What's Your Favorite Bottled Pasta Sauce?

[hjshorter]

With all the Otto and Batali talk I thought Id pick up some of his bottled sauces this weekend at Trader Joes.  Good idea or not - and is there a particular kind I should steer toward or away from.  thanks

After an in-store tasting of the aarabiatta (decent), I picked up a jar of each Batali flavor at TJ's yesterday. One thing we noticed - they are several ounces smaller than the standard jar, like Classico, or Barilla. I guess this in keeping with his "sauce as condiment" aesthetic.

[dbrociner]

the recipe on the jar of the Batali fennel sauce for chicken thighs is an excellent use for the sauce. I haven't had it as a pasta sauce so I can't comment. I have used the Patsy's Marinara doctored way up with onions, pancetta and parmigano regg and I like it. I have to admit that canned tomatoes doctored with onions, pancetta and parm would probably be just as good and a lot less money. Kings had the Patsy's line on sale at 50% off a few weeks ago, now its back to being $8 or $9 a bottle depending on the variety.

[foodie52]

It was Monari with balsamic vinegar I think.

I've seen the Mom's sauce being made, Jaymes.....Fischer and Wieser bought them out and make it in F'burg.

I was being given a tour of the plant and just "happened" to see the recipe that was lying on a table. I saw the "secret" ingredient that makes Mom's great. I was told ( only half seriously!) that I would have to be killed if I passed on the secret.....

So....having the desire to live a long and healthy life, my lips are sealed!

ooopssss. I mean

[Belmont3]

Barilla works fine, jazz it up a bit and you have a nearly acceptable sauce(for bottled)

[thebaker]

Back in my macy*s days we carried a number of *better* brands....

I miss the old macy's cellar........

the new one is terrible.

but then thats another thread.

[nyfirepatrolchef]

I miss the old macy's cellar........

the new one is terrible.

but then thats another thread.

Which Marketplace Dept was the one you went to?

I spent almost three years at the one at macy*s Roosevelt Field.

Sad thing is they were running a food operation with a retail mentality...and it just didnt work. The Department closed in July (17th if I recall) of '97, seven months after I left for the Fire Patrol.

[Bashful3]

Have you ever checked the salt content on some of these sauces? My goal is to find a tasty jarred sauce, low in salt, that still tastes good. I often go for lowest salt content, and doctor it up with good tasting stuff like sweet sausage and garlic.

[awbrig]

had the Batalli basic marinara sauce last night that we purchased from TJ's...I guess my expectations were high being my first Batali product that Ive tasted but I was very disappointed...not a great sauce...

[Jaymes]

Have you ever checked the salt content on some of these sauces?  My goal is to find a tasty jarred sauce, low in salt, that still tastes good.  I often go for lowest salt content, and doctor it up with good tasting stuff like sweet sausage and garlic.

Don't know if it's available in your area, but Timpone's Organic Sauce fits your bill perfectly, and it's very, very good.

If it's not available where you are, you can undoubtedly order a case of it to keep on hand, but that probably negates considerable of the "convenience" factor that is really the only advantage of a jarred sauce.

It comes in several varieties. I happen to currently have a jar of the "Original" variety.

The ingredients:

Organic Italian Tomatoes

Fresh Organic Onions

Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Fresh Organic Basil Leaves

Sea Salt

Herbs

Vitamin E

And that's it.

No sugar at all; not too much salt; very fresh. Delicious.

[ChefJeff]

For all you Mom's fans....

Made a mad dash at Costco for lunch to see if the 2000 Bordeaux had arrived (not !)

Was pleasantly surprised to find Costco now carrying Moms Garlic & Basil pasta sauce.

2 jars for $7.99.

[Jaymes]

For all you Mom's fans....

Made a mad dash at Costco for lunch to see if the 2000 Bordeaux had arrived (not !)

Was pleasantly surprised to find Costco now carrying Moms Garlic & Basil pasta sauce. 

2 jars for $7.99.

Cool. Wonder if they carry Timpone's? Same company, same family - but Timpone's is kind of an "organic" "gourmet" version.

[bushey]

I like to keep a few jars of tomato & basil sauce on the shelf. I choose either Barilla or Classico -- whichever is cheaper with coupons. I use it on my homemade pizza dough or for a quick pasta dinner on rushed nights.

Last night I made a great puttanesca with the Barilla. I sauteed onions and garlic in olive oil, added some mashed anchovies and red pepper flakes, then dumped in 3/4 jar of the sace and let it cook down a bit. Then I added in some green and ripe olives, the kind from an olive bar. Mmmm, mmmm good.

[Ron Johnson]

Last night I made a great puttanesca with the Barilla. I sauteed onions and garlic in olive oil, added some mashed anchovies and red pepper flakes, then dumped in 3/4 jar of the sace and let it cook down a bit. Then I added in some green and ripe olives, the kind from an olive bar.  Mmmm, mmmm good.

This is similar to what I do except I just use a can of the crushed San Marzano tomatoes or the Pomi crushed tomatoes.

