Trader Joe’s latest Customer Choice Awards, announced January 26, 2026, name ten category winners and one overall favorite. The overall favorite is Steamed Pork and Ginger Soup Dumplings. These are customer-voted awards published by Trader Joe’s—not an independently audited poll or product test—and the published category order is not a ranking of all eleven winners by popularity. Trader Joe’s official podcast listing identifies the 17th annual awards episode.
The 10 category winners
Trader Joe’s announced the winners in ten product categories. The list below follows the order in the company’s awards transcript; it does not compare products across categories.
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Favorite New Product: Protein Pancakes
The company says the gluten-free recipe includes cottage cheese, egg whites, eggs, and oat flour. Trader Joe’s states that a four-pancake package contains 20 grams of protein. Staff say the pancakes can be eaten from the package or warmed in a microwave; the protein figure and preparation comments are company statements, not independent verification.
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Favorite Breakfast and Brunch: Hashbrowns
Trader Joe’s describes its Hashbrowns as a repeat winner and says they are kept frozen until preparation. Other products named among the category’s top vote-getters include Chocolate Croissant, Dutch Griddle Cakes, Almond Croissants, and Protein Pancakes.
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Favorite Lunch and Dinner: Butter Chicken with Basmati Rice
The company describes this as a convenient entrée. Other top vote-getters listed include Steamed Pork and Ginger Soup Dumplings, Chicken Tikka Masala, seasonal Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese, and Steamed Chicken Soup Dumplings.
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Favorite Beverage: Apple Ciders
This is a grouped award, not a single clearly identified bottle. Trader Joe’s combined votes for its 64-ounce Apple Cider, Spiced Cider, and Honeycrisp Apple Cider because some votes did not specify which one.
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Favorite Produce: Teeny Tiny Avocados
The avocados entered the Customer Choice Awards Hall of Fame in 2026 and are no longer eligible in this category.
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Favorite Snack: Garlic Butter Potato Chips
Other products in the category’s top five were World’s Puffiest White Cheddar Corn Puffs, Patio Potato Chips, Horseradish and Chive Ridge Cut Potato Chips, and Organic Elote Corn Chip Dippers.
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Favorite Appetizer: Spinach and Artichoke Dip
The category’s runners-up included Jalapeño and Cream Cheese Wontons and Vegetable Bird’s Nests.
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Favorite Cheese: Goat Cheese
The award does not identify a specific variety. Trader Joe’s says voters did not specify which goat cheese they meant.
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Favorite Bath, Body, and Home: Brazil Nut Body Butter
Trader Joe’s calls this a perennial favorite. The category also included several other bath, body, and home products in its top five.
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Favorite Sweet Treat: Sublime Ice Cream Sandwiches
The sandwiches also won the previous two years. Trader Joe’s says they are approaching, but have not yet reached, the five-win Hall of Fame threshold.
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Overall favorite: Steamed Pork and Ginger Soup Dumplings
Trader Joe’s named the dumplings its overall favorite for 2026. They were also the second-place product in Lunch and Dinner. In the company transcript, director of words and phrases and clauses Tara Miller describes the preparation this way: “You don’t have to do much. You cut off a corner of the outer package, and you pop them in the microwave for less than a minute for the whole package and they’re done and they’re perfect.” That is the company’s description, not an independently tested cooking recommendation; follow the package directions for the product you buy.
Culture and innovation representative Matt Sloan describes the filling: “The broth inside, rich, consistently flavorful.” These comments offer the company’s perspective, not a comparative or independent taste assessment.
How to interpret the awards
They are customer-voted results, not a scientific popularity poll
The awards transcript does not give vote totals, the number or demographics of participants, or a statistical margin. It also does not report numerical category totals. The results establish which products Trader Joe’s announced as winners, but they do not show how large each win was or whether the voters represent all shoppers.
Hall of Fame products leave their category
According to Miller, a product reaches the Hall of Fame after winning its category five times, whether or not those wins are consecutive. Once inducted, it cannot receive votes in that category. Teeny Tiny Avocados entered the Hall of Fame in 2026.
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The awards list does not mean every winner is available year-round or at every store. The transcript identifies Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese as seasonal among the Lunch and Dinner contenders, and mentions a Cedar Balsam Candle among seasonal bath, body, and home contenders. Trader Joe’s says not every product appears on its website and directs shoppers to their neighborhood store for product information; availability can vary.
Quick Recap
Official sources
- Trader Joe’s transcript: Episode 100, The 17th Annual Customer Choice Awards
- Trader Joe’s official podcast listing
- Trader Joe’s product listing and availability information
Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply.
