I shopped, I brought
home, I cooked, I photographed. And you'd like to know, wouldn't you? What I thought of Trader Joe's new product:
Mexican-style chili One Pot Sauce. ("Just add Meat or Chicken" - isn't chicken "meat"? Just
curious.)
Well, it was o.k. Maybe I'm not a big fan of Mexican-style chili. Maybe... I don't get the need for this product. I sautéed my ground turkey (completely violating the suggestions of beef or chicken), I added in a bit of chipotle pepper for extra spice, I stirred in the cup of water and kidney beans on cue. I even added the optional corn (though not canned corn! ick. I used frozen).
It did taste a bit like a classic mole, with overtones of chocolate and coffee. It was a nice medium-high amount of heat, and pleasantly front-of-palate. But the sauce bored me a little, I expected more somehow... more nuance, more smokiness, more salt maybe.
I ate two servings and feel very good about it - I made my Mexican-style chili very healthy, what with the corn and the kidney beans and the broccoli I snuck in there (it's hard to get my husband to eat his vegetables some days). We served it with flour tortillas, sour cream and chipotle salsa - another new product. I'd suggest sticking with the chipotle salsa and skipping the one-pot sauce. Maybe some cumin, some paprika, some heat from cayenne or chipotle, a little tomato paste... and save your money for a bottle of wine.
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