Our Aldi Wish List for 2023
Aldi is a limited-inventory grocery store without the shelf space to stock everything all at once. While Aldi is constantly rotating products on and off its shelves with its Aldi Finds and Seasonal Items, there are bound to be some gaps in what the grocer offers. There are always a few things we wish Aldi sold at least once a year, or that we wish Aldi sold more frequently.
Most years, we ask our writers what items they’d like to see at Aldi in the coming year. These might be products Aldi has never sold before, or they might be products we haven’t seen in a while at Aldi. They might be products we wish Aldi would sell every day or products we wish Aldi would sell once a year or seasonally. Here are our thoughts. Feel free to chime in with your own Aldi wish list in the comments.
Rachael’s Wish List:
[NOTE FROM RACHAEL: The first two items on my list this year are new. The rest are from last year in 2022, because nothing has changed.]
A hammock chair stand or C frame for all the hanging hammock chairs Aldi sells. Likewise, some regular freestanding hammock frames would be nice, too, for times when you don’t have trees to hang your Aldi hammock from.
Keurig-style tea pods. Aldi sells a decent selection of coffee pods for Keurig machines or the Aldi Ambiano Single Serve Coffee Maker. They even stock some cappuccino and hot chocolate pods. But they don’t have any tea pods. It would be nice to see some English Breakfast or Earl Grey cup options.
A tea Advent calendar. Aldi sells Advent calendars for almost everything else under the sun, including a coffee Advent calendar (although they dropped the coffee calendar during the 2022 holiday season). Why not a calendar that gives a nod to that other popular hot drink? It could have a mix of different-flavored herbal teas, fruity teas, green teas, black teas, and more.
Clotted cream. This British favorite is good for spooning on top of scones, and Aldi sells scones several times a year. I usually only find clotted cream at international grocery stores, but Aldi is uniquely suited to sell clotted cream because of its European origins and because it routinely sells other international products including German fare, Greek food, Indian-inspired food, ice cream from Eastern Europe, Italian food, and more. Aldi is like a miniature global grocery store. Plus, if Aldi can sell other British treats such as jarred lemon curd, surely they could sell jars of clotted cream once a year.
Single lemons and limes. These have been on my Aldi wish list for years. I often only need a single lemon or lime for a recipe such as fajitas, chicken salad, or guacamole, not an entire bag. I don’t want to always be making sugary drinks or desserts just to use up the bag. So I often make an extra stop at a traditional grocery store to buy a single fruit.
Potato salad and pasta salad. Aldi sells these only during the warmer months when cookouts and barbecuing are on the agenda, but if comments from our Aldi Reviewer readers are any indication, people don’t eat potato salad and macaroni salad only during the summer. It’d be nice to see basic versions of these sold all year.
Canned root beer. Aldi used to sell canned root beer under its Summit private label for soda. It was called Sudz Root Beer, and it was an excellent root beer comparable to Barq’s or A&W. Now Aldi only sells pricier bottled craft root beer, which is good, too, but I’d love to see Aldi bring the canned stuff back for a perfect accompaniment to family pizza night.
Fruity sodas. As far as I know, Aldi has never sold its own brand of fruity sodas such as orange, grape, or strawberry. I’d try them if Aldi offered them, especially because I’ve always preferred fruit-flavored soda over traditional colas like Coke or Pepsi.
Orchid flower pots. Aldi sells orchid plants several times a year. Orchids don’t like “wet feet” and grow well in pots specifically designed with drainage holes in the sides, but orchids aren’t usually sold in those specialized orchid planters. Considering how many orchids Aldi sells, it’d be good to see Aldi sell some of these orchid planters once in a while.
Swing sets and more big outdoor toys. Aldi in the U.S. does a pretty good job of offering outdoor recreation products as limited-time specials, ranging from swimming pools to giant inflatable sprinklers to nest swings. However, over the last few years, Aldi in the United Kingdom has sold some incredibly cool things, including a whole swing set, a smaller set with one swing, and a neat “pirate swing.” Aldi Australia has sold a swing set and even a teeter totter. It’s been a while since Aldi in the United States has sold a swing set. In addition, Aldi in the U.K. has sold some even more unique big play items such as a wooden treehouse with slide and even a wooden pirate ship. I’m jealous. Come on, Aldi U.S.
