Mind-Blowing, Three-Ingredient Trader Joe’s Lentil Salad
This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy.
Writing click-bait titles is not something I plan on getting into, BUT: Friends, just this once, can you forgive me? I really am blown away by this salad. I first tasted it last Friday afternoon at an end-of-school-year party, and I have made it every other day since.
Are you ready for the recipe? Visit your local Trader Joe’s, and pick up: 1 tub of bruschetta sauce, 1 tub of crumbled feta, and 1 box of cooked lentils. Combine as you wish. Toss. Taste. Adjust to taste with more feta or bruschetta sauce or both.
The post should end here with a, “Bye! Have a nice summer!” but believe it or not, you may run into some roadblocks: The first problem you may encounter is not being able to find the cooked lentils. My Trader Joe’s has been out of the lentils for weeks, but I found a nice alternative at the Niskayuna Co-op: Melissa’s Produce steamed lentils. You, of course, could cook the lentils yourself, which is not difficult and which is more cost effective, but hey, should we try and live a little this summer? It’s hard, I know.
The second problem you may encounter is not being able to find the bruschetta sauce, though this is unlikely—most Trader Joe’s get daily deliveries, bruschetta sauce included.
The third problem you may encounter is that you don’t have a Trader Joe’s nearby. This problem is a little trickier to solve as it will require creativity on your part or a follow-up blog post on mine when the tomatoes finally arrive. Stay tuned.
Friends, as you know, I am the first to tell you to cook beans from scratch, to make bread, to make stock, to whisk up a vinaigrette, to make harissa, and shkug and anything else that just plain tastes better made at home. Cooking never feels like a chore for me, and I typically shy from “recipes” like this because often they taste somewhat artificial or too sweet or too salty, etc.
But this lentil salad is really, really good. One bite of it at the party had me pulling guests aside asking: Did you make the lentil salad? No? Do you know who did? When I learned it was Gail, whose husband manages the Albany Trader Joe’s, it all made sense.
A from-scratch bruschetta sauce and home-cooked lentils would not make this salad impossibly complicated, but the point here is that isn’t it nice to know, when you’re in a pinch (or not), you can pick up three products, throw them together, and call your dinner side dish or potluck contribution or lunch-for-the-week done?
Friends, have you made this salad? I made it on Instagram stories yesterday and was shocked to learn people have been making this one for years! Do you know it? Do you love it? Do you know any other Trader Joe’s hacks?
PS: Homemade Bruschetta Sauce Recipe (Trader Joe’s Copycat Recipe)
PPS: Addictive Black Lentils with Spinach and Labneh
Here’s a play-by-play … drumroll please … let’s make the simplest recipe to date in Alexandra’s Kitchen history. Gather your ingredients: feta, cooked lentils, bruschetta sauce.
Open the containers …
and dump into a bowl (or measure: 1.5 cups cooked lentils, 1.5 cups bruschetta sauce, .5 cups feta).
Ta-da!!
Mind-Blowing, Three-Ingredient Trader Joe’s Lentil Salad
- Total Time: 5 minutes
- Yield: 3.5 cups
Description
My friend Gail, whose husband manages the Albany Trader Joe’s, brought this salad to a party last week, and it blew me away: most important, it was incredibly delicious; nearly important, it required very little effort: picking up three, ready-made products and combining them.
If you cannot find Trader Joe’s cooked lentils, look for the Melissa’s Produce cooked lentils in your local grocery store. Or boil them from scratch as instructed below.
This salad keeps very well in the fridge, and I like eating it cold straight from the fridge, but if you are serving it to company, you may want to bring it to room temperature before serving because the olive oil in the bruschetta sauce congeals a bit in the fridge.
Ingredients
For the Trader Joe’s version:
- 1 1/2 cups cooked lentils, see notes
- 1 1/2 cups Trader Joe’s bruschetta sauce
- 1/2 cup crumbled feta
For the from-scratch version:
- 1/2 cup dried black lentils or French green lentils
- kosher salt
- 1 1/2 cups bruschetta sauce
- 1/2 cup crumbled feta or more to taste
Instructions
To make the Trader Joe’s version: Combine all ingredients in a bowl. Toss. Taste. Adjust to taste with more feta or bruschetta sauce. Serve immediately or stash in the fridge.
To make the from-scratch version:
- Place the lentils in a small pot and cover with water by at least an inch. Add a teaspoon of kosher salt. Bring to a simmer. Simmer till done. Times will vary considerably. My black lentils have been cooking consistently in about 23-25 minutes. If you are using French Green lentils, they’ll likely need a little more time. Taste before draining them. Drain, then let cool completely.
- To make the salad, combine the lentils — you should have about 1.5 cups cooked — the bruschetta sauce, and the feta in a large bowl. Stir gently to combine. Taste. Adjust with salt to taste.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Category: Side Dish
- Method: Toss
- Cuisine: American
Keywords: lentils, trader joe’s, mind-blowing
This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy.
91 Comments on “Mind-Blowing, Three-Ingredient Trader Joe’s Lentil Salad”
OMG Ali. I just found TJ’s cooked lentils this week and went looking for recipes and found this. Sounds amazing. Now I have to go back for bruschetta!
Oh yay! Hope yop love it Pattie 🙂 🙂 🙂 I go through phases where I’m basically living on this. So good.
