Trader Joe’s Traditional Indian Style Flatbread
Aldi’s cousin Trader Joe’s has a pretty nice selection of baked goods. Aside from traditional bread and rolls, their chocolate and vanilla sheet cakes are legendary, as is their kringle. I recently decided to try some flatbread from TJ’s, and I picked it up specifically to serve with Trader Joe’s Chicken Shawarma.
Trader Joe’s Traditional Indian Style Flatbread cost $3.69 at the time of publication for an 18-ounce package that contains four flatbreads. That comes out to about 93 cents per flatbread. You can get naan for less at Aldi, but the Trader Joe’s version is decently priced.
The package states:
This Indian style flatbread is inspired by traditional East Indian naan. It’s a versatile bread that can be served at any time of the day. It can also be partnered with a variety of foods like meat, fish and vegetables.
If you’re looking out for allergens, this contains wheat and soy.
One package has four flatbreads or four servings. One flatbread (128 grams) has 350 calories, 5 grams of total fat (6% DV), 0.5 grams of saturated fat (3% DV), no cholesterol, 780 mg of sodium (34% DV), 64 grams of total carbohydrates (23% DV), 3 grams of dietary fiber (11% DV), 2 grams of total sugars, 1 gram of added sugars (2% DV), and 11 grams of protein.
The directions for heating the flatbread were a bit light or smeared on the package I bought, making them somewhat hard to read. The flatbread can be heated in the oven, in the microwave, or on the grill.
To heat in the oven, preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Place the flatbread directly on the rack or wrap in foil and bake for 2-3 minutes.
To microwave, place the flatbread in a paper towel and heat on high for 15-30 seconds.
To grill, place flatbread directly on the grill for 2-3 minutes. Brush lightly with butter.
I served these with Trader Joe’s Shawarma Chicken Thighs, Trader Joe’s Tzatziki Creamy Garlic Cucumber Dip, and fresh diced cucumbers, tomatoes, and red onion.
This flatbread is pretty much the same thing as the naan I get at Indian restaurants, international grocery stores, or from Aldi. It was great served with TJ’s Shawarma Chicken Thighs.
It would also nicely complement any kind of Indian-inspired meal such as tikka masala or butter chicken, and it would be a good accompaniment to many of Trader Joe’s frozen Indian meals such as shrimp tikka masala, paneer tikka masala, channa masala, or vegan tikka masala. Trader Joe’s also sells some shelf-stable Indian meals in pouches that this would go well with.
While I’ll probably stick with buying naan from Aldi (it freezes well and keeps for a long time that way) because it’s cheaper, I’d buy this Trader Joe’s flatbread again, especially if I couldn’t get to Aldi but needed bread like this.
The Verdict:
Trader Joe’s Traditional Indian Style Flatbread is inspired by traditional East Indian naan and is an excellent addition to many meals. It goes well with Indian food such as tikka masala, and it’s also great with Trader Joe’s Shawarma Chicken Thighs.
I wonder if there’s more than one supplier of this kind of bread in the country, as all are similar and good. Garlic naan even better than plain, IMO, and Aldi’s as good as any.