You’re always looking for meals that are kid-friendly, healthy, easy to put together, and budget-friendly. We found 17 easy Trader Joe’s recipes to add to your arsenal, which we hacked together using ingredients you can find at Trader Joe’s. All these healthy dinners have been tested (and approved) by both grown-ups and kids. Need more inspo? These TikTok Trader Joe’s recipes are also pretty brilliant.

Beef Bulgogi with Cabbage over Rice

Trader Joe's 15-minute meals beef bulgogie
Trader Joe's

If you haven't tried Trader Joe's beef bulgogi we suggest you change that immediately. You'll find it in the frozen section and we like that you just need to saute it with some water for a few minutes and it is done. Add in the garlicky cabbage or broccoli for some extra veg and serve it over rice. TJs has frozen rice packets that make this whole transaction done in less than 10 minutes. 

Cheesy Beef Birria Tacos

Trader Joe's 15 minute meals beef birria tacos
Trader Joe's

Beef birria is having a moment (consommé, anyone?) and we love this easy shortcut from Trader Joe's. You just have to heat up the meat, warm the tortilla, add a little cheese and top with onion and cilantro. Dinner is ready in 15 minutes. 

Pesto Pasta with Shrimp

Need a Trader Joe's dinner idea? Try shrimp pesto pasta.
Anna Doogan

Pesto is the star of this easy Trader Joe's recipe that will definitely earn a spot in the summer dinner rotation. Mix your favorite cooked pasta with shrimp and garlicky pesto. Add chopped fresh basil and tomato with a sprinkling of grated parmesan for an extra blast of favorite summery flavors.

Lemon Chicken Orzo Soup

Karly Wood

Perfect for both hot summer days or crisp nights, this simple and delicious Lemon Chicken Orzo Soup comes together in just ten minutes. Shred Trader Joe's pre-cooked Lemon Chicken and add to a large stockpot. Toss in two tubs of Mediterranean Orzo Salad and two cartons of chicken broth, bring to a boil and then enjoy with a squeeze of fresh lemon. 

Penne Arrabiata with Sausage & Spinach

Add some extra protein and greens to your pasta routine with this simple recipe incorporating tasty spices. Remove the casing from your fave Trader Joe's Sausage and cook through before adding to a prepared skillet of Penne Arrabiata (or any other frozen pasta if this is too spicy for your fam). Serve on a bed of spinach, or toss in the spinach right before serving to wilt (and camouflage).

Related: The Best Trader Joe’s Food for Your Air Fryer

Pot Sticker Stir Fry

Pot Sticker Stir Fry is a Trader Joe's Recipe
Karly Wood

Forgot to take out your dinner ingredients from the freezer (again)? When it comes to enjoying this pot sticker stir fry it's a non-issue! Just pour a bag of Trader Joe's Chicken Gyoza Potstickers and Stir-Fry Frozen Vegetables into a large skillet (add salt and pepper, if desired) and cook until warmed through. Pour in one up of Trader Joe's Gyoza Dipping Sauce and then enjoy a veggie-packed dinner in ten minutes flat.

Easy Gyros & Mediterranean Salad

Trader Joe's recipe for easy gyros
Karly Wood

Keep it cool and refreshing during the warmer months by whipping up easy gyros. Grab a box of fully cooked Trader Joe's Gyro Slices, naan bread, tomatoes and creamy prepared Tzatziki sauce and pair with a simple Greek salad made with greens, cucumber and balsamic vinegar.

Green Curry Chicken & Fried Rice

Karly Wood

Add a little spice to your dinner routine, and in less than 15 minutes! All it takes is two jars of Trader Joe's Thai Green Curry Simmer Sauce. Prepare a package of Just Grilled Chicken Strips and frozen Vegetable Fried Rice separately. Once the rice is cooked, add both jars of the simmer sauce and chicken to the same skillet and heat until warmed.

Quinoa-Stuffed Peppers

Anna Doogan

For a delicious veggie-centric dinner, stuffed peppers with quinoa and feta are hard to beat. Stuff a variety of peppers with a pre-made quinoa salad, sprinkle with feta and bake until warmed through. You’ll get a bright pop of color, a big boost of vitamins and a whole lot of yumminess with this Trader Joe's recipe.

