Trader Joe’s Frozen Cacio E Pepe Review

Happy Sunday! Earlier this week, I decided to try this dish that I have been hearing so much about within the Trader Joe’s community on Instagram. I have high expectations for this dish given the online buzz.

I am going to go through how I made the cacio e pepe, then give my long- awaited review. Let me know if you have tried it and what you think!

STEP ONE:

Since this dish is frozen, it comes in an unusual form as you can see from the pic. The sauce is in small cubes and the pasta is in swirls. Once you add some water, the next step is to cover it to cook for around 4 minutes!

STEP TWO:

After the sauce was really melting, I uncovered the pan and stirred the pasta and the sauce together. I let the dish cook, stirring frequently.

MY THOUGHTS:

I was really excited to try this dish, but unfortunately was underwhelmed with the outcome. Obviously I knew it was not going to be the same as homemade caico e pepe (especially from Italy :-)) but with all the hype, I was hoping for more. This dish was overly cheesy and rich. When I think of caico e pepe, I dream of a creamy sauce not an overwhelming amount of cheese. There was also too much pepper, so much so that it was somewhat spicy. I ate such a small portion of this dish because of these problems. This recipe definitely has potential, but right now, I’d rather spend the time making caico e pepe at home.

I would give this dish a 6/10.

If you have tried this, I would love to know what you think!