Avoid This Trader Joe's Cereal At All Costs, According To Reddit

Starting the day with a delicious breakfast can prepare you for whatever is to come. Cereal is a tried and true choice, with a truly enormous range on the market. Normally, Trader Joe's puts out hit after hit, even in the cereal aisle, but some Redditors want you to take note that the crunchy almond butter puffs are not one of them.

The hate isn't without basis; in fact, a number of Redditors were really looking forward to their morning bowls, but were left disappointed with the lack of flavor and stale texture. The box promises crunchy puffs with a bittersweet flavor profile thanks to powdered sugar, cocoa powder, and, of course, almond butter. Sounds great! Unfortunately, it didn't stick the landing.

First up was the flavor. The problem was that there was none. The resounding critique was that the cereal tasted like cardboard, and other reviews note that any milk just washed away and overpowered the flavor. The next, and larger, issue was the texture. Redditors agree that there was no lack of crunch, to the point where it became a jaw workout and felt downright stale. Milk apparently didn't help to soften it, even after considerable amounts of time. In fact, one review suggested skipping the milk entirely and eating it as a snack food since "the flavor dust is much more prominent that way" (via Reddit).

Some Redditors wondered if they simply got a bad batch of the cereal, or if the whole line just missed the mark. It unfortunately seems as though it was the latter case, but how does something like this happen? Let's take a look at the ingredients. Firstly, this is no hate to gluten-free cereals. In fact, many of TJ's gluten-free products are much-loved by people with and without the intolerance. The crunchy almond butter puffs contain cassava starch, also known as tapioca, which is a tried-and-true gluten-free alternative to regular starches and powders. It's not exactly the same as cassava flour, and it's often used as a thickening agent.

When used correctly, cassava gives baked goods (including cereals) a nice crunch while retaining a chewy, light internal texture. The catch is that it requires a lot of liquid because it absorbs moisture so readily. Without adequate moisture, it can cause foods to be overly crunchy and hard. The only liquid products in the cereal's ingredient list are sunflower oil and almond butter (which half-counts). Combine this with rice and quinoa, both of which themselves absorb a lot of moisture, and it seems as though this was simply a matter of bad proportioning.