20 Best Tomatoes For Pasta Sauce (2023 Updated)

I wanted to know the difference between Rao’s Tomato & Basil and Marinara sauces, so I found out and will share the info here. The ingredients are the same, but the ratios are different. In this one, there is more basil, less oil, fewer calories (80 vs 100 per serving–which is significant), and the sauce is smoother (Marinara is unexpectedly SLIGHTLY ‘chunkier’).

In other words, the “Tomato” part of “Tomato Basil” seems spurious; there are no ‘chunks’ of tomatos in Tomato Basil. And both HAVE basil, Tomato Basil just has more. You can visually see this, comparing two jars.

So, they should change the name from “Tomato Basil” to “Extra Basil” in my mind, lol. And yes, you could add extra basil yourself. Also, I noticed visually that the Marinara had more onion, even though the two list them at the same place on the ingredients list.

Side-by-side, I can actually visually see the Marinara oil globs in the jar, while I don’t see any oil globs for what I’ll call now the Extra Basil version. Deliberating on whether it’s worth the extra money (it’s already extremely expensive), my partner and I are considering the extra money might be worth it just to have fewer fat calories (pay more to get less, in a way).

My partner hypothesized that they don’t need to add as much fat to get a good flavor in the Basil version, due to the extra herb. It’s logical, but I don’t know. All I know is I didn’t miss the oil in the Basil.

Tasting both blind (I’ve tried both versions in 2 days, so it’s fresh in my mind), I would have actually said the Extra Basil has more fat, just by the flavor and texture. Taste- and texture-wise, the Extra Basil version tastes to me more like a pizza sauce (I love pizza sauce).

Though you could use the Marinara as pizza sauce too. I’ve tried many bespoke pizza sauces that didn’t taste as much what I think of as ‘pizza sauce’ as the Basil. When you open the jar, it smells like ‘a good pizzeria’.

I’ve never had a pasta sauce I could just eat with a spoon, until now. I joked with a friend: “I can just skip the pasta!” Rao’s does make a pizza sauce, and I either haven’t tried it yet, or I can’t remember when I did (I think I’ve tried every pizza sauce sold here).

Rao’s pizza sauce has tweaked ingredients (adds carrots and cherry tomatos, probably for sweetness and tartness). But I’d venture to guess the biggest difference is the size of the jar, as you supposedly need less sauce to make a pizza (not in my book).

I’d have zero hesitation to use the Extra Basil version instead, especially if I were needing more than 1 jar of regular pizza sauce (and it would actually save money). While I’m at it: Cento is the budget leader in pizza sauce, Rao’s is the quality leader (in my book).

Cento, while very good for canned sauce, and while having the exact same ingredients, to my memory is less flavorful, seems ‘waterier’, and more like a straight tomato sauce. Rao’s is just something different.

I’ve also found opened Rao’s to stay good in the fridge for a long time, something you can’t do with cans. Speaking of ingredients, Rao’s uses real olive oil, and doesn’t add sugar. Actually so does Cento.

Both Marinara and ‘Extra Basil’ are incredible sauces–either is by far better than anything prefab I’ve ever had. In fact, that’s true of all Rao’s tomato sauces, although the variations are less-obvious.

For instance, I just shrugged at the ‘Vodka’ version, and its extra cost (“tasted like Rao’s”). The Arrabbiata version seems to be just “Rao’s” with red pepper flake, for heat. Although with Tomato Basil, the differences go a bit beyond the extra basil.

If you’re balking at the price, try 1 jar of either. If you want a sauce more like fresh stewed tomatos made on your stovetop, where tomatos are the star of the show, get the Marinara. If you want something SLIGHTLY ‘thicker’/smoother and a LITTLE more emphasis on spice (not heat), more like a pizza sauce or storebought pasta sauce, or you just want less fat, try the Marinara.

Can’t go wrong with either.

This is my typical to go so sauce when I don’t have time to make my own. I loved the flavor and trusted the brand and ingredients used. Yesterday I went and purchased 2 cans to use. When I opened them at home, some weird dried flaky stuff fell on my hands and all over my pasta.

When I looked closely it looked like dry worms or some type of small, dried up bugs. Dissapointed and slightly disgusted as this has never happened before. I always check my expiration dates and it looked good.

I usually trust this brand anyways. It was frustrating I had to throw away all my food. I went back to the store to report this. I initially asked if I could replace the bottles with 2 new ones instead of a refund so I went the aisle and when I grabbed a new can I noticed it also had dried up bugs on the lid and bottom.

There were at least 3 more bottles that looked the same. I checked their expiration date and it was for the year 2025 so it was odd they went bad. I decided to get a refund instead. Careful when purchasing and hopefully the sauces have all been checked and taken off the shelf.

A little discouraged after this experience to repurchase this brand. Thank you to target employees for the assistance.

I was happy to try the Gourmet Pasta Sauce by Primal Kitchen, I got free from social nature and I absolutely love this sauce. I had never heard of this brand before so I was excited to add a new flavor to my dishes.

