoods might be a bit of a stretch. Still, even though kale and sweet potatoes probably won’t give you special powers, dishes like Trader Joe’s Organic Superfood Pilaf tend to be pretty tasty!
When we removed this dish from the plastic back it came in, we were left with a huge frozen chunk. Even after tossing it in a pan, it took a while to break the hunk down into something that resembled food. After almost 15 minutes — longer than the cook time on the packaging — we finally had a dish that looked pretty great.
Unfortunately, we had a bad experience when we grabbed our forks and started to dig in. We encountered a few pieces of something that was inedible. We thought it was a spinach stem at first, but the texture felt more like cardboard. We read plenty of reviews, but couldn’t find anyone else that had a similar problem. It’s possible that we were unlucky and got stuck with a bad batch.
It’s a shame that we encountered those weird cardboard-like chunks of something, because the rest of the meal is absolutely delicious. The quinoa is a little on the plain side, but the sweet potatoes and kale are incredibly flavorful. We’re also impressed by the kale; the texture and taste are absolutely perfect.
Because this dish is packed with quinoa, it’s pretty filling, even though it tastes light. It could easily serve as a standalone meal, but it would also be a nice side dish to serve with the right entree. You could also spice this up by adding your favorite sausage; we think it would pair nicely with Trader Joe’s Sausage-less Sausage!
We didn’t love eating this meal. The mysterious stiff pieces we encountered really put a damper on our dining experience. However, we’re going to give Trader Joe’s the benefit of the doubt and assume that most bags of Trader Joe’s Organic Superfood Pilaf are cardboard-free. If you get a good batch, this so-called superfood has a lot to offer!
To learn more about the cooking instructions, nutrition content, or ingredients for this Trader Joe’s pilaf, check out our package scans below.