10 Discontinued Trader Joe's Frozen Foods Shoppers Still Miss

If there are two things that Trader Joe's is known for, it has to be its frozen selection and its tendency to discontinue food items. It only makes sense, then, that there are a whole slew of retired Trader Joe's foods — many of which are frozen items — that shoppers still miss. We've done some digging to uncover some of the most beloved of these items so we can all look back fondly on them. Will they ever come back some day? We're not sure, but we hope they do.

Whether you still dream of the recently defunct cioppino seafood stew or you're more of a Trader Joe's frozen dessert lover, there's a good chance that at least one of your old favorites will be on this list. Until you find new favorites in Trader Joe's frozen section, the memories of these treats will have to sustain you. Let's take a closer look at the discontinued frozen items from Trader Joe's that we still dream about.

There are so many different pizza toppings to choose from. Although pepperoni and cheese may be among the most popular, one of our all-time favorite fresh toppings is arugula. It adds a subtle pepperiness to your pie, and it's a good way to get in some extra greens without having to make a separate side salad. That's why we were such big fans of Trader Joe's now-discontinued arugula pizza. Admittedly, it wasn't topped with fresh arugula like you may find at some pizza joints. Still, that pop of pepperiness was pronounced and deeply delicious.

This pizza was discontinued back in 2022, but we still miss it today. If you want to recreate these same flavors, choose another one of Trader Joe's frozen pizzas and put some fresh arugula on top. It's not exactly the same thing, but hopefully it will sate your arugula pizza cravings in this TJ's product's absence.

If you're a big seafood person, then there's a good chance you tried Trader Joe's Cioppino Seafood Stew at one point. Cioppino is an Italian-American dish that features various types of seafood in a savory, tomatoey broth. Of course, it's at its most delicious when it's fresh, but it can be tricky and time consuming to make a classic cioppino from scratch. That's why so many loved that TJ's offered this frozen version of the dish. It was made of scallops, clams, and shrimp bathed in salty broth, and you could make the dish both in the microwave or on the stovetop.

It appears to have left the Trader Joe's frozen section a while back, but some have taken to the internet relatively recently to lament the disappearance of this TJ's favorite, saying that they miss it. This seemed like one of Trader Joe's more niche frozen items, so we hope that someday it will make a reappearance.

Let's be honest: Trader Joe's doesn't always deliver when it comes to non-American dishes. However, there are some exceptions, and the once-beloved Aloo Chaat Kati Pouches were one of them. These crispy pastries were stuffed with a vegetarian combo of chickpeas, potatoes, and chaat masala and came with a tangy tamarind chutney. They made an excellent easy-to-prepare lunch or dinner, especially on those nights when you really didn't feel like cooking anyway.

But, alas, this TJ's favorite has since left the store's frozen section. It was discontinued back in 2022, and ever since, fans have taken to the internet to complain about the fact that it's no longer available and inquire about where they can find a similar product. Of course, Trader Joe's has many other Indian and Indian-inspired dishes to check out in the frozen section, but this was undoubtedly one of the best. We suspect customers will continue to miss it until it hopefully, someday, makes a return.

There was a time when a backyard barbecue could be enhanced by an infusion of Trader Joe's chile lime chicken burgers. This frozen product from Trader Joe's was ideal when you didn't want to make chicken burgers from scratch but wanted to indulge in something with significantly more flavor than your average barbecue meat. As the name of the product suggests, these chicken burgers featured a bold, bracing acidity that made them taste refreshing while still maintaining their heartiness. Add in that note of chile for some added complexity, and it's no surprise that this was an incredibly popular frozen item from the grocery chain. They were delicious on burger buns, of course, but they were just as tasty on their own, especially since they had a tender, chicken breast-like texture.

This wasn't a simple discontinuation, though. These burgers were actually recalled in 2021 because they might have contained pieces of bone. We're glad we never had one of the bone-y burgers, but we're still bummed that this frozen option is no longer available.

Trader Joe's boasts a ton of frozen desserts, but there's one that we just can't forget about, even though it's been out of stores for quite some time. It's the Speculoos Cookie Butter Cheesecake Bites, and it's a TJ's sweet treat that customers miss dearly. It was the best of both worlds: creamy, rich Speculoos butter with a dense cheesecake. Although it sounds like it could've been too sweet, that's not the case at all — it was a surprisingly well-balanced dessert.