I picked up the Tomato Basil Marinara Sauce because that’s the only flavor I saw available. I love making dishes with different pasta sauces so this came in handy at the right time. I like that this sauce was gluten free and mixed with avocado oil which is healthy to consume.

There were no artificial flavors or added sugar that some of the other sauces I used before had in it. I made traditional spaghetti and meatballs with sauce, as well as lasagna and the family all approved and said that it tasted great.

The sauce was not too thick or thin but just the right amount of texture needed to mix in the dishes. I told friends about the pasta sauce and they tried the other flavors and also agreed that the different flavors made their dishes taste good.

I will definitely go back and buy more flavors to cook in different dishes because I want to try them out. I highly recommend everyone to try this sauce because compared to other brands I tried, this one was absolutely great! Kudos to a great brand from this wonderful company and I look forward to trying the other products they make.

I received a coupon from Social Nature for a Primal Kitchen pasta sauce, and decided to get the No-Dairy Garlic Alfredo Sauce to cook up some shrimp fettuccine. It’s a nice, simple dish that’s tasty and allowed me to more easily feel out the flavour of the sauce.

Season and cook the shrimp, adding the sauce toward the very end, boil the fettuccine with a touch of Himalayan salt, add some pepper and Italian seasoning, and it’s done! The sauce has a good, smooth consistency, though the avocado oil base creates a tendency for the sauce to want to slide off what you are trying to eat sometimes.

Minor thing. If you really like the flavour of garlic, this variety is for you; it is *very* pronounced. When coupled with the already strong taste of Primal Kitchen’s take on Alfredo sauce, it makes for a very flavourful sauce.

You may want to try the basic No-Dairy Alfredo Sauce variety if strong garlic isn’t your thing. Overall, this is a good sauce. I only rated 4/5 because there are some minor drawbacks, like the oil base mentioned above and the hint of an aftertaste that wasn’t excellent.

Those who don’t care for garlic won’t appreciate this either. However, for those who do, the main flavour paired really well with the shrimp, and I will be purchasing again. I suggest you give it a try as well.

#trynatural.

Very easy product to mix into a wonderful, flavorful sauce. Have used this sauce mix for years, my family really enjoys it. If no tomatoes on hand: use 4 cans tomato paste, 7 cups of water, and 1/4 cup sugar(recipe used to be on package).

I do a lot of canning. I have used this product for over 30 years. We love the favor, and the basic ingredients that I can read. It keeps well as a canned product and is great in all of my recipes. I would not used any other product with my non sprayed, garden fresh tomatoes.

Thank you for making such a great product.

Alfredo is already super yummy as is. When I seen they had this roasted garlic I definitely fell in love with the classico brand. Its thick, creamy, and flavorful. I prefer to pair this sauce with shrimp, scallops, broccoli and mushrooms over shells or macaroni.

Charing the veggies add so much more depth of flavor into the sauce its unbelievable. I also use it as dipping sauce. If you roast some russet wedges or even red potatoes the Alfredo as a dip is delicious.

Pour it over them fresh out the oven and you’ll have some creamy melty goodness on your hands. They are always priced well or apart of a deal; either but one get on or 2 for $4. Ill take either or honestly, because you can never have too much jarred sauce.

I really prefer homemade sauces and usually it doesn’t take much time to make a simple sauce from scratch if I use canned tomatoes to start with. It’s not always an option though. My husband lived in Italy for a few years and can be very picky about tomato sauces as well so finding good convenient ones is a little trickier.

The first thing I look for in a jarred sauce is that it’s not too sweet. A lot of jarred sauces suffer from too much sugar so you can’t taste all the flavors of the sauce itself, much less what you put it on.

So I look for ingredients similar to what I’d use. This sauce is made from tomato puree, diced tomatoes, onions, salt, basil, garlic, olive oil and other seasonings in trace amounts. Pretty close to what I put into mine except I’m also nuts for oregano.

There are nice sized chunks of tomatoes in the sauce and it’s liquid enough. The flavor is good, the garlic and onions aren’t overpowering and it doesn’t have that off taste that some sauces can have.

It does taste pretty fresh. It’s great for quick meals. Poured over chicken breasts and topped with cheese, or baking fresh ravioli in it are two of the meals my family makes when I can’t cook. We always keep a couple jars on hand for that reason.

It also makes a decent pizza sauce when my daughter wants quick pizzas.

I love the Classico line of pasta sauces. I use it in anything needing tomato sauce or canned tomatoes like spaghetti, soups, meat loaf, pizza, etc. I usually purchase several jars at a time, online, because some stores don’t always have the flavors I want.

The added bonus is that I reuse the 24 oz jar to can foods in. I had never had a problem with my orders until this last one. I was shocked when I slid the box across the deck where the Fed-ex delivery man left it.

I could hear glass clinking together. I cautiously opened the box thinking there were broken jars. I removed a wad of brown paper from the top of the box expecting to find the jars wrapped in the mesh cardboard that is usually the norm.

Instead there were 8 jars, a couple on their sides, but the rest right side up and not a scrap of paper even separating the jars. The jars weren’t even stabilized to keep them from moving around in the extra space in the box.

