19 Trader Joe's Pre-Made Salads, Ranked

I don't know about you, but whenever I need to get some easy greens into my diet, there's one spot that never fails me: the pre-made salad aisle. Whether in the form of bagged salad kits or packaged lunch-size portions, I can always be down for a leafy green concoction in a decadent creamy dressing. There's no shortage of pre-made salads on the market, and fortunately for me, one of my favorite retailers has them in abundance: Trader Joe's.

If you've never sauntered down TJ's refrigerated prepared foods section before, you're missing out. When it comes to pre-prepped meal buying I generally advocate for making your own version at home if you have the time; with Trader Joe's salads, though, I heartily depart from that sentiment. I tried and ranked several of the chain's pre-made salads according to flavor and textural balance as well as freshness, and I must say, most of them wowed me. 

The biggest plus of buying a ready-made salad (for me, anyway, an early-30s girl living solo) is that it's an easy way to eat healthier and bypass meal fatigue. Making any of these salads on my own would leave me with a ton of leftovers or a surplus of unused ingredients, a problem I can avoid with the following salads. In general, TJ's is a great place to pick up a salad lunch on your next busy day; keep reading for an in-depth look into all the ones I tried.

Taking the last spot in my ranking is Trader Joe's Sesame Miso Salad with Salmon. Chief among my complaints about this salad is that it doesn't have a lot of salmon — I got four small pieces that aren't cut small enough to be bite-sized. However, after tasting it, I wasn't really sure I'd even want more salmon — it wasn't flavorful and was barely noticeable even on its own. 

The rest of the salad was just lackluster. The greens' leaves were way too big to eat easily, and its overall flavor profile was too salty for me to want to take more than a couple of bites. Not even the crispy onions (which I generally love) could elevate it. 

I'd imagine Trader Joe's Salad with BBQ Flavored Chicken could be someone's cup of tea, but it certainly wasn't mine. First of all, it had far too much dressing — if you do get it, I'd recommend starting with half of what you're given. The salad also manages to be weirdly lacking in flavor despite the massive amount of dressing. It's like it's missing salt and brightness, leaving you with a simple smoky, creamy flavor that isn't balanced by anything else. 

Not helping matters any was the fact that the lettuce in this salad was starting to brown. On the plus side, the BBQ-flavored chicken was pretty good. My general recommendation would be to stay away from this salad, though I'd understand if curiosity convinced you to try it once.

Chief of my complaints about Trader Joe's Field Fresh Chopped Salad with White Chicken Meat was that there's no mention of it having corn and peppers. To me, the two seem pretty contrasted with the flavor profile of the rest of the salad, and it was an odd ingredient choice that I didn't particularly vibe with. Aside from that, all the individual elements of the salad are just fine.

The other reason this got a low ranking on my list was because of its sweet basil dressing. I could see some enjoying it but its sweetness wasn't my cup of tea — it tasted like a garden, but not in a good way. Overall this salad just had some weirdly mismatched elements that I didn't enjoy.

As a caprese enthusiast, my hopes for TJ's Mozzarella and Tomato Salad were pretty dashed upon trying it. It was far from a flavorful caprese salad recipe which was more than disappointing — it was pretty clear Trader Joe's skimped on the ingredient quality here.

Firstly, the tomatoes were enormous, and there were only three of them in the salad, so it wasn't very balanced off the bat. The mozzarella was nowhere near the flavorful mozzarella that I've had from the brand previously, but at least the mozzarella balls were well-seasoned. I liked the vinaigrette but it was still a little lackluster, and to top it all off, there are olives in this salad, which wasn't apparent on the packaging (and which I detest). 

Trader Joe's Chinese Inspired Salad with Chicken was, again, fine. Its soy sesame dressing was good as were the crispy noodles (which were wisely packaged separately so they didn't get soggy) but the rest of the dish fell pretty flat. Not helping matters any was that it didn't really have a ton of textural variety or interesting ingredients.

The chicken in this salad seemed way more processed than in other salads from the brand. It had been cut into smooth cubes and was a little dry, making it seem more artificial. Also, the dressing is so thin that it all sinks to the bottom of the salad. Upon eating it you'll find that this really is just a slaw salad — nothing more and nothing less, and certainly not anything unique.

Now we're getting into the mid-range salads on this list — these weren't my favorites but I could see a different consumer enjoying them. Trader Joe's Baby Spinach and Greens Salad may be adored by those who love sweet wintery salads, but that's just not my typical salad preference, and I couldn't have more than a few bites for a couple of reasons. 

