The Trader Joe’s Find I Always Keep in My Freezer

This Trader Joe’s freezer find is one of the easiest ways to add protein to meals. Here’s why I love the pre-cooked chicken and how I use it.

Outside view of a Trader Joe's storefront — Simply Recipes / Adobe Stock

I wish I had endless extra hours in the week to luxuriously grocery shop, then flick on the stove to leisurely cook through the night while sipping several glasses of wine and listen to a Minnie Riperton record. In reality, however, I barely have five minutes.

While I live for new pasta recipes to work into my regular rotation, love a good steak and potatoes situation, and see the therapeutic benefit of baking cookies from scratch (and eating them right from the oven), I've never enjoyed cooking chicken—ever.

Of course, I still do it—mostly because I like eating it—and, boy, did I feel like a Viking warrior when I learned how to spatchcock a whole one with my bare hands. But unlike desserts, which elevate basic ingredients, chicken just turns into the cooked version of the same thing you started with. Just like there's no need to churn your own butter if there's already packaged butter at the store, the same could be said of a bird, right?

A bag of Trader Joe's grilled chicken strips on an illustrated background — Simply Recipes / Trader Joe's

Why I Love Trader Joe’s Grilled Chicken Strips

For those of us feeling the weekday time crunch, Trader Joe's has gifted us with 16 ounces of ready-when-you-are, grate-marked grilled chicken for $8.99 that can be microwaved in minutes. Stock a few bags in the freezer and never worry about best-buy dates on a package of chicken again.

The fully-cooked frozen Trader Joe's Grilled Chicken Strips come pre-chopped, lightly seasoned with salt, pepper, and garlic, and are basically ready to go straight outta the bag with a little heat). They make quick chicken tacos, a BBQ chicken burrito bowl, an easy chicken salad—anything that calls for boneless, skinless chicken breast.

For a protein-packed breakfast, I’ll reheat the chicken strips with some bacon in a single skillet, chop them up, and fold them into scrambled eggs with a little shredded cheese. Or, for an easy dinner, I’ll simmer the strips in Trader Joe's Tikka Masala Sauce with broccoli florets and serve over jasmine rice with TJ's tandoori naan. Other than drive-through nuggets, there’s truly no easier chicken to prep.

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