Shakshuka Starter ♥ Trader Joe’s Product Review

What frozen foods from Trader Joe's taste good? are worth eating? and worth the money? Let's start with a new product this year, a box from the frozen section called Shakshuka, a spicy tomato and bell pepper concoction that's traditionally served with an egg on top.

Easy Breakfast or Supper from Trader Joe's. Low Carb. Low Fat & Filling. Weight Watchers Friendly. Vegetarian. Naturally Gluten Free.

This Is Not a Sponsored Post, it's just me, Alanna, sharing a Trader Joe's vegetable product that I like and think my fellow vegetable lovers might too!

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What Is Shakshuka?

Shakshuka [pronounced shack-SHOO-kuh] is a traditional North African and Israeli dish, just peppers and tomatoes slowly simmered then "nested" to cook whole eggs. I make a couple of homemade versions, Shakshuka (Eggs Nested in Summer Vegetables) (when tomatoes are good) and Cabbage & Pepper Chakchoukah (that works year-round). By the way, there are several anglicized spellings of shakshuka, one is chakchoukah, you can see they're similar.

What Is Trader Joe's Shakshuka Starter?

Trader Joe's calls its product a "spiced stew of tomatoes and peppers". It sells for $2 and comes frozen in a plastic bowl and may be heated up either on the stove or in the microwave. One box serves two but "bring your own eggs" the package advises. When I checked out with a box this week, the checkout guy said, "Oh! I had this for breakfast this morning. You'll love it!" The product is a simple vegetable blend, a little bit spicy, definitely acidic with tomatoes, with good flavor and texture. It's good!

The ingredient list is short and not too scary: TOMATOES (TOMATO PUREE, SALT, CITRIC ACID [ACIDIFIER], CALCIUM CHLORIDE), ONIONS, BELL PEPPERS, TOMATO PASTE, OLIVE OIL, GARLIC, CILANTRO, SALT, PAPRIKA, SPICES.

Citric Acid occurs naturally in citrus fruits and appears to be used here for flavoring or a preservative. Calcium Chloride is the only ingredient you wouldn't see on a home cook's ingredient list; it's probably present to prevent ice crystals from forming or to increase salty taste without increasing the actual sodium or perhaps as a thickening agent.

And sodium! I'm paying extra attention to the sodium in commercial foods these days and man, what a salty mess. I'm not sure how anyone on a low-sodium diet who isn't a whole-food cook gets along. So 340mg of sodium might seem like a lot (and it's 4x more than the 80g in my homemade Shakshuka) but it's far less than most prepared food.

More About Shakshuka Starter, from Trader Joe's itself.

Does One Shakshuka Starter Package Really Serve Two?

So many package products seem a little skimpy, serving-wise. And starting out, it seemed the same thing with this shakshuka, that one container would only be enough for one person for one meal.

Wrong! With a couple of eggs, half the container of Starter was not only plenty but really filling. I even put the rest of the Starter back in the fridge for the next day! Someone with a big appetite might eat it all but me, I was happy to split one container two days in a row.

Shakshuka Starter: Totally Recommended!

I really love this stuff! (And I'm not usually a fan of package foods.) Maybe I should try freezing my own one-serving or two-serving containers to have on hand using my homemade shakshuka?

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RECIPE for TRADER JOE'S SHAKSHUKA STARTER

Hands-on time: 5 minutes
Time to table: 10 minutes
Serves 2

Just 2 ingredients!

1 container Trader Joe's Shakshuka Starter
1 or 2 large eggs per person
Salt & pepper, to taste

HEAT THE SHAKSHUKA STARTER Follow the package instructions to heat up the Starter either in the microwave or on the stove.

COOK THE EGGS Fry the eggs, over-easy, sunny-side up, your call.

SERVE Place the Starter in two bowls, top with the eggs. Serve and enjoy!

NUTRITION INFORMATION Per Serving (just the Shakshuka Starter, not including the egg or eggs): 80 Calories; 4g Tot Fat; 1g Sat Fat; 0mg Cholesterol; 340mg Sodium; 11g Carb; 2g Fiber; 6g Sugar; 2g Protein. WEIGHT WATCHERS Old Points 1 & PointsPlus 2 & SmartPoints 3 & Freestyle 2 & myWW green 2 & blue 2 & purple 2

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Looking for healthy new ways to cook vegetables? A Veggie Venture is home to hundreds of super-organized quick, easy and healthful vegetable recipes and the famous asparagus-to-zucchini Alphabet of Vegetables. Join "veggie evangelist" Alanna Kellogg to explore the exciting world of common and not-so-common vegetables, seasonal to staples, savory to sweet, salads to sides, soups to supper, simple to special.

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