8 Trader Joe's Chocolate Covered Treats To Buy And 5 To Leave On Shelves

Trader Joe's has its fair share of excellent chocolate bars and other chocolate treats for the most chocolate-inclined shoppers at the store to choose from. But if you're really trying to get a better look at Trader Joe's chocolate, you shouldn't overlook the brand's proliferation of chocolate covered treats. Whether you want something classic like a chocolate covered almond or you'd prefer to check out the more esoteric of Trader Joe's chocolate covered products — like chocolate covered crunchy corn kernels — this review can be your guide. I've tasted my way through 13 of Trader Joe's chocolate covered treats to give you a better idea of which I think you should buy, and which you can feel okay about skipping.

I looked for a few different elements in these chocolate covered products. First of all, I thought about flavor balance — I prioritized snacks with a more balanced sweetness over ones that tasted too sugary for my palate. I also paid attention to texture, preferring crunchiness or gooeyness depending on the product. Although you might have different criteria for what makes a good chocolate covered snack, these descriptions will hopefully point you in the direction of a product that you'll enjoy from the first bite to the very last.

Can't decide between milk and dark chocolate covered almonds? That might be a problem at a lot of grocery stores, but not at Trader Joe's, since this chain sells Premium Milk and Dark Chocolate Covered Almonds – all mixed together in one container. It seems like you get a roughly equal amount of each variety, so both the milk and dark chocolate lovers in your house will be happy. I prefer dark chocolate and found myself gravitating toward them here. However, even the milk chocolate didn't taste too sweet. Although there's a pretty thick layer of chocolate on the nut's exterior, the almond flavor itself was quite strong and held up to all that chocolate.

I also appreciate that these nuts are especially crunchy, with the same texture you'd expect from a standard almond. That combination of crunchy nut with a soft, decadent chocolate shell makes for a really pleasant bite. It's true that there are more interesting chocolate covered products to check out at Trader Joe's, but the classics — like good-quality chocolate covered almonds — are what I find myself going back to again and again.

I like chocolate covered nuts generally, but I have to admit that some nuts take to chocolate better than others. Pistachios might just be the most elite nut to pair with chocolate, though. The combination of green, fresh nuts with the richness and intensity of dark chocolate in Trader Joe's Dark Chocolate Covered Pistachios is a match made in heaven. The fact that the nuts are roasted gives them a nice, nutty complexity, and the salt plays well with the sweetness of the chocolate, creating the ideal flavor balance. But since we're working with dark chocolate here, you're not getting too much sweetness at all. That's why this snack is the perfect option for those who want a hint of chocolate without overwhelming their palates with sweetness.

Here, too, you get a nice texture from the nuts. I don't think they're quite as crunchy as the almonds featured on this list, but that only makes sense: Pistachios generally have a softer texture to them. Instead, they have a crumbliness that is held together by that thin layer of chocolate on the outside. Give these pistachios a try, and you may never want to settle for another kind of chocolate covered nut again. They also happen to be one of our all-time favorite party snacks.

I was immediately drawn to the illustration of the Dark Chocolate Covered Honey Grahams with Sea Salt on the front of the bag when I picked them up. It depicted them with a really generous sprinkling of sea salt. The saltiness appealed to me most because otherwise it just seemed like a basic, chocolate covered cookie. But add that salt into the mix, and I was prepared for a salty-sweet flavor combo that could keep me snacking all evening. However, when I opened the bag, I discovered that the chocolate covered honey grahams didn't have that much salt on them at all. While you could taste a hint of saltiness after taking a bite, the crystals weren't even visible on top of the cookies once I took them out of the bag.

Overall, these dark chocolate covered honey grahams are just okay. The graham cracker squares are a bit too sweet for my taste, but not overwhelmingly so. The thin layer of dark chocolate covering them is pleasant enough but otherwise unremarkable. These things taste like just about any other generic chocolate-covered cookie on store shelves, so I wouldn't suggest going out of your way to snag them from Trader Joe's.

Out of all of the chocolate covered treats on this list, the Trader Joe's Dark Chocolate Covered Crunchy Corn Kernels is the best in my book. The corn kernels are exceptionally crunchy, offering the absolute perfect texture for snacking. They have a subtle saltiness that pairs well with the slightly bitter dark chocolate, but it's that pronounced corn flavor that tastes so delicious when covered in a layer of chocolate. It's complex, earthy, and sweet in a way that feels complementary, not cloying.