Related: 26 of the Healthiest Things You Can Buy at Trader Joe’s

Kid-Friendly Curry

Trader Joe's recipes that include Thai curry red sauce
Sara Olsher

Expose your kids to a taste of Thai with this easy recipe. Mix a can of coconut cream (also available in a low-fat version) with a bottle of Trader Joe's Thai Red Curry Sauce and simmer. Cube some of Trader Joe's pre-cooked all-natural chicken breast to throw in the pot, and serve over their three-minute rice. You can also add steamed spinach!

Next-Level Ravioli

Sara Olsher

Trader Joe's has a great selection of ravioli, but topping it with marinara can get old. By adding steamed spinach, peas and melted Boursin cheese, this pumpkin ravioli now has three veggies (and they all taste like cheese!).

Carnitas Salad

The cilantro salad dressing at Trader Joe's is no joke, and it's delicious on more than just salads. Create a filling dinner salad or a tasty lunch by adding their pre-cooked carnitas, Mexican cheese, avocado, salsa, cilantro salad dressing and a small amount of sour cream to a bag of romaine lettuce.

Steak Tacos

need a trader joe's dinner idea? Try tacos!
Anna Doogan

Can’t decide what to have for dinner? A DIY taco bar is a fun and simple crowd-pleaser. While the meat’s cooking, set out tortillas, avocado, shredded cheese, sour cream, salsa, olives and any other toppings you can think of. Then let everyone go to town making their own creation!

Island Soyaki Rice Bowl with Meatballs

Anna Doogan

Taste the flavors of a tropical vacation no matter the time of year with this Trader Joe's recipe. Cook party-size frozen mini meatballs in Island Soyaki marinade, flavored with pineapple juice, garlic and ginger. Serve over cooked rice. Add sautéed red peppers and grilled pineapple chunks, and don’t forget to save a little sauce for drizzling on top.

Related: These Are the Most Popular Trader Joe’s Products, According to Customers

Easy Vegetarian Soft Tacos

Sara Olsher

These tacos can be thrown together in less than five minutes. Pictured below are Guerrero tortillas and Amy's organic refried beans, but Trader Joe's has their own version of both items. Heat the refried beans, then add Trader Joe's Double Roasted Salsa, Mexican cheese, guacamole and chopped spinach.

Scallop Rolls

Scallop rolls are an easy dinner idea
Anna Doogan

Try a twist on the classic lobster roll! Sprinkle scallops with salt and pepper, and saute in butter. Then tuck them into a squishy hot dog bun with some greens and a dollop of mayo or a tangy tartar sauce. You may not actually be lounging at the seashore, but with this recipe, at least you can pretend you are. Perfection.

Chicken Pasta Salad

chicken pasta salad is a Trader Joe's dinner idea
Anna Doogan

This salad is perfect for an easy weeknight meal or a portable option for a picnic or potluck. Plus, it’s equally fantastic served warm or cold! Toss cooked pasta with a jar of Corn and Chile Tomato-Less Salsa, black beans, chopped chicken and a bit of creamy dressing, like the tasty Cilantro. Add a handful of your favorite veggies and shredded or cubed cheese to top it off.

Delicious Pulled Pork Tacos

Sara Olsher

Trader Joe's pulled pork can be made in the microwave in three minutes and makes a super-tasty base for these tacos. Add your favorite toppings, but don't skip the Roasted Tomatillo and Mango Salsa, which adds some tang and spice.

—with additional reporting by Kate Loweth, Anna Doogan, and Karly Wood

 

 

It’s about time toaster ovens got smart. And we think we found the best one out there.

Look, if something is going to dominate this kind of kitchen counter real estate, it better be well worth it. Sure, our old toaster ovens do their jobs. They, you know, toast things. They can reheat pizza and maybe bake a half-dozen cookies. But it pretty much ends there as far as their talents go, so why are we letting them occupy precious counter space if they aren’t going to razzle and dazzle? That space should be reserved for only the best of the best toaster oven. And it better do a lot more than just a little heating dance. We want the whole show. So we did our research to find the best smart toaster oven. And voilà. Tovala.

