Trader Joe’sfrozen sectionmagnetizes shoppers for a reason.
One section with a steady crowd: the frozen pastas.
Most can be simply heated in the microwave or quickly tossed into a warm skillet on the stove.
Photo: Shutterstock. Design: Eat This, Not That!
Here’s how all nine ranked, from my least favorite to the best.
Gnocchi Alla Sorrentina
This frozen bag of pasta is simply gnocchi with tomato sauce and mozzarella.
It’s not the worst frozen pasta out there, per se, but it’s a miss.
Melissa Kravitz Hoeffner for Eat This, Not That!
To be fair, maybe my expectations were too high, because this frozen pasta was full-on disappointing.
Some of the cheese-filled fiocchetti in the bag had also broken, which made the dish slightly less attractive.
Good in concept, bad in execution.
Melissa Kravitz Hoeffner for Eat This, Not That!
The frozen spaghetti clusters did not defrost easily, and the creamy sauce was extremely peppery.
And parts of it were good.
The greens didn’t wilt too much and the rigatoni was nicely al dente.
Melissa Kravitz Hoeffner for Eat This, Not That!
Some garlic and chili flakes helped flavor this dish, but it was far from excellent.
Mushroom Ravioli
This is the “Dance: 10, Looks Three” of frozen pastas.
Taste-wise, this dish was great!
Melissa Kravitz Hoeffner for Eat This, Not That!
The ravioli was firm on the outside and creamy with cheese on the inside.
The sauce itself had a bold mushroom flavor, plus pieces of mushroom throughout.
Still, the slogan on the box appealed to me, so I grabbed this microwaveable tray of pasta.
Melissa Kravitz Hoeffner for Eat This, Not That!
Taste-wise, this was pretty good.
The pasta had a nice bite and the cheese clung to all the elbow noodles.
The cheese sauce tasted cheddar-forward and not too processed, which I liked.
Melissa Kravitz Hoeffner for Eat This, Not That!
Fettuccine Alfredo
Alfredo stan checking in and this was pretty good!
The noodles were thick and glossy, easily coated with the Alfredo sauce that had a bit of funk.
It was satisfyingly creamy and easy to eat.
Melissa Kravitz Hoeffner for Eat This, Not That!
The clusters of fettuccine unraveled better while reheating than the spaghetti in the cacio e pepe.
The flavor was also neutral enough to mix in frozen peas or other veggies or protein.
Would definitely try this again as a base for a heartier meal.
Melissa Kravitz Hoeffner for Eat This, Not That!
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Gnocchi Gorgonzola
This pasta slapped.
It was chewy, It was super cheesy and way too easy to eat.
I loved how the mild gorgonzola flavor could also lend itself to so many savory mix-ins.
Melissa Kravitz Hoeffner for Eat This, Not That!
I added shredded kale to my leftovers, which soaked up the extra sauce nicely.
Any greens,or protein would work so well with this for a quick meal.