I particularly love this Trader Joe's chocolate covered treat because it's not something you can find everywhere. Chocolate covered fruit and nuts abound, with countless companies selling copies of one another's products. But this is a more niche product that you probably won't find at many mainstream grocery stores beyond Trader Joe's. If you love crunchy snacks that walk the line between savory and sweet, look no further than this fun option.

What exactly are Trader Joe's Dark Chocolate Covered Powerberries, you ask? That's a great question. Actually, they're not berries at all. Instead, you'll find what the brand describes as "fruit juice pieces" in the pouch, which are made with a mixture of açaí, pomegranate, blueberry, and cranberry juices — a sweet and tart filling for this chocolate covered snack. While the idea of this product may sound nice, I didn't find it very enjoyable. Although I got a burst of acidity in the juicy center of the snack, it still has enough sugar to feel too sweet and overall unbalanced. That thick layer of dark chocolate on each piece isn't bitter enough to counteract the sweetness of the interior.

To make matters worse, I found the juicy insides of these treats quite gritty, which is a texture I didn't really expect. Maybe it's from all that sugar, but regardless, the textural result isn't pleasant. When you consider the fact that you can find actual chocolate covered fruit at Trader Joe's, it doesn't seem worth it to buy this less natural-tasting product.

The Milk Chocolate Covered Gummy Bears at Trader Joe's might be one of my favorite candies ever. Before I tried them, I didn't realize that the combination of chewy gummies and sweet milk chocolate could be so delicious. But upon taking my first bite, I was instantly hooked. You get a subtle, fruity flavor from each gummy bear. That flavor isn't the star of the show, but it provides a sweet and somewhat tart base for each piece of candy. It's the layer of milk chocolate on each gummy that really transforms the snack into something special. The chocolate is nice and smooth, which melds well with the bounciness of the gummy — this combination of textures is both unexpected and deeply delicious.

Even though this is definitely one of the sweeter options on the list, I still think it's a balanced sweetness that makes for a tasty treat. Those fruity notes are complemented by the sweetness of the chocolate, and since it comes in a pretty thin layer, you're not inundated with sugar from the chocolate itself. If you prize interesting textures in your snacks, then this is absolutely worth a try.

Generally, I'm a fan of chocolate covered nuts — I think that the combination of roasted, salted nuts in particular works well with a thin layer of chocolate on top. That being said, I'm not a big fan of Trader Joe's Dark Chocolate Covered Cashews, and I certainly won't be buying them again. The main issue here is the lack of crunch from the nuts. On my first bite of this snack, I actually thought I'd gotten a piece without a nut in it at all. Instead of offering the crunchiness you'd expect from cashews, I instead found a soft, brittle nut inside the thick layer of chocolate. Not only did it lack crunch, but I didn't really taste its flavor. Instead, the chocolate was the star of the show, leaving the treat feeling unbalanced in both texture and flavor.

I think this problem comes down to the fact that these cashews are also covered in a coating of what Trader Joe's describes as "sweet caramel confectionary coating." This gives the snack an extra layer of sweetness it doesn't need, and it seems to make the whole thing softer as well. For that reason, I wouldn't suggest buying these from TJ's.

Another unique Trader Joe's chocolate covered treat is the brand's Milk Chocolate Covered Honeycomb Candy. Before trying the treat, I didn't think I would enjoy it much. First of all, it starts with milk chocolate, which isn't as good as dark chocolate in my mind, because it lacks that bitter, balancing edge. The honeycomb candy base also sounded really sweet to me, so I didn't imagine that these two sugary ingredients would taste very good paired together. I was completely wrong, though. 

The extra crunchy, airy base makes for a surprisingly light base to the treat. It produces the most lovely, audible crisp, and although it definitely is sweet, it has an unexpected subtlety to it. Yes, it tastes like honey, but the flavor is dominated by the coating of milk chocolate.

This milk chocolate is beautifully rich and creamy, with a milky flavor that pairs exceptionally well with the honey, caramelized candy base. This is another treat you can't usually find everywhere — besides this Trader Joe's option, you'd probably have to seek out this sort of candy at a specialty retailer. That, along with its incredible texture, makes it absolutely worth trying in my book.

I love cherries, and I adore dark chocolate, so I was more than a little excited to check out these Trader Joe's Dark Chocolate Covered Cherries. Although they're not bad, they're not one of my top chocolate covered treat picks at the popular retailer. This is largely because it ends up being incredibly sweet. Although I'd hoped to get a decent amount of tartness and acidity from the dried cherries, I didn't find that at all. Instead, the sweetness is intense, with a more muted flavor than I'd hoped for. To make matters worse, the super-sweet cherries are encased in a thick layer of dark chocolate. Yes, this chocolate adds a decent note of bitterness to counteract the fruit's sweetness, but ultimately, it's just not enough.