Joshua’s Wish List:
[NOTE FROM JOSHUA: I’m reprising the exact same list I put out in 2022 because nothing has changed on this front. These are still tops on my list and I’m doubling down on them.]
Shelled peanuts. Aldi dry roasted shelled peanuts have come and gone as Aldi Finds and Seasonal Favorites. I’d love to see them as an everyday Regular Buy. They’re an amazing snack, even if they do make for a mess.
Licensed graphic tees. I’ve seen plenty of licensed toys over the years, and I’ve seen Aldi sell the occasional t-shirt. But it would be awesome to see the supermarket sell a few of those cult-following graphic tees you see at department stores. I’m sure a few Marvel or retro tees would make a stir as a summertime Aldi Find.
Whole chocolate milk. The chocolate milk in my area is usually 2%. That’s passable, but the whole stuff is the best, without question. Aldi does sometimes sell name-brand whole chocolate milk as an Aldi Find; I’d be a fan of seeing it under the grocer’s own private label, maybe even as a summer Seasonal Favorite.
Standing rib roast. This is the meat used to make a prime rib. I’ve read stories online about it being sold at certain stores in certain places in the past, but we’ve never spotted it in our stores or in our weekly ad. We’ve had a lot of success in recent years with Aldi meats and I’d very much like to try my hand at a prime rib.
Stovetop popcorn maker. Aldi has sold a couple of varieties of popcorn makers, including a carnival-like machine and a smaller mini-maker. One nifty device is a stovetop popcorn maker, which cooks the popcorn right on the range. I don’t think Aldi has ever sold one of those, and it would be a lot of fun to be able to get one.
An alarm clock worth owning. We’ve written about a number of different Aldi alarm clocks, and the one thing they have in common is that they generally are bad. Some of them have ridiculous button layouts, others are unintuitive, and still others are glitchy or lack simple features, like a display that isn’t overly bright. Just once it would be nice to get a clock that doesn’t require a college degree and a prayer to get it working right. I don’t think that’s too much to ask.
Journey to India Tikka Masala. I miss you.
Elizabeth’s Wish List:
[NOTE FROM ELIZABETH: My theme for my 2023 wish list is variety. I know Aldi keeps prices low by limiting its stores’ sizes and selections. But I’d like to see more variety in some of the things I buy regularly, especially the following.]
More herbal tea. I brew whole pots of herbal tea daily to sip while working, so I keep a variety of flavors on hand. Most of Aldi’s small tea selection has caffeine, although I routinely buy their chamomile tea (which is excellent). They offer limited-edition herbal teas, but I’d love to see more variety year-round. Maybe a fruity orange spice or a floral hibiscus blend? I’d be the first in line to try them.
More wet cat food options. Wet cat food comes in a variety of textures, such as flaked (pieces of shredded meat), grilled (larger pieces of meat), or pate (meat paste.) Cats, being cats, can be very picky about the texture that they prefer. Our two cats will only eat flaked or grilled wet food, never pate. Unfortunately, all of the wet cat food that Aldi sells is the pate variety. When I made the mistake of buying a few cans, I fed them to my dog, who is much less picky about food texture.
More organic produce. Last year, I petitioned the Aldi fairies for more varieties of organic potatoes, but it seems to have backfired. Now my local Aldi has stopped selling organic potatoes or broccoli, which I could buy last year. I don’t know if it’s a supply issue, but I’d like to see Aldi expand, rather than reduce, their organic produce selection.
And, once more, with feeling, my wish from 2022: fresh herbs (that aren’t parsley or cilantro). Have you heard of the cilantro gene? Some people are genetically inclined to think that cilantro tastes metallic or soapy. That gene seems to run through my family because they reject anything with even a hint of it. They’re not crazy about parsley, either. I’d love to buy other herbs at Aldi: basil, chives, sage, etc.