There's a certain bitterness that I can't identify (it may have been the greens) that wasn't canceled out by the salad's slight sweetness. Moreover, I wasn't super impressed by the candied nuts – they didn't hold their own, especially against the strong bleu cheese. The vinaigrette was good but, again, it was so thin that it immediately pooled at the bottom.

This will definitely be a divisive take, and I'm sure there's a consumer base comprised of diehard fans of Trader Joe's Vegan Super Spinach Salad — I'm just not among them. Visually, the edamame was pretty wrinkly and the dressing came out thick and gloppy, so the salad didn't look very appetizing. 

I changed my tune slightly upon tasting it. The dressing was full of flavor and very warm and gingery. Cranberries added some welcome sweetness. However, other than the tomatoes and pumpkin seeds there weren't a lot of different textures. The couscous could have helped; unfortunately, it was pretty dry and grainy. This salad has potential and I imagine some will enjoy it, but it wasn't my favorite.

The only reason Trader Joe's Caesar Salad doesn't rank higher on this list is because it's one of the simplest salads I tried. It comes with lettuce, a packet of croutons, a packet of grated parmesan, and Caesar dressing. However, if you want a simple, no-frills Caesar salad, this certainly wouldn't be a bad buy.

I've said this before and I'll say it again — comparatively, TJ's Caesar dressing isn't my favorite. It's on the thinner side and I prefer mine creamier. However, this is still a solid salad when it comes to the brand's offerings. The croutons add a welcome crunchy texture that's lacking from some other salads on this list. On the other hand, the parmesan wasn't super perceptible and some lettuce leaves were far too big.

Ranking just one spot higher is Trader Joe's Organic Kale Chicken Caesar Salad. There are a couple of things separating this from the following selection, but the most notable reason this ranks lower than the next is because of its chicken. I got the same processed vibes from the chicken here as I did with the chicken in the Chinese Inspired Salad, and it wasn't super pleasant. 

Its shaved parmesan gave this a leg up from the basic Caesar salad and I liked the light, airy ciabatta croutons. However, this was combated by more bitter greens. I don't think this salad would disappoint any consumer, but I'm not sure I'd seek it out again — not only are there a couple of better Caesar salads on this list, but there are also better Caesar salads on the market from other brands. 

I have an apology to issue — in a previous Caesar salad ranking, I put Trader Joe's Caesar Salad with White Chicken Meat toward the bottom, mostly because of the texture of its chicken. I may have gotten a fluke package because I enjoyed it more when trying it for this ranking. The shredded texture of the chicken was a welcome departure from the cubes other salads on this list claimed.

Additionally, the croutons here were pleasantly flavorful and crunchy, and the shaved parmesan added some welcome body to this salad that was lacking in the plain Caesar salad. This was my second favorite of all the Caesar salads I tried for this piece, and my first choice ranks much higher.

I thoroughly enjoyed Trader Joe's Crunchy Slaw. Its peanut dressing was insanely good and it was thicker than on the Chinese Inspired Salad, which I appreciated. It also boasted a rich umami flavor that kept me wanting to go back for another bite. Had the salad included another ingredient or two to add some textural variety, this could have gotten a slightly higher spot in my ranking. 

The crispy noodles were obviously great (who doesn't love crispy noodles on their salad?) and the chicken, though still cubed, had a slightly better flavor than other cubed chicken salads on this list. Moreover, the salad boasted a good textural balance. Soft chicken contrasted well with the crunchy noodles and crisp lettuce while the creamy, earthy dressing provided a common ground for all the salad's components.

Trader Joe's Lemon Chicken & Arugula Salad is one I wouldn't have grabbed on a whim, and I'm glad I had the opportunity to give it a try. Again, it doesn't rank higher because of the cubed chicken, but I thought the flavors of this salad were pretty lovely. Despite claiming to be spicy I didn't find the dressing to be particularly hot, which was good news for me but could be a turnoff to some consumers.

Honestly, this tasted almost like an Asian pasta salad. It was pretty bright and gentler than I expected but still packed full of flavor. Turmeric comes through beautifully to give the salad a lot of warmth and I liked that the dressing was thin, so as not to overwhelm the rest of the salad. Finally, soft chicken, crisp arugula, grainy couscous, and shredded carrots gave it some great textural variety. 

Is it just me, or are green beans a somewhat unusual salad addition? I didn't love them here, which is the only reason Trader Joe's Harvest Salad with White Chicken Meat didn't rank a couple of spots higher. Other than that, the hard-boiled egg had a pretty decent texture to it and resisted being rubbery, and I loved every other element of this salad.

Again, that shredded-pulled chicken texture saved the day here and made this more appealing than it would have been otherwise. All the individual ingredients were well-seasoned with salt and pepper and tasted very crisp and fresh. The real winner of this salad, though, was its dijon dressing. The dressing was tangy and creamy, absolutely packed with flavor, and is enough to get me to buy this one again.