There’s nothing in the toaster oven rulebook that says they can’t do it all, but we hadn’t met one before now. The Tovala Smart Oven is smart. Really smart. There are QR codes and scanning and more, and we’ll get to all that. Because above all, Tovala makes a seriously delicious meal, fast. Tovala is beyond a toaster oven, beyond a microwave, and uses the kind of technology found in some of the best restaurants. It can steam, bake, broil, air fry, toast, and reheat—all in one appliance. Oh, and most of that is just with a single touch.

What can the best smart toaster oven do?

The Tovala Smart Oven + Tovala Meals = Not Your Average Meal Service

Forget everything you think you know about meal delivery services. Tovala is a whole different level. 

Each chef-created meal is fresh and delivered to you weekly, but that's not all. Your Tovala meals take one minute to prep. No slicing and dicing and cooking; your meal is mostly ready. Then you scan the QR code that comes with each meal with the scanner on the Tovala oven and it accesses the perfect cook cycle via WiFi. In 20 minutes or less, you're ready to eat. And don't worry—the Tovala Smart Oven will let the phone app know it's time to dig in, so you can sit back and relax. What are you eating?

Panko Herb Crusted Trout. Sweet Potato and Black Bean Flautas. Thai-Inspired Green Curry Shrimp. Smoky Coffee-Rubbed Pork Chops. Deconstructed Southwestern Chicken Pot Pie. Salads, desserts, and appetizers. This is anything but a TV dinner (don't even joke about that). This is real food that tastes like a restaurant and is in front of you without even having to preheat. 

Starting at $9.99/meal, you can have 4-16 meals delivered each week. Skip or adjust anytime.

Tovala Recognizes 1000+ Name Brand Groceries

You're not limited to Tovala meals (although it wouldn't bother us if we were). Scan the barcode of your favorite pantry staples and frozen foods and you're off! Brands like Pillsbury, Eggo, ORE IDA, Kashi, Totino's, Amy's, and more are all recognized by the Tovala Oven. You can cook up your most-loved meals and snacks without ever preheating or even reading directions!

Tovala Comes with 100s of Presets

Think of the Tovala app as your cooking buddy. When you feel like whipping up a baked ribeye steak, bacon, roasted broccoli, baked oatmeal, just follow a few simple steps in the app, then press "cook" to create chef-perfected sides, meals, and snacks. 

Tovala Toasts & Preheats, Too

Oh, and don't forget. Tovala also does the classic toaster oven things, but with a twist. Steam, bake, broil, toast, and reheat leftovers to their former glory with one touch. The Tovala Toaster Oven cycles through chef-perfected cooking methods to make sure everything that comes out of it has been prepared in the best way possible. 

Tovala is the only system of smart oven, app, and meals that makes cooking as easy as scanning a QR code. And Tovala is so confident (as they should be, in our opinion) that you’ll love it that they let you try it out for 100 days. If you don’t love it, send it back. For free.

Right now, get the Tovala Smart Oven for $99 (a $299 value) when you order meals 6 times. That’s less than most smart toaster ovens on the market today for one that does so much more. When your friends in 2023 ask if you’ve heard of the Tovala Smart Oven that’s taken social media by storm, you can know you’re ahead of the trend that’ll never be out of style!

If you buy something from the links in this article, we may earn affiliate commission or compensation. Prices and availability reflect the time of publication.

All images courtesy of Tovala.

 

 

 

Bored with your current dinner faves? Take a trip to Thailand! Thai cuisine is very kid-friendly with lots of rice, noodles and meat dishes that make it easy to incorporate newer flavors like sweet chili and curry. Keep scrolling to find simple Thai food recipes the entire family will enjoy (and that whip up in a flash).

Pad Kee Mao

Gimme Some Oven

This drunken noodle recipe from Gimme Some Oven is definitely family friendly, despite the name. Made without alcohol, the noodle-meat-veggie dish is polished off with a delicious sauce made with Thai basil, giving it that extra kick. 

