Marinara Sauce

Test Date: November 2010

Testers: Michele


Products for this test purchased at Costco, Whole Foods, Trader Joe's, and Fred Meyer.

MICHELE'S OPINION: This was a really tough test, probably just because there were so many options to try. Frankly, none of them were that good or natural tasting. I've always bought Classico in the past but I can't say that I will from now on. None of them were terrible, but only the two winners below tasted anywhere close to natural and homemade. All others had an astringent or fake taste that was a turnoff. Maybe its time for me to start working on a homemade marinara recipe! Read on for more details....

Price comparison for 25oz of sauce (store first, then brand)
$6.99 Whole Foods Cucina Antica
$6.99 Whole Foods Amy's
$4.99 Whole Foods Walnut Acres
$4.49 Whole Foods Muir Glen
$3.99 Whole Foods OrganicVille
$3.55 Fred Meyer Prego
$3.28 Fred Meyer Bertolli
$2.50 Fred Meyer Barilla
$2.50 Fred Meyer Newman's Own
$2.49 Fred Meyer Ragu
$2.29 Whole Foods 365 Organic
$2.29 Whole Foods Organic Fat Free
$2.29 Trader Joe's Trader Giotto's Organic
$1.86 Fred Meyer Classico
$1.79 Whole Foods 365 Classic
$1.79 Trader Joe's Trader Giotto's Tomato Basil Marinara
$1.79 Trader Joe's Trader Giotto's Recipe #99


1. 365 Organic Pasta Sauce Classic (Only available at Whole Foods): This sauce has much more of a roasted tomato flavor than any of the others. It has a medium chunky consistency.


2. 365 Classic Marinara Pasta Sauce (Only available at Whole Foods): This sauce is less chunky than the above and has much more of a vinegar flavor, more astringent.


3. 365 Organic Fat Free Pasta Sauce (Only available at Whole Foods): relatively chunky with lots of herbs, light flavor, not very rich.


4. Walnut Acres Organic Low Sodium Fat Free Tomato & Basil (Purchased at Whole Foods and available on Amazon Fresh; Walnut Acres website indicates that in the Seattle, WA area, this product is only available at Whole Foods): This sauce has a medium chunky consistency, but is also fairly watery. It has a strange, off flavor, actually like its gone bad or something (but the jar says good until May 2012...).


5. Cucina Antica Garlic Marinara cooking sauce (Purchased at Whole Foods and available on Amazon Fresh; Cucina Antica website indicates that other locations for purchase include Larry's Markets): This is a lightly chunky sauce with a fresh tomato flavor. There is not a ton of flavor besides tomatoes but it is really light and fresh.


6. OrganicVille Organic Pasta Sauce Marinara (Purchased at Whole Foods; Per OrganicVille website, this product is also available for purchase at select QFC, Safeway, Thrifway, Fred Meyer, and PCC locations): This sauce is both slightly watery and lightly chunky. It has a very rich herb flavor. Unfortunately, the flavor tastes a bit strange and not fresh.



7. Amy's Premium Organic Pasta Sauce Tomato Basil (Purchased at Whole Foods and available on Amazon Fresh; per Amy's website, Amy's products can also be found at Safeway, Thrifway, and Larry's Markets): One of the darkest in color, this sauce is not chunky at all but is instead simply a thick sauce. It has a lot of onion flavor with even a hint of cumin (but the ingredient list doesn't list cumin).


8. Trader Giotto's Tomato Basil Marinara (Only available at Trader Joe's): This is a thick but not chunky sauce. It tastes a little bit fake unfortunately, but maybe that's because soybean oil is the third ingredient.



9. Trader Giotto's Recipe #99 Traditional Marinara Sauce (Only available at Trader Joe's): This is a relatively thin but chunky sauce. It tastes like spaghetti sauce you get at any average cafeteria - very tomato-ey and bland.


10. Trader Giotto's Organic Marinara Sauce (Only available at Trader Joe's): This is also a thin but chunky sauce but has a good natual flavor. It is not too acidic.


11. 100% Natural Prego Traditional (Purchased at Fred Meyer and available on Amazon Fresh; product widely available): This is another one of those "not chunky but thick" sauces and has a relatively astringent flavor. There is a heavy herb flavor too; I would consider it a relatively rich tasting sauce.


12. Barilla Marinara with Imported Olive Oil (Purchased at Fred Meyer and available on Amazon Fresh; per Barilla website, this product is also available at QFC, Albertsons, and Safeway): This is a thin but chunky sauce that tastes like raw herbs with a lot of thyme. Strangely, it also has a slight sunflower oil taste, which is 8th in the ingredient list.


13. Muir Glen Organic Tomato Basil (Purchased at Whole Foods and available on Amazon Fresh; per Muir Glen website, this product is also available at QFC): This is a thick AND chunky sauce, which is not common in this tasting. The taste is a bit strange though, because there is fennel in it, which throws me for a loop. It is also heavy on the other, more traditional herb flavors. I would consider it a strong tasting sauce.



14. Old World Style Ragu Traditional (Purchased at Fred Meyer and available on Amazon Fresh; per Ragu's website, this product is also available at select QFC, Rite Aid, Albertsons, Safeway, and Target locations): This sauce is not chunky but thick and tastes like pizza sauce, like I'd expect from this brand. Translation: tomato-ey with not much else in terms of flavor.



15. Newman's Own Marinara (Purchased at Fred Meyer and available on Amazon Fresh; per Newma's Own website, this product is also available at select QFC, Albertsons, and Safeway locations): This is a very thick but not chunky sauce. But it tastes like smelly feet unfortunately. I really can't think of another way to describe it. It is really not good.



16. Bertolli Vineyard Marinara with Burgundy Wine (Purchased at Fred Meyer and available on Amazon Fresh; per Bertolli's website, this product is also available at select Albertson's, Safeway, and Target locations): This is a thin but chunky sauce with a light wine flavor. The wine does't help the sauce though the way I thought it would. It just tastes overdone.


17. Classico Tomato & Basil (Purchased at Costco, individual jar - 32oz - is $2.38; Classico website does not list other locations for purchase): This is a thin but chunky sauce with a light flavor. It is relatively astringent/acidic compared to the others.


NUTRITIONAL NOTES: (serving size: 1/2 cup) These products vary widey on multiple nutritial levels, starting with calories, which range from 36 to 90 calories per serving. The lightest-calorie products include 365 Fat Free Organic Pasta Sauce and Cucina Antica, while those with the densest calories per serving are Amy's Organic Tomato Basil, Ragu, Trader Giotto's Tomato Basil, and Bertolli. Fat ranges from none to 4.5 grams per serving, with the nonfat products being Walnut Acres and 365 Fat Free Organic, while the richest options are 365 Organic Pasta Sauce, Trader Giotto's Tomato Basil, and Amy's Organic Tomato Basil.



Sodium is really the big question mark for me in products like this, and many of these products pack in an amazing about of salt, just as I suspected. Twelve of these products have over 400mg of sodium per 1/2 cup, which is 1/3 to 1/4 of our total daily recommended salt intake. And for just 1/2 cup! Amazing! The worst offenders are Trader Giotto's Tomato Basil with 540mg, Trader Giotto's Traditional Marinara Sauce with 530mg, and Bertolli Marinara and 365 Organic with 500mg each. The best options for salt include Amy's Premium Organic with 290mg, Cucina Antica with 246mg, and Walnut Acres with only 20mg per serving.



TASTE WINNER: Trader Giotto's Organic Marinara Sauce and Cucina Antica Garlic Marinara