I've had Trader Joe's Cobb Salad before — it has most of the elements of a classic Cobb salad and I tend to enjoy it quite a bit. This time was no exception. However, the hard-boiled egg in this salad did give an unpleasantly rubbery texture, and after trying a bite of it I removed it from the salad.

I'll start by saying that you won't love if you don't like bleu cheese. The bleu cheese is insanely strong here, but I thought it was well-balanced by the uncured bacon pieces and creamy dressing, and the chicken helped ground it a bit. I don't think this salad will be for everyone, but if you like Cobb salad in general, it's worth the buy.

Even though I'm not at all a fan of olives, I have to admit this is a pretty craveable Greek salad that fans of the dish should have tried by now. Trader Joe's Classic Greek Salad is what it purports to be and with a stellar end result — the only thing I would have changed about it was removing the olives, but I understand that I'm probably in the minority there.

Other than my personal distaste for olives, this salad checked all the boxes. All its elements were well balanced, though I think the cucumber should have been diced rather than sliced. The red onions and peppers added a sharp zing to the dish, the feta was plentiful, and its red wine vinaigrette was bright, tangy, and sharp.

You can bet your bottom dollar I'll be buying Trader Joe's Pasadena Salad with Chicken again. It wasn't complex but did boast a mixture of clearly carefully crafted ingredients — I can't remember the last time I had crispy rice noodles on a salad, but I loved the light airy crisp they added.

I also really enjoyed the chicken here, and the almonds brought a warm nuttiness into the equation. My favorite thing, though, was the dressing — I have no clue what's in the self-proclaimed "dressing that's divine," but I can confirm its divinity. It's a really good, sweet, very thick dressing with a gel-like consistency, and it had just the right amount of body to bring the whole salad together.

Salmon packs a healthy amount of flavor in this Caesar salad, unlike in the much lower-rated Sesame Miso Salmon salad I reviewed earlier. In fact, I really liked Trader Joe's Caesar Salad with Salmon. My one qualm was that the lemon slice included was pitiful — it was slimy and full of seeds, and I ended up throwing it out. 

I did like this Caesar dressing better than Trader Joe's typical Caesar. It's far more lemony and a lovely pairing with this salad's salmon, which is also way more noticeable here than in the other salmon salad. The creamy dressing adds a certain richness to the equation, and the parmesan crisps give a toasty umami flavor and crunch. Salmon hikes the price up a few dollars, but personally, I think it's worth it.

Despite not being a huge fan of beans, corn, or diced peppers, I thoroughly loved Trader Joe's Southwest Salad (and may have to change my tune when it comes to my typical taste preferences). It has all the ingredients you'd expect to find in a Southwest salad, and each is incredibly proportional to the other, as well. 

The chipotle ranch dressing is flavorful and tangy, but I could see some not liking its lack of heat. For me, it was perfect. I particularly noticed the bright sweetness the corn offered which, when eaten with a piece of red onion, gave a nice flavorful depth to the bite. The beans were hardly noticeable (again, a good thing for me, and possibly a less good thing for other consumers).

Finally, we've reached the top of the list, the cream of the crop: Trader Joe's Broccoli Slaw & Kale Salad with White Chicken Meat. I'll admit to being a kale lover; if you aren't, there's a decent chance this salad won't be your cup of tea. Personally, I thought it embodied the ideal balance of everything the perfect salad should offer.

The dressing was indeed a little spicy but I liked the heat it brought, which added a nice contrast to the sweet creaminess of the rest of the dressing. The salad itself is crisp and crunchy while chicken brings it down to earth a bit. Red onions offered some sharpness and the cranberry pieces were small, sweet morsels that helped round out some of the salad's harsher elements. The flavor profile of this salad was 10/10 and the dressing, though delicious, didn't even need to take center stage for the rest of the salad to be yummy in its own right.

I've said it previously but it bears repeating: on the whole, I'd call Trader Joe's packaged salads well worth the buy. All are fresh and flavorful (though some more than others) and which you favor will just come down to personal preference. I grabbed one of each packaged salad from my local store for this review, and your store may have different options than mine. 

I ranked each according to my own taste, and I tended to prefer salads with multiple components and a good balance of textures and flavors. If you like simpler salads, you may prefer the picks toward the middle of my list. It's also worth mentioning that I'm a sucker for a good dressing, and salads whose dressing I enjoyed tended to rank higher than those with less palatable dressings. Still, only a few salads at the bottom of my list were downright disappointing, and I could see myself eating most of these again.