These cheesecake bites have been missing from the Trader Joe's lineup for a while, but there are still a lot of customers that dream of their return. Some people even say that they're the reason they started going to Trader Joe's regularly in the first place. Since they've been gone for so long, we doubt that they'll be making a comeback, but at least we have our cookie butter-spiked memories.

If you don't eat meat, meeting your daily protein needs can sometimes feel like a challenge, especially if you're training or otherwise trying to get a significant boost of the macronutrient. Beans, tempeh, and tofu are probably your go-tos on the protein front, but what about when you're craving a burger? Trader Joe's attempted to beat out the Impossible and Beyond burgers by creating its very own Hi-Protein veggie burger. This burger lacked soy and instead contained pea protein, which is a huge plus for those who either can't eat soy or choose not to.

Slews of Redditors took to the internet to express their sadness and disapproval that this menu item was removed from Trader Joe's frozen section. Some have even written to the company to ask that it revives the long-lost veggie staple. Alas, we have not seen it resurface yet, but we can still hold out hope that it will make a reappearance someday.

Another vegetarian-friendly treat that we couldn't get enough of while it was still stocked in Trader Joe's stores across the country was the veggie corn dogs. This was another extremely popular option, probably because corn dog options are limited when you don't eat meat. The hot dog inside actually had a decent snap to it, and the softness but denseness of the breading made them that much more appealing. It seems like we're not the only ones who miss this product, though — there's even a Change.org petition begging the store to bring them back. At the time of writing, it has 530 signatures.

However, you may be able to find some alternatives at different stores. Some Reddit users claim that Sprouts offers a similar product, while others suggest that customers check out Field Roast's vegetarian offerings. Sure, they're not exactly the same thing, but maybe you can relive your Trader Joe's vegetarian glory days by seeking out one of these replacements.

There's nothing like a waffle topped with some bananas for a sweet breakfast, brunch, or dessert. But at one point in time, Trader Joe's simplified the recipe, negating the need for fresh bananas to get that distinct banana-forward flavor profile. The chain grocer's banana waffles were wildly popular for some time and were available in the freezer section of the store from sometime in the mid-2000s until 2009. At that point, they disappeared, but there are still customers who mourn the fact that they're gone.

TJ's customers have taken to Reddit to discuss just how much they miss these frozen waffles. Some had already forgotten about them, since it's been so long since they were in stores. Well we haven't forgotten about you, Trader Joe's banana waffles, and we still hold out (probably useless) hope that they'll come back someday. Until then, we're back to slicing our own bananas to top our waffles with.

Lasagna is one of those dishes that we always come back to, but making it from scratch can be a lengthy process. If you're in the mood for the delicious layered pasta dish but you don't want to go through the hassle of making it from scratch, a frozen option is probably your next best choice. And at one point, in the Trader Joe's freezer section, you could find a frozen lasagna dish that we still think about to this day. The chain's spinach lasagna contained ricotta and spinach, of course, in addition to tomato sauce. The result was a veggie-friendly, sort-of healthy-feeling version of the dish you know and love.

Unfortunately, though, the spinach lasagna left store shelves some time around 2021. In the years since, though, it's been missed by TJ's fans. One Reddit poster even said that it was one of their favorite discontinued products from the chain.

Eggplant is one of those ingredients that's really, really easy to mess up. Cook it wrong, and you'll have a soggy mess of seeds and stringy pulp. And if you're trying to make eggplant Parmesan, that's definitely not the vibe you're going for. That's why Trader Joe's eggplant cutlets were so beloved. It was an easy way to get all the deliciousness of eggplant parmesan without having to do quite as much work. They were already pre-breaded, so all you really had to do was throw them in the oven or the air fryer to get them nice and crispy.

But by 2019, they had made their exit from Trader Joe's frozen section, to the dismay of those who loved the ease of frozen eggplant parm. On a Facebook page about discontinued Trader Joe's products, several people mentioned these eggplant cutlets as one of the dishes they miss most and urged the company to bring them back.