7 Popular Trader Joe’s Seasonings You Need — And How To Use Them

October 14, 2023

Clean Plates

We’ve all been to dinner parties where we encounter someone offering baked or roasted chicken or fish and veggies – and no seasoning whatsoever. No matter how good your ingredients and kitchen tools may be, all flavor will be lost without seasoning. This will make or break any dinner party, and any dish being served. Among my favorite spices and blends come from Trader Joe’s, where there’s always sure to be an interesting mix of fun and flavor and combinations – all perfect for whatever I may be using them for. From staple basics to inventive flavor bombs, you can find it all in this aisle.

1. Green Goddess Seasoning Blend

We love a salad with Green Goddess dressing, but the components of those flavors can also work excellent as a seasoning blend, and Trader Joe’s has a great one, full of ingredients such as minced onion, salt, granulated garlic, ground black pepper, dried chives, dried green onion, spinach powder, and dried parsley. “Green Goddess Seasoning Blend when added to Greek yogurt makes for a quick and hearty salad dressing or dip to enjoy with pita chips,” said Aby Fewel, MS, RD, LDN.

Using the right seasoning blend can really bring any chef (or home chef’s!) cooking to the next level and this is a perfect example. “Everyone from an expert chef to a newbie in the kitchen can incorporate seasoning blends to take their cooking up a notch and liven up any dish. Using new seasonings can breathe life into your meals and snacks when you’re trying to include more nutrient density. Plus, they’re a great alternative to relying on salt without sacrificing flavor,” said Fewel.

2. Mushroom & Company Multipurpose Umami Seasoning Blend

We probably often chat about how a great dish has a healthy amount of umami. But what is that? It’s essentially that savory element that should be present along with the sweet, salty, spicy, sour, or bitter. “I adore Trader Joe’s Mushroom & Company Multipurpose Umami Seasoning Blend as a powerful tool in my culinary arsenal. It adds that deep, rich umami flavor we love in a spice blend without too much sodium. I love it on roasted veggies, especially mushrooms, pasta dishes, soups, and roasted chicken or fish,” said Lauren Harris-Pincus, MS, RDN, founder of NutritionStarringYOU.com and author of The Everything Easy Pre-Diabetes Cookbook.

3. Ranch Seasoning Blend

As opposed to buying a bottle of ranch dressing, try Trader Joe’s ranch seasoning. This combination of buttermilk flavor, granulated garlic, granulated onion, sea salt, sugar, dried dill, black pepper, dried green onion, and dried chives is maybe most familiar on chips or in salad dressing, that’s truly the tip of a very large and flavorful iceberg. A“Add to a blender or food processor with avocado and Greek yogurt to make ranch dressing at home with less oil. Perfect for all your ranch needs, including for dipping and salads,” said Nadine Bradley, RD at Culina Health.

4. Chili Lime Seasoning Blend

There’s so much to do with this seasoning. It’s great on a piece of salmon or chicken or can be added to fruit to create a sweet and salty treat. “Add to protein such as baked shrimp or chicken wings. Or even add to cauliflower to create a chili lime roasted cauliflower dish,” said Bradley. Take things up a notch and use it as a garnish for your next margarita, too!

5. Everything But The Elote Seasoning Blend

How fun is it to enjoy Elote at street fairs and festivals? Take that essence of that flavor home with you with this fun seasonal seasoning blend. It contains the flavors of chile pepper, Parmesan cheese, chipotle powder, cumin, dried cilantro, sea salt, etc. The only thing missing from this elote seasoning is, well, that elote (i.e. the corn!).

“This seasoning is a flavorful buttery corn flavor that can be added to tacos, burritos or even salads, but it tastes best on grilled on or corn off the cob. You can even throw on a bit of chili lime seasoning, sprinkle of cotija cheese and fresh lime juice to create an at home version of grilled street corn,” said Bradley.

6. Smoked Paprika

This smoked paprika is a spice rack staple in my own home, as I use it on everything from a rub for wings or roast chicken or to sprinkle on fries and tots. But this subtly smoky sweet kick can do so much more. “My go-to seasoning from Trader Joe’s is the smoked paprika, all the way. I use it to bolster soups, make paella, or even as a simple rub mixed with black pepper, cumin, and coriander for tofu,” says Chef Jason Wyrick of The Vegan Taste.

7. Everything But the Bagel Sesame Seasoning Blend

We love everything bagels, but everything bagel spice has been having a moment in recent years. It seems its possibilities are endless. It’s great on avocado toast, roasted salmon, and many more recipes.

“WIthout a doubt the classic viral Everything But the Bagel Seasoning is the best – but it is for so much more than just bagels! I believe the Trader Joe’s brand is the best of all the brands out there because they include sea salt unlike a lot of the other brands which adds an amazing crunchy burst of flavor. I like to mix 2 tbsp of everything seasoning with potatoes cut into a fry shape. Add 1 tbsp of olive oil and then bake at 400 degrees for 50 minutes and you get the best bagel fries ever!” says Jason Goldstein of Chop Happy, a cookbook author, recipe developer and food blogger.

This seasoning blend has many fans, and all speak to its extreme flavor and versatility. “One of my top choices of blended seasonings is Everything bagel seasoning, which is composed of poppy seeds, sesame seeds, dried garlic, salt, and dried onion. I use this blend on seafood and for dry rubs on all my meats before grilling. In the summer, striped bass is a favorite of mine. I poached the bass in vegetable stock with fava beans, snap peas, and asparagus pearls before straining everything and then pan-searing the vegetables with lemon/white wine/butter. I finish the bass on the grill — skin-down — and I top with a thin layer of cream cheese and gochujang smear as well as my favorite, everything bagel seasoning,” says Brian Pancir, corporate culinary director at Thompson Hospitality Group.