When Is Ube Season At Trader Joe's?

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Whether you're a first-time Trader Joe's shopper or a practiced veteran, the seasonal offerings at the popular retailer are always anticipated and beloved. From the one TJ's fall item we simply can't pass up (Pumpkin Spice Mini Sheet Cake), to Jingle Jangle, the sweet snack mix that makes an appearance at the holidays, Trader Joe's does limited-time items right. And now, the adored ube products are once again upon us. 

Ube (pronounced "ooo-beh"), for the uninitiated, is a bright purple yam indigenous to the Philippines. Its harvest time is June and December, and Trader Joe's brings out ube products in late April or May, through late June or early July. Ube's nutty, sweet profile and vibrant color lends itself perfectly to desserts. Filipinos create all kinds of decadent sweets with ube, including halaya jam (made with mashed ube, coconut milk, and butter or condensed milk), a sponge cake called ube macapuno, and halo-halo, a popular shaved ice treat beloved by the late Anthony Bourdain. 

What you need to know about baking with ube is that you really can't. It's nearly impossible to find fresh ube in the United States, but the yam can be found in the form of powder, jam that is pre-made from mashed ubes, or ube extract. That's for the bakers. For a lot of us, Trader Joe's is our go-to for seasonal ube treats, and there's no shortage of ube products once they begin to make their way onto shelves. On Facebook, Soozie the Foodie alerted us to the beginning of TJ's ube season on May 4, 2025, with some vibrant purple pictures and the declaration "ube season is back."

Before we launch into the ube selection available at Trader Joe's, remember that these goodies are available for a limited time only, and inventory may vary by location. Call your local Trader Joe's and ask what ube products it has on the shelves. For now, at least, the selection of treats has just started to come in, and some will continue to make their way onto store shelves throughout the spring and summer.

Let's start with the popular Ube Tea Cookies. These little balls of goodness are a shortbread-based ube cookie dusted with powdered sugar. Next, you'll find the Ube Joe-Joe's, a vanilla-flavored sandwich cookie with ube creme. And you can actually grab these Joe-Joe's from Amazon if you can't make it to a TJ's. Also available: Ube Mochi Pancake and Waffle Mix, Ube Pretzels, Ube Spread (an ube puree with coconut cream, butter, and cream), and Ube Ice Cream, the color of which is reminiscent of a creamy blackberry or boysenberry ice cream. 

Some folks on social media have been concerned about the ice cream making a comeback, as several stores don't have it yet. Instagram user @traderjoesobsessed posted about the ice cream on May 15, 2025, saying, "Welcome back UBE Ice Cream! It's really good with the tea cookies." If you have a sweet tooth (and these treats are all very sweet) and you're looking for the latest seasonal treasure at Trader Joe's, it might be time to jump on the ube bandwagon.