Another issue with this product? The cherries are weirdly soft and soggy, without the more dried, chewy texture I'd expect of them. Combined with that wall of chocolate, the result isn't that enjoyable on the texture front. While the idea is decent, the execution doesn't quite hit the mark for me. If you're looking for chocolate covered fruit from Trader Joe's that has a better ratio of chocolate to fruit, you might want to try the brand's Gone Berry Crazy chocolate covered strawberry pieces instead.

As someone who prefers a not-too-sweet treat, I'm usually not a huge fan of caramel. I find it way too sugary, often without any other elements to balance it out. A lot of the time, I also think caramel is too hard, with a texture that makes it easy to get it stuck in your teeth. However, I have to admit that I actually really like Trader Joe's Dark Chocolate Covered Caramels. The caramel itself is supremely soft, with an easily biteable texture that's almost buttery. That texture makes biting into a piece of this candy feel like a bit of a luxurious experience. There's also a lovely saltiness to the caramel that helps to counteract its sugary intensity.

Then, the chocolate comes in clutch as well. The treat features a thin layer of dark chocolate that only provides slight sweetness along with a hefty dose of bitterness, further tempering those sweeter caramel notes. It's definitely one of the more decadent treats in this lineup, and I wouldn't want to eat more than one at a time. But serve a single piece of this candy alongside a strong cup of espresso, and you have the perfect weekday afternoon pick-me-up.

Speaking of pairing coffee and chocolate together, there are few more delicious chocolate covered treats at Trader Joe's than the brand's Dark Chocolate Covered Espresso Beans. This might just be the perfect treat for those who prefer a truly bitter snacking experience. It starts with the crunchy espresso bean, which packs a bitter, espresso punch of flavor. However, the crisp of the espresso beans is part of the appeal. Although it's somewhat muted by the chocolate layer, the interior crisp makes this snack easy to eat.

Bitterness comes from the espresso beans as well as the dark chocolate. However, there's also a subtle element of sweetness that's needed to counteract the snack's bitter notes. People who don't like the flavor of black coffee or bitter dark chocolate probably won't like this sweet, but it's an excellent selection for those looking for something a bit different. And if you're not sure about the combination of espresso and chocolate, consider using this candy as a topper for coffee-forward desserts.

As someone who absolutely loves sweet and salty, or "swalty," flavors coming together in one snack, chocolate covered pretzels are a favorite of mine. That being said, out of all of the available chocolate covered pretzels out there, I don't think that Trader Joe's milk chocolate take on the snack is a particularly good option. The first red flag here is how thick the chocolate coating is on each pretzel – something another writer noted in a previous TJ's pretzel taste test. Sure, you want to get a decent amount of chocolaty sweetness from the snack, but the chocolate on these pretzels is so thick that it dulls the crunch. It doesn't help that the chocolate is also quite sweet, which could be overwhelming for those who don't particularly like super-sugary snacks.

I also found that there's not quite enough salt on these pretzels to counteract all that sweetness. Chocolate covered pretzels should have a pretty balanced flavor profile, and I don't get that here. That being said, if you like a treat that's on the sweeter end of the spectrum and you prefer your chocolate covered pretzels to focus more on the chocolate than the pretzel, then you may actually like the snack.

Although I didn't particularly enjoy the milk chocolate version of this treat, I think the dark chocolate take on the snack is pretty solid. These still have a bit too thick a layer of chocolate, but they're not quite as sweet because this variety uses dark chocolate instead of milk. Instead, a bitter note helps make the chocolate taste more approachable. Because of that, I think the flavor of salt on each pretzel is more prominent as well.

I'm not sure why, but I also found these pretzels were crunchier. Maybe I just got a fresher bag of this variety than the other, or maybe there actually is some difference between the milk and dark chocolate varieties. Regardless, the crunch helped turn this chocolate covered Trader Joe's product into a much better snacking experience for me.

I selected a relatively wide variety of chocolate covered treats from Trader Joe's. I considered both quality of texture (preferring rich, gooey textures alongside crispy, crunchy ones) and quality of flavor (opting for balanced sweetness, complex richness, and complementary saltiness) in determining which products fell into the "buy" and "leave" categories. These are reflections of my own palate, which leans both salty and bitter and away from more intensely sweet snacks.