Wondering about the mini naanpanadas at ALDI? This ALDI Find is tasty, yet pricey — see my ALDI mini naanpanadas review and thoughts below.
Now that I’m not shopping ALDI as often and we’re cooking at home all.the.time, my food impulse buys sometimes get a little… well… more impulsive. When I do go and stock up, things like Journey to India butter chicken mini naanpanadas might jump right into my cart.
No, I don’t usually spend $4.79 on little boxes of appetizers, but sometimes? We just have to treat ourselves, especially when we shop hungry. 🙂 2023 update — they’re up to $4.99 this go-round…
Butter chicken, naan, and empanadas all count themselves among my favorite foods, sooooo… here’s a little review of Journey to India mini naanpanadas.
Mini Naanpanadas come in butter chicken or chickpea curry
Look for butter chicken or chickpea curry Journey to India mini naanpanadas as a limited time ALDI Find in the freezer section. I chose butter chicken, because I’m very missing the occasional trip to my favorite Indian lunch buffet (where it’s one of the delicious staples).
These mini naanpanadas appear to be knockoffs of Chef Bombay mini butter chicken naanpanadas. What gives this away? Well, not only is the Journey to India product also made in Canada, but “naanpanadas” is a registered trademark of Aliya’s Foods Ltd., which also makes Chef Bombay. (I’ve never had the Chef Bombay ones; it doesn’t look like they’re available in my area…)
Our ALDI mini naanpanadas review
ALDI occasionally carries mini samosas as a special buy, but mini naanpanadas differ from those. Their crust is closer to an empanada than to a samosa (or to naan, despite the name), and the butter chicken filling is mixed with mozzarella cheese.
Typically, Journey to India mini naanpanadas were nowhere near as full of chicken as the photo on the box might lead you to believe. They weren’t skimpy, per se, but I would have preferred a slightly higher filling to crust ratio — especially with the thicker empanada-style crust.
Please don’t cook the sauce packet — It’s just there to show scale!
Each box contains 12 mini naanpanadas plus tamarind dipping sauce. We did thaw and taste the sauce, but no one here thought it was necessary to the experience. I cooked up our naanpanadas in the toaster oven as a pre-dinner appetizer (400 degrees for 14-15 minutes, flipping halfway through). Be sure to let them cool for a couple minutes before serving so that you don’t burn the heck out of your mouth!
Theoretically, 12 mini naanpanadas equals three servings: Four pieces and 1 Tbsp of sauce (which we ended up tossing) clock in at 220 calories. With two teenage boys in this house, though, all 12 disappeared in about two minutes. I was only able to snag a couple, which seems hardly fair, right? 🙂
Yes, but how did they taste?
Butter chicken naanpanadas are delicious, with a little more kick to them than I expected from a frozen appetizer. They definitely pack in the butter chicken flavor you’d want, while the addition of mozzarella helps keep them moist. Both kids also really enjoyed these; I got a YUM out of Middle School Guy and a “not bad” out of the slightly more jaded High School Guy.
Would I pay $4.79 for these again, though? Probably not. We liked them a lot, but almost $5 is too pricey for this little box. It got me me thinking, though: The next time I have butter chicken, the leftovers would be awesome in quesadillas, or on pizza, or…
Have you tried the mini naanpanadas?
What do you think of Journey to India naanpanadas? Let me know! And, what have you impulse bought on an ALDI grocery stock up trip lately?