Megan’s Wish List:
More toys and name-brand dolls. Aldi already sells some name-brand dolls such as L.O.L. Surprise and WowWee Fashion Fidgets. It would be fun to see additional dolls and toys throughout the year, especially at Easter and Christmas.
More Halloween costumes. Aldi sometimes sells onesie-style costumes like dragons or unicorns. I’d like to see them sell more types of costumes — and not just cheesy ones — during the Halloween season, including princesses, superheroes, or different characters for both adults and kids.
More ice cream flavors. Aldi sells a decent variety of ice cream flavors as everyday Regular Buys, and they rotate some different flavors in seasonally. It might be nice to see a few more flavors occasionally like birthday cake or strawberry cheesecake.
Abby’s Wish List:
More Calico Critters toys. Aldi usually sells a small number of name-brand Calico Critters playsets or animal families once during the Christmas season and one week during the leadup to Easter. These popular toys cost less at Aldi and I’d like to see more of them.
What’s on your Aldi wish list? Let us know in the comments.
Being a transplanted German, I would love for Aldi’s to offer canned herring filets (Matjes).
I would also like to see them offer canned German Vegetable Soup year-round!
Ours has them sometimes. They’re pretty good, but the smell from the microwave makes my wife sick 🥴
I like that too, also more German baked items as Lidl does
Forgot Quark, Hering in sour cream, Creme fraiche
Totally agree with the single lemons and limes. I can’t imagine ever buying a whole bag of them – I’d end up throwing half of them away! Also with you on the clotted cream. And I wish they’d bring the high-protein/low calorie ice cream back. I don’t know if it’s a shipping issue or if it’s been discontinued, but my store hasn’t had it in quite awhile. I really miss it!
Always nice to meet another clotted cream fan!
Lemons and limes freeze well.
https://www.budgetbytes.com/how-to-freeze-whole-citrus/
Freezing lemons and limes is the way to go. To defrost, I microwave on high for 30 seconds and get the juiciest fruit ready to use.
I agree on having the potato salad, macaroni salad and coleslaw all year long. I would lie the knockwurst all year long too.
I agree I have to make a trip to another store and I live right next door to Aldi’s. I would love to see vegetarian ice cream too.
The Aldi near me (Brattleboro, VT) sells almond milk (vegan) ice cream.
Some really good suggestions here!
I would love for them to stock the frozen Tirimisu I found there one year around Thanksgiving. Best Tirimisu on the planet! The chicken salad is wonderful, too!
A friend brought Aldi’s Tirimisu with him for dessert when I hosted him for dinner and I agree, other than when I make it from scratch, it was one of the best prepared one I’ve tasted.
Meatloaf. It’s so basic and Aldi’s had a great frozen meatloaf at one time, and at a reasonable price.
I wish they’d keep their frozen breakfast egg and cheese pitas in stock always. Then I wouldn’t have to buy $70 of them at a time whenever they magically appear (and disappear) throughout the year!
More food products that do not contain additives like “natural flavors” (aka MSG) artificial colors, gums, preservatives, etc. Just real food ingredients. Aldi stocks precious few of them now, and they are what brings me back to Aldi time after time. I also like Elizabeth’s list. Many thanks for asking!
FYI: Aldi house brands are free of artificial colors and MSG. Natural flavors are something different, and they’re everywhere. I’d also love to see Aldi — and a lot of other brands — use natural flavors less. https://www.aldireviewer.com/psa-aldi-products-are-free-of-artificial-colors-msg-and-hydrogenated-oils/
Yes Yes Yes on the clotted cream!!!
Agree with single lemon’s and limes.
On the tea, would like decaf green tea.
And fresh herbs for sure.
Thank you Rachel. I look forward to reading this every week.
Glad we can be a bright spot in your week. Thanks for reading!
16 oz. bottles of flax oil like I have been buying from Trader Joe’s for the past 10+ years but is now discontinued.
