8 Trader Joe's Marinated Meats, Ranked

It's no secret to any home chef that one of the easiest ways to get tasty dinner on the table is by marinating your favorite cut of meat. Marinades are often simple to prep but offer a burst of flavor to your dinner, and we wouldn't be surprised if you're already armed with an arsenal of go-to marinades to use on the fly. However, there are always those nights when you find yourself woefully unprepared — either you don't have a key ingredient for your marinade or you simply don't have the time necessary to let your protein soak in it. Lucky for you, there's an easy solution that can save you in dire situations: buying pre-marinated cuts of meat.

Trader Joe's has a pretty expansive selection of pre-marinated meats that you can cook straight out of the package — no additions necessary. The marinated meats have enough variety to fit a diverse collection of cuisines, from bulgogi bowls to zesty pesto dishes and even tacos. I tried a selection of eight marinated meats from Trader Joe's and ranked them based on the meat's flavors and textures, as well as how true they were to their package descriptions. Though not all of the marinated meats were up to snuff, there are some I'll absolutely be buying again. 

Though it's far from being the worst food at Trader Joe's, I was pretty unimpressed by its Pollo Asado Autentico. My misgivings about the product started from the moment I read its package description, which says that the chicken is "seasoned with an authentic recipe." That language simply isn't descriptive enough to give me much hope that the meat would be adequately flavorful; unfortunately, I was right. Authentic pollo asado should include achiote paste, citrus juices, oregano, and paprika, as well as other herbs and spices. In Trader Joe's' version, only one of those ingredients stood out.

The star of the show with the chain's Pollo Asado Autentico was undoubtedly paprika. If you're obsessed with paprika, there's a good chance you'll love these thin-sliced, marinated chicken breasts. However, if you're hoping for a deeper flavor profile, you'll probably be disappointed. The chicken breasts have a slight spicy kick to them, which was their biggest redeeming quality. Both lime and lemon juice powders were used in this marinade, but instead of giving the chicken a bright, citrusy zing, they just made it taste unpleasantly acidic. The herbs become lost in the midst of what felt like a huge amount of paprika. If you have some of this chicken and need to use it, I could see it being a good source of protein in tacos or asado bowls, but you may not love it on its own.

To preface this, sun-dried tomatoes and basil are among my favorite flavor profiles. I love the bright, juicy acidity that comes with a sun-dried tomato, and basil's earthiness rounds it out to leave you with a succulent, fresh dish suitable for any time of year. It goes without saying, then, that I was excited to try Trader Joe's take on the classic pairing in the form of its Sun-Dried Tomato & Basil Chicken Tenders. It was also a hopeful sign that sun-dried tomatoes were toward the top of the ingredients list, though basil was a little too far down on the list for my liking. 

Unfortunately, I ended up not loving what I thought would be a favorite selection from the store's marinated meats section. My main concern seems pretty avoidable, which just made it all the more infuriating — the chicken tenders were far too salty. Salt overpowered any other flavor in this dish. However, I suspect the Maillard reaction (I cooked these over the stove in a cast-iron skillet) played a role in amplifying the saltiness of the chicken, and I wondered if I'd feel differently had I prepared it another way. Regardless, the sun-dried tomato felt like an afterthought and I had to look for it to taste it, and the basil was hardly perceptible at all. The flavors were simply too subtle for these tenders to be enjoyed on their own, though they would taste decent as an addition to salad. 

Yet again, another beloved flavor that fell unfortunately short of what I hoped. I absolutely love pesto, and I frequently use Trader Joe's jarred pesto when cooking Mediterranean-inspired dishes. What I wanted from Trader Joe's Pesto Chicken Breast wasn't anything outstanding; at the end of the day, I really just wanted a good dose of pesto. Given that chicken is arguably one of the best uses for pesto, it doesn't seem like an unreasonable request, and I'm still wondering how Trader Joe's managed to fall short.

My first qualm with the chicken breasts actually has nothing to do with the pesto. Upon opening the package, I was confronted with very uneven cuts of chicken breast. Some were large and thick, while other cuts were tiny. That's not the worst dealbreaker, but it does mean you'll have to monitor the cook of the chicken more than you would if the cuts were all uniform. My biggest issue with the chicken, however, was simply that there wasn't enough pesto. The pesto I did taste was a perfectly good pesto — it was just too gentle to pack a punch, especially if you were to add this chicken to another dish. It was difficult to pick apart the flavor profile because, again, it was too subtle. This would have gotten higher marks had it contained more pesto flavor. On the plus side, it would be a great addition to a dish that you're incorporating more pesto into.

Are there any other fans of boneless, skinless chicken thighs here? This cut of meat always makes my grocery list because it's incredibly versatile and quick to cook. It holds a marinade well but the dark meat also doesn't ask for much, and when in a pinch I'll often toss it in a skillet with just some oil and my favorite seasoning blend (typically an herbal seasoning). Chicken thighs are hard to mess up, so it's no surprise to me that I enjoyed Trader Joe's Savory Herbed Chicken Thighs. They only got the number five spot on my list because the following meats were a bit better. 

The chicken thighs were well-seasoned and herby enough to satisfy my taste buds, and I liked how well they crisped up in my cast iron. The basil came through very well but I wish some rosemary had been present. My favorite part of the thighs is something that may actually turn some consumers off to them: the herbal blend contains mint. I wouldn't call it minty, per se, but the mint is definitely apparent and it adds some gentle dimension to these chicken thighs. To me, it makes this a slightly unique chicken dish that I can absolutely see myself buying again. Next time I'll be pairing it with something lemony, like a Greek orzo salad or a lemon-dressed couscous.