Hi! I have a question, if I make extra of this salad (since Trader Joe’s is far), am I able to freeze it for myself and use for later?? Thank you so much and this is such an amazing idea for a salad !
★★★★★
I’m not sure this one will freeze very well, unfortunately… I’m sorry. I worry about both the fresh bruschetta sauce and the feta not surviving the freeze very well.
I love your recipes but live in the UK and we don’t have Trader Joe’s – do you have a recipe for bruschetta sauce at all? Thanks!
Hi Amanda! I have been meaning to work on a homemade bruschetta sauce recipe ever since posting this. I did just come across this recipe, and it looks promising: https://www.shockinglydelicious.com/better-than-trader-joes-bruschetta-sauce/
How do you serve this? Could it be a main course with bread? Or with balsamic roasted peppers? We’re vegetarian/vegan and I love Myoko’s vegan feta.
Thanks.
I think it definitely could be a main course with bread and some other vegetables like the roasted peppers. It would be good with hummus — I love this lentil recipe, and my vegan friends who make it replace the yogurt sauce with hummus.
Thanks for the tip on the Myoko’s vegan feta!
How is the texture of canned lentils? Tips on lentils that are less grainy? I wonder if a bit of regular vinegar or lemon/lime and some nooch with crumbled tofu would be enough like feta for a vegan option?
Hi! TJ’s lentils are actually packed in a cryovacked bag… the texture is great! I almost always cook black lentils from scratch now for a few reasons: my TJ’s often is out of the pre-cooked lentils, I love the flavor and texture of the black lentils, and they cook quickly. For a vegan version, I think you could simply leave out the feta — the lentils and bruschetta sauce are delicious together.
Trader Joe’s makes a vegan feta that looks, smells and taste like the real thing!
I recently discovered it, and I love it!
Hey, Ali! I’m so grateful you shared this. I served it as an appetizer/dip and the crowd loved it! Can’t wait to make it again! Thank you so much!
★★★★★
Great to Hear, Izzah! Hope all is well. xoxo 💕💕💕💕💕
Wow! Loved it. I served 3 dips at a recent BBQ party and everyone flocked to this one. I’m going to have this until I get tired of it. Thanks for sharing this, Ali!
★★★★★
Wow okay! Sorry for the repetition. X) My memory these days! lol
I’m right there with you, Izzah 🙂 🙂 🙂
I did the from scratch version and oh my gosh this was good. I thought I didn’t like lentils until I tried this.
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Yay! Great to hear, Brie. I love this lentil salad so much. Thanks for writing!
Made “From-Scratch” version. Delicious and easy. Will make again!
★★★★★
Great to hear, Karla! Thanks for writing 🙂 🙂 🙂
As easy and delicious as described!
★★★★★
Great to hear, Nat!
We used to make this ALL the time when i worked at TJ’s many years ago, and we’d always throw in some chopped english cucumbers just to further freshen it up! Was always one of the customers favorite sample dishes! I don’t have a trader joe’s near me any more so I made the homemade bruschetta and it was PHENOMENAL. Thanks so much!
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Wonderful to hear this, Lindsey! Love the idea of adding cucumbers. Will try!
I have heard about this salad through different media sources but have never made it and honestly it never sounded that appealing to me and then…. I was shopping at my local Trader Joe’s the other night when I saw something I had never seen there before. They had a freebie taste test. I’ve really only seen that at Sam’s and Costco…and even they are scaling back on that. My interest was peaked. A free taste test of something I felt “eh” about. No harm no foul..right? I took a bite and was transformed into a convert. Why had I not tried this before? What was I thinking? I immediately ran around looking for all (3) ingredients. Went back to the station again to make sure I had the recipe correct. I haven’t even made it at home yet but I’m thinking on going back to get stock ups!
So fun to read all of this Karen 🙂 Every time I am at TJ’s I stock up — it’s so nice to have these ingredients on hand for a quick dinner salad or lunch. Thanks for writing!
This recipe is DELICIOUS! I’ve been making it since 2014 when I was first told about it. Sometimes I add chopped cucumbers, or serve it over a bed of arugula. It’s good slightly warmed up as well. I tend to only add the feta as I’m serving it, only mixing the lentils and bruschetta sauce together ahead of time. Lucky me I’m surrounded by TJ stores!
★★★★★
Smart! Love the idea of adding the feta last. Thanks for writing!
This is really easy and so good! I added more bruschetta and some chopped cucumber after squeezing out the liquid. Thank you.
Oops, I forgot the stars.
★★★★★
Great to hear, Lori! Chopped cucumber sounds lovely 🙂
This was sooo good! I recently moved to a place where there is no TJ’s so I was trying to find a bruschetta recipe to make the lentil salad. To my surprise I found the whole recipe from scratch here. Loved it, tastes just as good if not better, because the super fresh basil really shines here.
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Great to hear, MJ! Thanks for writing 🙂 🙂 🙂
I quite liked it! I shared it with neighbours. I will definitely make it again. I meant to make only half of the bruschetta sauce recipe and realized that although I only used 3/4 lb of tomatoes, I used the rest of the recipe as written! Slight pause in the production as I had to go to the grocery store for more tomatoes! (I used the little grape tomatoes, cutting them in half or quarters. I used mint instead of basil … I have used mint previously as a substitute for basil and been happy with the result. I used goat’s milk feta cheese. TMI?
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Never TMI!! Love reading all of this. Thanks for sharing, Jan!