New Cassava Chips Have Arrived At Trader Joe's

If you enjoy brick-and-mortar grocery shopping, chances are you're a fan of Trader Joe's. The 560-locations-and-growing grocery chain is known for its low prices, attentive customer service, and ever-rotating selection of products — some of which, including Everything but the Bagel Seasoning, Frozen Cauliflower Gnocchi, and Salty Peanut Butter Filled Pretzels Nuggets — have attained cult status (via BuzzFeed).

Trader Joe's shoppers are so dedicated to the store that they maintain a lively Subreddit, where they post pics of their homemade preparations of TJ's items, share intel on hot sales, and debate their favorite products. A couple of months ago, a user on the forum was wondering what happened to Trader Joe's grain-free tortilla chips, the Cassava and Coconut variety the chain used to offer. "I haven't been able to find these for a while ... does anyone know if they've been all out discontinued," the user asked. Those chips were discontinued, but TJ's has just stocked shelves with a new grain-free chip that snackers might want to know about.

What do you know about cassava? This nutty-tasting, starchy root vegetable is used worldwide in savory and sweet preparations. According to Healthline, it's commonly found in West Africa's eba, a soft bread used for dipping in soups and stews, and sweet Filipino cassava cake. Naturally gluten-free, the root is also commonly utilized in snacks and desserts for those on special diets, such as Paleo, which exclude all grains (via The Paleo Mom). Incorporated into pie crusts, pancakes, bread, and tortillas (via Insanely Good Recipes), cassava can be an excellent substitute for more common starches.

Given cassava's varied uses, it makes sense that the root would also be featured in chips. The revamped cassava chips offered by Trader Joe's, shared on Instagram by @traderjoesobsessed, contain Peruvian-grown cassava fried in sunflower oil and sprinkled with sea salt. According to the snack's bag, the store recommends serving the chips with either guacamole or warm spinach and artichoke dip, which both sound pretty tasty to us.