Up next we have none other than Trader Joe's Balsamic Rosemary Beef Steak Tips. I absolutely adore steak, and was excited to try these — after making them, I ended up turning them into steak sandwiches with a white BBQ sauce, Swiss cheese, and shredded lettuce on a ciabatta baguette, an avenue I'd highly recommend to anyone who may try these. All it took to cook up the tips was a quick sear and slow, low cook in my cast iron on the stovetop. While I liked the steak tips, they failed to blow me away, and their pitfalls is what got them the number four spot on this list.

Again, I didn't appreciate that these beef tips wildly varied in size. It's not the biggest deal in the world, but it does mean you're removing different tips at different times, so some cool faster than others. Other than that, I was happy with the texture — they were pretty tender and weren't chewy or stringy. As far as the flavor profile goes, I only wished there was something else to balance out the balsamic and rosemary. Each of those two flavors was well-balanced with the other, but without anything else they lent the steak a slightly bitter flavor that I didn't love. However, this was barely perceptible once the steak was in a sandwich, so I think it's a winning choice of meat if you're looking to add protein to a meal.

Fans of shawarma might already be well aware of Trader Joe's Shawarma Chicken Thighs, and for good reason — these thighs were my favorite of Trader Joe's marinated chicken offerings, and you'll absolutely find me with a new package in hand from the store in the near future. The warm thighs smelled great right out of the package and the aroma while they were cooking was heavenly. Fortunately for the chain, it didn't overdo the paprika like it did with the pollo asado, and I found a great balance of cozy spices in these thighs. 

I only had one issue with the shawarma thighs, which was that, again, they weren't cut evenly. I had a couple huge thighs and some tiny ones, so I had to keep a close eye on them while they cooked. That being said, it was a minor inconvenience on the way to getting yummy shawarma chicken, and I can't say I minded very much. The paprika and turmeric balanced beautifully with each other and I even felt like I tasted cinnamon, though it's not on the ingredient list. The rosemary was barely detectable, but I don't think that's a bad thing here — more rosemary could have overpowered the shawarma spice mix. I'm dying to try this with saffron rice, in a gyro-style wrap, or as a chicken shawarma and lemon rosemary potatoes dinner.

Is some form of beef bulgogi on your monthly menu rotation? I wouldn't blame you if it is — the popular Korean dish is sweet, savory, and full of umami, guaranteed to give you a tasty dinner for the family any night of the week. Sure, it's easy enough to make bulgogi on your own, but why spend the time and energy on prepping your own marinade when you could just as easily buy a pre-marinated version from the store? I was quite happy with Trader Joe's Bool Kogi "Korean inspired sesame marinated boneless beef ribs;" in fact, I gave this dish almost perfect marks but for one thing.

My sole complaint? The ribs could have been a bit more tender. That's really it, and I think this problem could have been solved had I slow-cooked them rather than cooking them in my cast iron. Don't get me wrong, they weren't rubbery or stringy, but I was hoping they'd cut apart more easily than they did. That aside, the flavors were great. The sesame came through but was subtle enough not to command too much of my attention, while the soy gave the beef a mildly sweet touch. I would eat these again on their own easily, but I also want to try them in a bulgogi-inspired rice dish alongside some pickled vegetables.

Finally, my favorite of Trader Joe's marinated meat selection and one I'll be hard-pressed to keep out of my cart now. Standing in stark contrast to the worst steak at Trader Joe's is the store's pre-marinated Santa Maria Tri-Tip Roast. Don't let the short ingredient list fool you: this tri-tip is absolutely packed with flavor, no doubt partly because tri tip is one of the most flavorful affordable cuts of beef you can buy. Trader Joe's was pretty minimal with its tri-tip seasoning, which includes only garlic, pepper, cumin, rosemary, thyme, oregano, and salt. The result? An immaculately balanced, succulent tri-tip.

The first thing to stun me about this tri-tip was the ease of preparation. I made it on a night when nearly an hour of oven cook time didn't sound pleasant, so instead of going that route, I popped this in my air fryer and cooked it at 375 degrees Fahrenheit for 24 minutes, flipping halfway through. It came out the perfect medium-rare and the outside was crispy. The tri-tip was tender and would shred easily if cooked in the crock pot, but honestly, I'll be eating it solo every time I get it. The herbs and spices in the Santa Maria seasoning marry well both with each other and with the tri-tip itself, enhancing its flavor without overpowering it. If you aren't already a fan of this Trader Joe's pick, do yourself a favor and grab one the next time you go.

To ensure a fair ranking of these marinated meats, I made sure to prep them all the same way (roast excluded). Everything got cooked up over the stovetop in my cast iron skillet, and though the tri-tip got air fried, I don't think that gave it an unfair advantage. I ate every meat solo, and even if it could have been enhanced with extra sauce or seasoning, I left each unadulterated to create a fair playing field.

I evaluated the meat based on its flavor first and foremost. If the flavors were well-balanced and adhered to what the package promised, the meat got a higher ranking. Meats with uneven spice mixtures or simply not enough flavor ranked toward the bottom of my list. Also important was the texture, though this wasn't as much of a player in the rankings as I anticipated. Though I did have some slight textural issues with a few of the meats, I don't think that impacted the ranking as much as their overall flavor did.