These Foods Are T.J. Maxx's Best Kept Secrets

Did you even know T.J. Maxx sells food? Many shoppers don't, hence the whole "best kept secret" thing. When you think of similar stores like Marshalls and T.J. Maxx, which happened to under the same corporate umbrella, you probably think of super cute, bargain-priced clothes, beauty products, and housewares (although not everything at the bargain retailer is a great deal.) If you're an online-only kind of shopper, then that's about all you're going to get from the T.J. Maxx website, too.

If, however, you prefer to get "the Maxx for the minimum" in-store, then here's a new shopping hack for you: be sure to venture outside your usual aisles into the far reaches of the store where they keep their incredible edibles. Stock up on luxury groceries at bargain-basement prices, then sneak out of the store feeling like you've just gotten away with something slightly naughty. Ha, now you can throw that snob-appeal dinner party, and no-one will ever know you didn't have to Maxx out your credit cards to pay for those gourmet goodies!

Each T.J. Maxx carries different amounts of different items, a strategy Bon Appetit says is quite intentional in order to create that "FOMO" feeling where you simply must by before something sells out. But one thing they do tend to have a decent supply of is high-quality olive oils (and, according to Taste of Home, vinegars as well), all looking so pretty in their sparkling glass bottles filled with colorful liquids.

Refinery29 also enthused over a non-infused oil, the award-winning certified single-origin Bono brand that T.J.'s priced a good $5 below its usual rate. They found it selling for $9.99 for a one-liter bottle, so it made their list of T.J. Maxx food finds under ten bucks.

T.J. Maxx is also the place to go to find all kinds of spices and flavorings you never even knew existed. Bon Appetit pictures butternut squash pasta sauce and speaks of honey horseradish Dijon mustard, while Taste of Home reveals there's such a thing as "bacon spice." (Perhaps leftover from the Spice Girls reunion tour?) Refinery29 found a selection of Indian sauces including tikka masala and Kashmiri curry; dried lemon peel, shallots, and herbes de Provence; and an array of specialty salts including Mediterranean sea salt and something purporting to be the purest pink Himalayan salt on Earth.

If high-end jelly's your jam, T.J.'s the place to go. Refinery29 found Sarabeth's strawberry rhubarb spreadable fruit going for under $7, while it usually sells for $9. They also discovered a cache of honey that would have made Winnie the Pooh swoon, several varieties of which were even packaged in "collectible drinkware."

If you prefer pancakes to toast, T.J. Maxx also carries flavored syrups of the kind that can no longer be found on IHOP's tables. Who needs IHOP, anyway? Whip up these super-easy 3-ingredient pancakes, then pour on some T.J. Maxx-sourced syrup for an indulgent breakfast that's worth every single carb and calorie.

Taste of Home went snack shopping at T.J. Maxx, and oh, what a haul they found! Peanut butter pretzels, habanero salsa, asiago three-seed crackers, lime fresco and black truffle-flavored popcorn...and, for the health-conscious, hemp seed snacks and kale chips. Plus, for dessert, who could resist luxury chocolates, pecan praline cookies, and dark chocolate biscotti? If you're more of a DIY type when it comes to baking, T.J. Maxx also carries designer-label cake mixes including those from XO Baking Company and Martha Stewart.

If you want to have a real grown-up-style cocktail party, start by shopping at T.J. Maxx. Sure, you can begin by finding the perfect outfit (with shoes to match, natch), but be sure to check out the selection of glass-jarred foodstuffs where Refinery29 says you can find anything from blue cheese-stuffed olives to spicy bruschetta mix to pickled brussels sprouts (somebody must like those). Plus, you can also get super-cheap caviar! Ok, so it's not exactly Beluga, but it will still look swanky sprinkled atop a deviled egg.