These days, back-to-school season conjures up grade school memories of school lunch. I know American cafeteria school lunch is quite terrible and blah blah blah, but back then, school lunch was kind of a treat. Social media wasn't a thing, so modern age moms weren't concerned about "how do I make my kid's school lunch more healthy yet appealing so they'll eat it?" Noooope. For years it was the standard sandwich, juice box, and maybe a snack of some sort. Then sometime close to senior year in high school, I started requesting lunchbox (便當) food, as in homecooked Chinese food. No, I don't have some scarring experience of getting weird stares or "ewwwww gross" reactions in the cafeteria because of my "exotic ethnic food" as some of my fellow Asian-Americans have had. Actually, I had some sort of epiphany regarding my ethnic identity* and the fact that even though my mom isn't the world's greatest chef (not a knock on her cooking. Just a fact y'all), her food held some semblance of home and I would find myself missing it when I went away for college. And fast forward to 2018 - I see food blogs incorporating Asian flavors into everyday lunch boxes because it's modern and cool to be into other cultures or whatever. And you can walk into Trader Joe's, look through the ice cream, and walk out with things you would otherwise only find in an Asian grocery store. Progress y'all, progress.
(*not in a fully confident, actualized way because y'know, adolescent identity struggles, but enough to accept my Taiwanese-Americanness and embrace it as my own.)
A note on supermarket mochi ice cream (ice cream wrapped in a chewy, glutinous rice flour dough. aka Asia's ice cream burrito) - Trader Joe's stopped carrying my favorite Mikawaya mochi ice cream and switched a few years to a vegan friendly version (which I haven't tried out of respect for my dear Mikawaya - still available at Asian grocery stores). Whole Foods has a nice mochi ice cream bar (definitely a splurge), but they too switched from a nice plump beautiful brand of mochi ice cream to a flatter, sadder looking one. And although TJs does have a decent selection (the coffee version is still available), I don't usually buy mochi ice cream from there anymore because they don't have ones that suit my taste preferences. With that said, my hat's off to TJ's for carrying an Asian flavor that I haven't really seen even at Asian grocery stores. YAY for TJ's for carrying an Asian flavor not just because it's Asian but because Thai tea is simply delicious.
Thai Tea mini mochi ice cream from THAILAND. HOW FITTING. Lactose-free and colored with...beet juice powder and beta-carotene color? Niiiice. Traditional Thai tea mixes use artificial colorings to achieve that signature orangey-tan-brown-ish color, so we'll see if the color lives up to its signature look.
I suspect this is manufactured by the same supplier that did the mini mango mochi from a few summers ago. The presentation isn't particularly impressive - but that's totally okay. This is the type of thing you pick up on a whim and consume in the parking lot with your friends, because why not?
1. It's an established fact - I'm not a huge fan of the thin mochi wrapping that is typical of most TJ mochi ice creams. But a few years have passed, and I've gotten over it.
2. The Thai tea flavor hits the spot for me - stronger on the Assam tea flavor, not as strong on the creamy evaporated milk part. You can't taste the coconut milk base, which I like in a non-dairy ice cream, but it still has a certain creaminess that rounds out the flavor. No, it's not as creamy as regular ice cream but I don't particularly mind in this case. It's also sweet but not overly sweet - perfect for someone like me who likes bittersweet ice cream flavors, like coffee or green tea.
3. In this case, the thin mochi wrapper works as a simple vehicle for the main thing, the Thai tea ice cream. When the filling is as good as it is, it deserves the spotlight.
4. As always, the powdered sugar keeping the mochi from sticking to the packaging gets everywhere. Oh well. That's what dogs and vacuums are for. :P
$3.49 for a box of 12 mini mochis. On par with typical grocery store prices and a fair price for the value of the product. Stamp of approval on this one y'all.
TL;DR: Trader Joe's Thai Tea Mini Mochi. Little mochi parsels of non-dairy Thai tea ice cream. Thai tea lovers, y'all need to get on this. 8 out of 10. Mantou Joe repurchase? For my Thai Tea loving friends, absolutely yes.
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