Thai Garlic Fried Shrimp

Christie at Home

Quick dinner to the rescue! Less spicy than other versions, this Thai garlic fried shrimp from Christie at Home comes together in just 30 minutes and uses amazing aromatics like sesame oil and green onions.

Thai Mango Sweet Sticky Rice

Joyous Apron

Get ready for your kids to devour this dish! Joyous Apron has a delicious recipe that combines sticky rice, coconut sauce and fresh mango into this plate-licking dessert.

Thai Sweet Chili Peanut Noodles

Rasa Malaysia

It takes just four ingredients and 15 minutes to get this recipe from Rasa Malaysia on the table. Even better? You can use American ingredients you probably already have on hand, like spaghetti noodles!

Thai Basil Pork

Leite's Culinaria

Fifteen minutes for dinner? Pass the pork, please! Leite's Culinaria has an uber easy that uses ground pork, chili, Thai basil and fish sauce that results in a takeout-worthy dish.

Vegetarian Thai Green Curry

Chelsea's Messy Apron

You can skip the meat in this chick pea-based curry dish from Chelsea's Messy Apron. Made with snow peas and butternut squash that are easily concealed under warm green curry, your kids will hardly realize they're racking up veggie points.

Pad Thai

Feasting at Home

Pad Thai has appeared on a "World's 50 Best Foods" list and with good reason: it's easy, flavorful and super kid friendly. This easy version from Feasting at Home comes together in 15 minutes of cook time and even uses ingredients you can find at American grocers.

Thai Fried Rice

A Spicy Perspective

Show us a kiddo who doesn't love fried rice! This tasty recipe from A Spicy Perspective brings together classic fried rice ingredients like egg and green onion, with a splash of curry to make it totally Thai.

Chicken Massaman Curry

Family Favorite Recipes

If you family is ready to dig into red curry, Chicken Massaman is the place to start. Favorite Family Recipes shares a mild yet savory recipe using massaman curry paste, chicken and veggies that kids won't be able to turn down.

 

Gai Yang

Rasa Malaysia

Perfect for summer, Thai BBQ Chicken is a crowd pleaser and a nice twist on traditional chicken dishes. Rasa Malaysia's recipe uses chicken wings, sweet chili sauce, sriracha and cilantro resulting in both a sweet and savory meal that can easily be adjusted for picky palates. 

Thai Iced Tea

Hungry Huy

No ice tea compares to this rich, Thai version. Hungry Huy shares a recipe that uses steeped tea, sweetened condensed milk and crushed ice that rivals any you'd find in a restaurant.

Banana Roti

Hot Thai Kitchen

Let's hear it for Thai Banana Pancakes! This street vendor fave requires a little bit of prep work, but the kids will be begging you to whip up this recipe from Hot Thai Kitchen forever after devouring their first bite.

––Karly Wood

 

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Do your New Year’s resolutions include eating more healthy family dinners? After a season of indulging in endless quarantine snacking and cookie and banana bread baking, it’s time to kick off 2021 with some healthy takeout from local restaurants. Healthy family meals are just a call or click away. Read on for how to make healthy eating at home a snap!

Flower Child

Flower Child

Eat the rainbow and capture that sunshine state-of-mind with a to-go order from Flower Child in Del Mar. This delicious and veggie-centric menu includes tasty favorites like the Glow Bowl with sweet potato noodle, Vegan Massaman Curry, Turkey Sausage & Zucchini Lasagna and fresh salads with organic ingredients. Have a hungry crew to feed? Opt for their Family Pack Bundle with family-sized protein, choice of 2 sides and a large chopped vegetable salad. Keto, gluten-free, vegetarian and a healthy kids' menu are all available.

Good to know: Download the Flower Child app and make ordering quick and easy for stress-free dinnertime.

Online: iamaflowerchild.com

Juice Alchemy

Juice Alchemy via Yelp

Get your juice bar fix and make the kids happy with a pick-up order from Juice Alchemy. This family-owned business serves up juices, smoothies and Acai Bowls along with feel-good fare like the fully-loaded Power Toast and Alchemy Club Sandwich. Online ordering and pick-up is available until 2 p.m.

