I come from a big Italian family and every Sunday we get together for pasta dinner. As far back as I can remember my mother would make sauce, or as we call it “gravy,” from scratch on Sunday mornings. We never have jarred sauce in the pantry at my house. Going to college though, I don’t have to time to go home every Sunday for my mom’s gravy and I certainly don’t have time to make it myself. Sometimes I luck out and my mom will send me back with gravy when I go home, but I still crave pasta while I’m away at school. So I decided that even though it might break my families hearts, I was going to make pasta with jarred pasta sauce. It can’t be that bad, right? I know there are tons of students in the same boat as me, so i have tried out five different popular brands of jarred sauce and am going to share the results with you. The outcome might surprise you.
1. Bertolli Tomato & Basil
Calories: 80 per 1/2 cup
Price: $2.29
This was a bad first sauce to taste. It was nasty and made me almost reconsider my theory that pasta sauce from a jar might be edible. It was watery, acidy and it bared NO resemblance to the gravy I was use to at all. Scared that maybe it was my taste buds, I had a few friends, who are also fellow college students, Samantha Kresz, 19 and Tyrell Thomas, 20, taste the Bertolli sauce too. My thoughts were confirmed. Tyrell took one taste of the sauce and said, “This is awful.” Sam’s disgusted face said it all. Bottom line, avoid this sauce at all cost.
2. Market Pantry Tomato, Basil and Garlic Sauce (Target brand)
Calories: 80 per 1/2 cup
Price: 50 cents
I picked the Target brand sauce mainly because with a coupon they provided in the store, a box of the Market Pantry pasta and a jar of the sauce was only a dollar. It actually surprised me. It was good! Ten times better than the Bertolli sauce. It was thicker and tasted more like tomatoes. I actually enjoyed eating it and could taste the basil. Plus, it doesn’t hurt how cheap it is. Thumbs up.
3. Giada de Laurentiis for Target- Tomato and Basil Pasta Sauce
Calories: 100 per 1/2 cup
Price: $2.99
I’m a huge fan of Giada and her cooking show on Food Network, so I had high expectations for her pasta sauce. Not to mention the awards it’s won and the praise it has gotten. Unfortunately, I was not impressed. It was nowhere near as bad as the Bertolli sauce, but I really thought it was going to taste like the sauce my mom makes. In my opinion you are paying for the name. It was a little too spicy and tasted a lot like regular tomato paste to me. A lot of people would disagree with me, but not Tyrell and Sam. We all agreed that the Target generic brand was better. I would suggest saving your money and skipping this one because it did not live up to the hype.
4. Ragu Traditional
Calories: 80 per 1/2 cup
Price: $1.50
Just like I heard great things about Giada’s sauce, I heard nothing but bad things about Ragu. Don’t listen to all of it. It has a simple and basic taste, but it isn’t bad. It wouldn’t be my first choice, but surprisingly I would pick it over Giada’s and Bertolli’s. It tastes sweet, but is a little watery.
5. Prego Tomato Basil Garlic
Calories: 80 per 1/2 cup
Price: $1.92
This hands down was my favorite. You could taste herbs and spices in it, but it wasn’t overpowering. It also had a nice, thick texture and wasn’t watery at all. Sam said, “Wow this is delicious.” We all had second helpings of the pasta with the Prego sauce. Did it taste like the sauce I’m use to? Not quite. But, it was definitely a good second best for when I’m away at school.
Agree? Disagree? Have other jarred sauces you think are amazing or disgusting? Leave me a comment to let me know!