The Best Dips You’re Overlooking at Trader Joe’s

I was TODAY years old when I learned that Trader Joe’s is a dip emporium. (What can’t Trader Joe’s do?) Just in time for the Super Bowl, I filled up my basket with every single dip on the shelf (plus three different types of dip vessels) and scurried home for a very important taste test. Here are the results.

Spinach dip is the mother of all dips. TJ’s version is just like the classic Knorr’s pouch that you know and love, without all the work (squeezing spinach, measuring mayo/sour cream, finding a vessel, etc). It even has water chestnuts for a little added crunch. Out of all the dips we tried, this topped the list (and all of our chips once the official taste test part of the day was done).

If spinach dip is the mother of all dips, this spinach & kale Greek yogurt dip is your health-conscious cousin who happens to be a fitness influencer. We try to avoid associating food with guilt here at Kitchn, but this TJ’s version says “reduced-guilt” right on the package. It contains 50 percent less fat and calories than that of spinach dip (and when you taste it, you can tell). It’s totally good, but hard to enjoy after having the OG right before it.

TJ’s tzatziki is super mild and filled with thin slices of fresh cukes. It’s a little thin to use as a dip — you’d be better off using it as a topper for homemade gyros or TJ’s falafel mix. Whatever you do with this tzatziki, pita should be involved.

Petition to change the name of this dip to Guac-ziki, because it tastes a lot more like guacamole than tzatziki. Perhaps it lacks that tzatziki flair because there’s no sharp garlic aftertaste? Semantics aside, this is a solid avocado dip.

Related: 5 Trader Joe’s Groceries Our Readers Recently Raved About

If you’re a fan of onion dip made with Lipton soup mix, you may be interested in this slightly fancier, already prepared version. The caramelized onions are finely diced and add a ton of flavor to each salty bite. My honest thoughts, though: The Lipton dip isn’t hard to make (add a pouch to sour cream and stir) and that stuff is better (probably because it’s what we’re all used to).

I wanted to like this dip so badly because it contains three of my favorite things: bacon, cheddar cheese, and ranch. But for some reason, the dip tasted like liquid smoke.

If you like lox and capers on your bagel with cream cheese, you will like this smoked salmon spread. Key word: spread. The packaging says it’s a dip, but it is most certainly not a dip. Leave it off your Super Bowl appetizer table and save it for a toasted bagel instead.

This dip is chunky, cheesy, and spicy all at once, which is what most people are looking for in a dip. You won’t have any trouble finding bite-sized pieces of artichoke hearts, complemented by the spicy kick of jalapeño peppers. This is a must-buy.

SPEAKING OF SPICY (if you like spicy things), this herby sauce/dip is going to be right up your alley. Yes, it’s technically a sauce (it says so right in the name!), but Trader Joe’s suggests using it as a dip with veggies or pita — so naturally, I tried it with a chip. It sure is hot. It’s also pretty fresh-tasting and had one of the simplest ingredient list of all the dips on this list. Cilantro! Garlic! Jalapeño peppers! Etc! If you don’t love heat, this dip is still for you: Just tame the heat by stirring a spoonful into Greek yogurt, sour cream, hummus, or guac.

What are your favorite dips at Trader Joe’s?