Online: juice-alchemy.square.site

The Henry

The Henry via Yelp

Trade your regular Taco Tuesday for 25% off Takeout Tuesday at The Henry in Coronado (use code Tuesday25). Opt for entrees like the Harvest Bowl with tasty ingredients like melted sweet potato, caramelized cauliflower, Marcona almond pesto and cashew harissa. Or feed the whole family with The Henry's Rotisserie Chicken Family Meal for $29 (takeout only), which includes a large Caesar salad and roasted winter vegetables.

Online: thehenryrestaurant.com

Our Green Affair

Jacqueline G. via Yelp

Newly opened Our Green Affair in Pacific Beach is putting a fun spin on salads, loaded sweet potatoes and healthy bowls. Check out the Taco 'Bout Us with roasted salmon, UniCorn with soy chorizo and veggies or the Thai Me Up salad with roasted chicken, Thai-inspired toppings and a spicy cashew dressing. Have a picky eater in your crew? No problem, Our Green Affair also offers a build-your-own option. Online ordering and pick-up is available.

Online: ourgreenaffair.com

Tahini Street Food

Tahini via Yelp

Authentic Middle-Eastern street food is served up fresh and tasty at Tahini. Say good-bye to bland cheese sticks and introduce your future foodie to fresh-made Halloumi Cheese stix and Tahini's coveted fresh pita bread, baked daily without preservatives. Order online and choose falafel, chicken or steak shawarma on pita, bowl or salad. Delivery available via UberEats, GrubHub and others.

Good to know: You can also feel good about their commitment to the environment. Tahini uses eco-friendly, biodegradable packaging for to-go orders.

Online: tahinistreetfood.com

Sun Basket

Sun Basket

Say adios to grocery shopping and menu planning and let Sun Basket do the heavy lifting for dinnertime! Created by chefs and filled with healthy, organic ingredients, dinner will be ready to go in 6 minutes or less with their Fresh & Ready meals. A stress-saver for busy weeknights, these meals feature a complete dinner that is pre-cooked and packaged with no additional prep required.

Have a little more time on the weekends? Get the kids in on the dinnertime action with their Classic Meal Kits, which include pre-measured ingredients for meals ready in 15-40 minutes. Sun Basket meals can be tailored to your family's nutrition needs, including vegetarian, paleo, gluten-free and Quick & Easy, perfect for busy parents.

Order online: sunbasket.com 

The Greenspot Salad Company

Greenspot Salad Co. via Yelp

Mealtime is served up healthy and fast from Greenspot Salad Company with three locations around San Diego. Choose between superfood salads, wraps, flatbreads and bowls. The kids' menu includes healthy options like the Turkey Cheese Roll-Up on a whole-wheat tortilla with kids' sized salad or veggie dippers. Online ordering, delivery, takeout and curbside pick-up options make healthy family meals a breeze.

Online: greenspotsalad.com

Plumeria Vegetarian

Jeff R. via Yelp

Give your usual Thai takeout a vegetarian (or vegan!) spin at Plumeria Vegetarian in University Heights. Your most carnivorous family members won't miss the meat with satisfying flavors in Thai favorites like Green Curry, Pad Thai and mock "chicken" satay. Entrees are available with tofu, vegetables or vegan duck, vegan chicken or vegan beef. Plumeria Vegetarian is MSG-free and uses organic, non-GMO and gluten free tofu locally produced by San Diego Soy Company.

Online: myplumeria.com

Ranch 45

Ranch 45

When choosing meat as part of your family's healthy lifestyle, opt for high-quality and humanely raised. For this farm-to-fork philosophy, look no further than local purveyor Ranch 45 in Solana Beach. Taking care to know the source of their foods, Ranch 45 sells butcher boxes of Brandt Beef as well as mouthwatering meals prepared in their restaurant. Breakfast and lunch is served daily until 4 p.m. and dinner is available Thurs.-Sat. Order online for pick-up or delivery via Door Dash.

Online: ranch45.com

––Kerry Cushman

featured image via iStock

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