I was shocked that they all weren’t broken. Some did have dented places in the lids. I used the worst looking one today, but the jar wasn’t chipped. I won’t know on the others until I use them. It’s a million wonders they all weren’t ruined.

I was lucky mine were all intact. Fed-ex deserves a medal for getting the box here safely. The packer deserves a reprimand for being so neglectful.

I buy these tomatoes almost every time I place an order to have them on hand. Organic, Non-GMO, Non-BPA Lining, and no extra added ingredients. We use them to make a super easy, but really good pasta sauce.

For really quick sauce, I just use a can of these tomatoes and add in spices or any fresh herbs on hand. For added protein and extra veggies, saute chopped onions, carrots, and garlic in a saucepan. Add in some ground Italian sausage and cook until browned.

Next, add in a can of these tomatoes & some basil, oregano, garlic powder, salt & pepper to taste. Let simmer for a few minutes and then add in some fresh spinach and simmer until it wilts. Sometimes I also add in red pepper flakes for an extra spicy kick too.

So easy, fresh, clean, and nutritious!.

These have the best flavor for can tomatoes, refuse to use anything else now. These are taste like I freshly picked out of well grown garden. At the very peak of ripeness. I have to control myself when I have them in cabinet or opening to use.

I can eat these straight out of can cold, and have flashbacks as a kid of picking them straight of vine and standing there eating on the spot. They don’t drop flavor when used in soups or stews. The are worth any amount of money to me.

A good tomato flavor is hard to find now days!!!!.

The best tinned spaghetti, good flavour and a sensible mix of spaghetti and tomato sauce. The spaghetti isn’t the shortcut pieces quite often found in other makes, fine by me though. Perfect for spaghetti on toast.

Muir Glen – a name synonymous with pasta sauces and pasta related recipes. It for years, has been our favorite and relied upon ingredient. The entire line is our first go-to for great dishes. So superior to most all others and can be relied upon.

Saves time and money, and so comforting not to think through other options. An all around no brainer.

I have been patiently waiting for this to come back in stock, and when I saw this, I thought “put it on as many orders as you can”. That was UNTIL I read the ingredients and saw they added OLIVE OIL.

ONE ingredient I CANNOT HAVE. It causes me more problems than it’s worth. The plus is Muir Glen still makes great canned tomatoes, so I’ll go back to making my own again, but rather defeats the purpose of having a ready made sauce that I can just heat up.

It is my solemn wish that companies realise that some of us can’t take olive oil-and the numbers are growing!.

Taste HORRIBLE like it’s been sitting in a warehouse for a very long time! DO NOT BUY: Don’t be fooled by the pretty packaging and expensive brand name! NEVER buying, again! These got trashed, where they belong!.

It’s disgusting! It tastes even cheaper than the price tag it goes for. It’s way too sweet and there’s absolutely nothing natural about it, except maybe for the tin taste. Yes, I can taste the tin – as can the kids.

We bought six of these cans not known any better and the other five we simply chucked in the garbage. Yeah, it could have gone to the food bank, I guess, but I couldn’t do that to people who deserve better.

I purchase the Great Value tomato sauce regularly from Walmart. I use it mainly for making chili. These tomato sauce is excellent- the taste is so fresh and tomato-y goodness! It’s perfect for making chili or any other dish.

The cost is cheaper than the name brand and tastes just as good or better. I do recommend this item!.

well I don’t want to complain about my missing items but this is twice you have not felled all of my order. Really it is good that I had extra tomatoes sauce I just don’t think I have enough cause it’s my birthday today and I was having a Mexican dinner 6 people ,enchiladas,mexican rice ,refried beans,beef soft tacos, need sauce for rice , enchilada, only have4 small ones.

I hope I have enough.

This stuff is heaven. I eat it hot or cold. Because of the red pepper content, it actually tastes good cold, unlike a marinara sauce. Tastes great on pasta or veggies, even alongside tahini. Don’t know what I’ll do now that it’s sold out.

I love it that much.

Think pasta sauce is “just pasta sauce,” and “pasta is just pasta”? Think again! Tonight, I was tempted to just go out for dinner, but I did have some homemade meat balls in the frig. I opened the can of this sauce, and boiled al dente the Casareccia Pasta from Rustichella d’Abruzzo, made a salad, and in about 20 minutes I had a meal as fabulous as a 5 star restaurant in the heart of Italy.

This sauce is smooth, and flavorful, and “just right” in every regard – not too sweet, not too tart – just heavenly. I want to put some more in my cart, immediately. I did NOT put any grated cheese on it – I didnt want to obscure the divine flavor of this sauce.

Oh, yes – a bottle of wine from Italy didnt hurt either!.

I love this sauce – it’s not as strong as a classic puttanesca but has a wonderful and well-balanced olive flavor and tastes as fresh as can be. My only misgiving is that the jar is small – even using two jars it’s not really quite enough for a full 500g package of pasta (though I do like a lot of sauce, it might work for others).

Just be aware each jar only includes a little over a cup of sauce. I’d like to see this in a 12 ounce jar instead of 10 but flavor-wise it’s off the chart!.