[KatieLoeb]

I agree with the busy folks here. In the summer time I can go to the Italian Market and buy a peck of overripe tomatoes for next to nothing and make a cauldron of sauce and freeze a lot of it. But in the winter time, the tomatoes are bland mealy nasty things I wouldn't give a second look. Having the canned/jarred stuff around to doctor up makes my busy life that much more tolerable and keeps me from having dinner at midnight! I'm fond of the Muir Glen organic tomatoes myself, as well as the Healthy Choice jarred sauce. Not too much salt or sugar. Once I doctor it up with some canned diced tomatoes for texture, some herbs and sauteed veggies, you'd never know it wasn't homemade. I also make a mean Turkey Bolognese that's pretty healthy too. Good stuff on short notice!

[Richard Kilgore]

I took the tip from you "Mom's" posters and tried the Mom's Putanesca Sauce. Not bad. Not bad at all. I was surprised. No sugar, but several whole cloves of garlic.

Edited March 5, 2003 by Richard Kilgore (log)

[Richard Kilgore]

The edit button has disappeared, so here's an addition to the last post.

The ingredients for Mom's Puttanesca:

"Tomatoes, olives, fresh carrots, fresh garlic, olive oil, real butter, real cream, fresh basil, capers, sea salt, pepper, anchovies, Vitamin E (soy)." Three bucks a jar.

As is it was okay, and with added sauted minced garlic, onion, yellow pepper, and mushrooms in EVOO plus micro-wave steamed zucini, plus sea salt, pepper, and basalmic, and simmered for a mere ten minutes, it was a great deal better than okay.

Cost me no extra time (overall) over using it straight from the jar. Saved me about 20 minutes over making it from scratch, and many nights 20 minutes counts.

[awbrig]

lately, if its not Raos marinara sauce, im really complaining of the sauce. I think that Raos sauce has heroin in it or something because its addicting...

[tommy]

Jerry's sauce, from jerry's gourmet in Englewood, NJ, is quite good. and at 6 bucks, it's not too expensive (as opposed to Rao's at 9 bucks). i have to assume this stuff isn't available much outside of their store, which is a shame. i think they're missing an opportunity there.

[tryska]

paul newmans sockarooni with cut up and browned hot italian sausage in it.

[Rebecca263]

OK, I'm in the process of deciding on a new career. I'm old enough to have had a few already, and this time around I want something completely different than my past ones. I've decided (for now) on outside sales, in the grocery field.

The company that is wooing me right now has a few tomato sauces in their fold. Some US$7-8 jars of tomato sauce. I've never bought tomato sauce in a jar. I'm fascinated by this stuff! At every store that I visit now, I am completely enamored of the sauce aisle. And, MANY people buy sauce in a jar! There are almost a hundred different brands, from US$.99 for 24 ounce jar to almost US$10 for an 18 ounce jar.

Tell us, do you buy your sauce at times? And, is it better than homemade? AND, what are your favorites? I feel a taste test coming!

[Basilgirl]

Barilla is very good. They are coming out with new "restaurant style" sauces that contain a tomato base in one jar and a regional add-in in the other jar.

Bertolli is also good. I haven't tried Patsy's or Rao's because I just can't spend that much money on something that is so easy to throw together from scratch. But I definitely keep bottled on hand, it's great for a quick chicken parmesan or as a base for you to add whatever you want, and Barilla gets my vote. Try to make sure that the ingredient list is pure, i.e., no corn syrup or nasty preservatives.

[jgm]

If it's a sauce designed to be used "as is" on pasta, etc., such as a spaghetti sauce or a marinara sauce, I've never found one in a jar that I've liked. I have friends who use these sauces as starting points, and add various seasonings, etc., believing that they're taking some sort of tasty shortcut. I've never tasted what they've produced that way, but I don't see the point, when one could start with a plain tomato sauce and just season from there.

I do buy small cans of plain tomato sauce for making meatloaf, but that may change since I received a food mill from Mr. jgm for Christmas, and 10 tomato plants are planted, just waiting to thrill me. Plain tomato sauce, since it's meant to be one of several components in a dish, is fine when you don't have homemade.

[Cleo]

I agree that Barilla is pretty good. But I will admit that lately I have been buying Rao's marinara for $7.99. Yes, it's expensive, but it is damn tasty! I just bought it out of curiosity, and now I'm hooked.

[Briarhill]

Personally, I've found Escalon's Bella Rossa canned Tuscan Tomato and Herb Pasta Sauce (Escalon) to be far better than any of the jarred sauces I've tried. It's very fresh-tasting and far cheaper ($2.50 for a 28-ounce can when 6 or more are ordered). Just my $.02.

[moosnsqrl]

As mentioned above, if it's just a base on which to build, Barilla is good as is Muir Glen (flavor and texture consistent and they don't put a lot of *stuff* in it). Also, in aseptic packaging, are Pomi brand and they're pretty unadulterated as well.