• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
Cook Fast, Eat Well
  • About
    • Privacy Policy
  • Accessibility Statement
  • Contact
  • Cook Fast, Eat Well helps you make great food fast.
  • Recipes
  • Terms and Conditions
menu icon
go to homepage
  • Home
  • Recipes
  • About
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • TikTok
  • search icon
    Homepage link
    • Home
    • Recipes
    • About
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • TikTok
  • ×
    Home » Dips and Spreads

    5 Ways to Use Trader Joe’s Garlic Spread and Dip

    Sep 22, 2018 · 11 Comments

    If you love garlic, Trader Joe’s Garlic Spread and Dip is a must-try. It’s great on its own or used as a shortcut ingredient for pasta, tzatziki and more.

    Trader Joe's Garlic Spread and Dip

    Have you seen Trader Joe’s “Garlic Spread and Dip?” A friend recommended it, saying that she was putting it on everything. You know what that meant! I tossed a tub into my cart the next time I went to TJ’s. 

    Wowza. This stuff is good. Really good. It’s basically Toum, a Lebanese garlic spread. And when I say garlic spread, I mean GARLIC . Toum is an emulsion similar to mayonnaise but without any eggs. The consistency is light and fluffy. For years, before I knew how toum was made, I assumed it contained mashed potatoes or yogurt. (Fun fact: the spread is Vegan!) While recipes for toum vary, it’s usually made from raw garlic, oil, lemon juice, and water. Nary a hint of potato or yogurt in the mix. You can make toum at home. To get the proper consistency, you need to make a fairly large batch.  So I welcomed Trader Joe’s premade version. The small tub is the perfect size for one or two people. 

    Trader Joe’s take on Toum tastes homemade. It’s so good— creamy and garlicky; it’s perfect on anything that needs a little kick. And when I say anything, I mean anything. I put it on bread or add a dollop to  chicken curry bowls. Sometimes, when I want easy garlic mashed potatoes,  I’ll whisk a little into the milk when I’m making my Instant Pot Mashed Potatoes.

    The key is to keep the sauce raw. The flavor changes when you cook it and, in my experience, it doesn’t get better. The lovely pungent flavor of toum is perfect raw or warmed slightly, as it is in mashed potatoes. This means it’s great smeared on cooked chicken but not as good if you brush it onto raw chicken and bake. Got it?

     

    Five (more) Things You Can Do with Trader Joe’s Garlic Spread

    Trader Joe's Garlic Spread and Dip

    Garlic Grilled Cheese

    Grate your favorite cheese. Spread a thin layer of Garlic spread on two pieces of rustic bread. Add the cheese. Butter the outside of each slice of bread. Grill until cheese melts and bread is golden brown.

    Easy Tomato Garlic Pasta

    Past with red sauce and olives on plate.

    Cook one pound of pasta. While it cooks, slice an onion. Cook the in a generous amount of olive oil in a medium skillet until tender. Add one (15 ounce) can petite diced tomatoes. Bring to a simmer and reduce heat. Reserve one cup of the pasta cooking liquid. Drain pasta. Return to pot. Toss pasta with two tablespoons Garlic spread. Add tomato sauce. Toss to combine. Add capers and sliced olives if you feel like it. Season with salt and pepper to taste. If sauce is too thick (pasta seems dry) add a splash of pasta cooking water.

    Quick Garlic-Butter Spread

    Mix equal parts Trader Joe’s Garlic Spread with softened unsalted butter. Since the spread contains salt, if you mix it with salted butter it can be too salty.

    Serving Suggestions

    • Add a spoonful to cooked vegetables.
    • Toss garlic-butter with cooked pasta. Add Parmesan and lots of black pepper. Toss to combine. Add a generous splash of pasta cooking water to thin.
    • Spread on bread. (I didn’t have to tell you this, did I?)

    Quick Tzatziki Sauce

    Add one tablespoon Garlic Spread to 2 cups Greek yogurt. Stir in one small, seeded and chopped cucumber. Squeeze half a lemon. Stir in juice. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Add more Garlic spread to taste.

    Serving Suggestions

    • Serve with raw vegetables, chips, or crackers.
    • Spread on a pita.
    • Put a dollop on a baked potato.
    • Thin with a little milk and drizzle on roasted vegetables.