Walnuts. Peanuts in the shell. Frozen peas and carrots. Potato salad year round. Bags of dry tortellini (another Trader Joe’s item that has disappeared as of late.)
I am all for potato salad and macaroni salad all year round. As I make lunches everyday for my family, its nice to have that variety, and not just chips all the time.
I obsessively stalk my local Aldi stores for the Butter Twist pretzels. Only offered twice a year. When I do find them I seriously buy 2 cases, or more, at a time. Tea pods would be amazing as well!
Thank you for your thoughtful list! I have the cilantro gene as well and cannot stomach the stuff and it’s the ONLY fresh herb my Aldi’s offers. Would love to see fresh Italian parsley, dill, thyme. I also agree with your request that they sell single lemons and limes. A full bag is goes to waste in my home so when I buy a bag, I bring all but a few of them to my local food pantry. This may sound like an odd one but, Imitation Vanilla Extract. I enjoy the flavor of vanilla in my coffee but real vanilla extract is prohibitively expensive so when not baking, I’m fine with the fake stuff! Aldi’s brand of Boursin cheese! They carried it 4+ years ago and it was as good, if not better than the ‘real thing’ and was 1/2 the price. Aldi’s brand Sugar Free Chocolate Fudgsicle Pops, they carried them a few years ago but alas, they too have gone missing from their inventory. When it comes to frozen items, I rarely if ever find frozen spinach at my local Aldi’s and for certain dishes (i.e. crustless quiches) it works incredibly well since a bag of their fresh spinach or the containers of their organic baby spinach cooks down to next to nothing as is the blessing/curse of spinach. Usable sized bags of rice! I’m single and it would take me a year to go through 1 of their giant bags of long grain white rice. I frequently purchase either Aldi’s frozen or fresh (vacuum sealed) Tilapia and enjoy it. Their frozen Salmon is horrid but their vacuum sealed fresh Salmon is excellent. I wish they would offer vacuum sealed Swordfish and Cod fillets as well. That’s my wish like and I’m sticking to it! Thank you for creating this website, I look forward to receiving my emails and then searching for the items you’ve listed to see if they’re worth the ‘investment’. Good job and keep it up!
Costco often has vanilla beans and making vanilla sugar is simple. Uh- don’t ask me how right now though. Real vanilla lasts forever so the cost is lost in the mists of time for the last bottle I bought. Tape around the cap to slow evaporation.
I am diabetic and don’t add sugar to my coffee which is why the imitation vanilla extract is fine for me to use in my coffee. But I thank you for your info!
I would wish that I could trust the quality of Aldi produce. I bought a bag of Brussels sprouts the other day to roast and while they looked OK in the bag, when I opened the bag one was rancid and ruined the entire bag. I’ve bought big boxes of salad blend with an OK sell by date that were mushy inside. Knowing this I would never, ever buy any packaged food like potato salad or sliced cheese. I now only buy produce such as whole squashes. With one employee regularly stocking/rotating produce and cold items, I just don’t think they can manage fresh foods well.
I would also love if they sold unsweetened soy milk in the dairy case.
I will add every single Aldi brand houseware I’ve bought has broken and had to be returned. Things are cheap for a reason.
I’d like a store that’s less than a 2 day bike ride or 12 hour drive. Heading east there’s some 5or 6 no where near each other that are a 12 h drive and 1 is southwest. We got Trader Joe’s not all that long ago so we probably won’t get Aldi in forever.
Onions are another bulk item that should be individual. Sometimes I just want one or two to throw in some eggs or tacos, but buying a whole bag I never use them all before they spoil.
I would love to be able to buy diet soda when I’m shopping at Aldi rather than having to go elsewhere when I leave to get it.
LiveGfree’s Gluten Free spinach & cheese ravioli was delicious and better than any other ravioli I’ve tried.
I’d like to see it back in the freezer case!
Post for my husband. He’s been heart broken since they stopped having the Street Corn flavored corn chips. He swears it’s the best snack he’s ever had and still looks for it every trip to Aldi. If they come back he’s buy a full crate!