Trader Joe's Thursday

Unless you live under a rock, it's impossible that you could be in the capital district and not know that Trader Joe's (finally!) opened in Albany about a month ago. I have been hoping for this for the past 10+ years since I first experienced TJ's in Boston as a college student. Back then, the groceries I could buy were limited to what I was willing to carry back on the T and then lug across campus (one bag usually). For the past few years we have tried to bring home non-perishable items from the TJ's on Cape Cod (snacks and jarred products mostly), but nothing can compare to actually having a local TJ's to try the huge variety of foods they have available - especially the frozen goods, meats, and cheeses.

Now that it's here, I've decided to post a weekly product review of something new. So here's the inaugural review: Frozen Biryani Rice!

This is an amazingly easy and tasty side dish/main meal that we have already eaten at least twice. It is not the same type of biryani that I have had at the local Indian restaurants I frequent, but it's a very tasty at home meal. All you have to do is add a little bit of oil to your pan/wok and stir fry the rice until it is heated through. The dish is not spicy hot, but is spicy flavorful and smells delicious as it cooks. When we make it, we've cooked half a bag for two of us to eat as a side dish. 

I personally would eat this with a piece of naan and call it a night, but I have made it into more of a main meal for my husband by pairing with the TJ's marinated curry chicken tenders and TJ's vegetable samosas.