    Herb and Garlic Cream Cheese

    Stir two tablespoons Garlic Spread into 8 ounces softened cream cheese. Add 1/4 cup finely chopped basil, 2 tablespoons chopped chives, and 1 tablespoon chopped parsley. Stir to combine. Taste. Add more garlic spread if needed. Season with black pepper. 

    Serving Suggestions

    • Spread on bagels.
    • Serve with raw vegetables.
    • Stuff into your favorite jalapeno popper recipe.

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. scott says

      March 20, 2019 at 12:08 pm

      Hi! Is there anyway to make this at home? Any thoughts?

      Reply
      • Elizabeth says

        November 04, 2019 at 2:46 pm

        I’d try a recipe for Toum. I believe Serious Eats has one. Hope this helps!

        Reply
      • Kim says

        January 27, 2021 at 12:19 am

        I made the serious ways recipe and I nailed it on the first go. Definitely give it a try!

        Reply
    2. Sam Marandos says

      August 02, 2019 at 10:34 pm

      I love this garlic spread! It tastes good with bread, pizza, vegetables, meat, and other food items. The taste is incredible. We bnuy it at Trader Joe’s. I wish it came in larger containers!!

      Reply
    3. Dr Fatima Khan says

      February 24, 2020 at 9:24 am

      It is the real deal. It is the closest for me to the homemade toum I grew up eating. ???

      Reply
    4. Paul says

      April 21, 2020 at 11:37 am

      I add it to plain hummus because I the garlic hummus sold in stores is never garlicky enough for me. Using a pint container as reference, I normally add at least 1 1/2 garlice to 1 hummus.

      Reply
    5. G says

      May 12, 2020 at 1:53 pm

      Don’t forget to eat it with Costco chicken. A great substitute to Zankou Chicken for those of us who don’t have it here.

      Reply
    6. Carla St John says

      September 20, 2020 at 8:55 pm

      Wonderful when mixed with some of the amazing Trader Joe’s Zhoug. It tones down the spiciness of the zhoug but you still get a ton of flavor. I think you use something like 2/3 garlic spread and 1/3 zhoug.

      Reply
      • KC says

        January 18, 2021 at 7:33 am

        I make a very flavorful “Buffalo” sauce with this. I have an aversion to intensely hot “spicy” food but mixed with Pepita salsa (the perfect amount of heat for me) this result is amazing!!!!!!

        Reply
    7. Danielle says

      July 02, 2021 at 2:41 pm

      I love this spread for salads! I make kale salads by massaging about a tbsp of this spread straight into the kale- packs so much flavor! Then I just top it with whatever I feel like that day!

      Reply
    8. Ramzi Khairallah says

      January 16, 2022 at 12:20 pm

      What is funny is that this is a Lebanese recipe for garlic aioli that we DO NOT eat chicken without. Any form of chicken! Grilled, Tawook, rotisserie, fried…
      But I have yet to find any recipe using the toum with chicken! I guess there is no wrong way to eat garlic anyway.
      My favorite remains when you spread it on bread and put the chicken with pickles, lettuce and tomatoes and Panini!

      Reply

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Recipe Rating




    This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

    Primary Sidebar

    Get Recipes Delivered to Your Inbox! (Free Weekly Newsletter!)

    Elizabeth Barbone

    Elizabeth Barbone is the founder and recipe developer behind Cook Fast, Eat Well. A food writer for over 15 years, she's built a reputation for creating easy recipes that work.

    Learn More →

    New and Popular

    • Baked French toast casserole in an oval pan. The casserole is topped with oat streusel topping.
      Easy French Toast Casserole
    • Pull apart coffee cake baked in a pan.
      Easy Pull Apart Coffee Cake
    • Easter crispy treats on a plate.
      Easter Crispy Treats
    • Bowl of pico de gallo.
      Two-Minute Easy Pico de Gallo

    Footer

    ↑ back to top

    TERMS

    • Privacy Policy
    • Terms & Conditions
    • Accessibility Statement

    FOLLOW US

    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest

    ABOUT

    • Contact
    • About

    As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

    Copyright © 2025 Cook Fast, Eat Well.