Saucy!

So I'm walking through Publix, my favorite local grocery store, doing a bit of shopping. I was in the pasta aisle contemplating making something with red sauce and cheese. And what catches my eye but price tag, not a sauce. A price tag. $5.99 for freaking jar of sauce? You've GOT to be kidding me.

Oh, Mario Batali. That explains it.

But what makes a jar of tomato sauce worth of that kind of price? I'm not a big jarred tomato sauce person, preferring to make my own. But I'm willing to try this stuff to see if it's any good.

The jar claims the following -- no preservatives, no sugar, fresh ingredients, "imported San Marzano tomatoes and slivers of fresh garlic", and "produced in a green facility." Does it taste good?

When I opened the jar it smelled like SpaghettiOs. Um...ew. I hate SpaghettiOs. They really quite gross. Not a good sign.

I boiled some Barilla mini-farfalle pasta in one pan and dump some MB marinara into another pan. Taste. Blah. Yes, blah...as in bland. Add some kosher salt, a little basil and a pinch of Italian seasoning. Better. Acceptable. Poured on the pasta.


I added some grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese. Helped. I started eating. As far as store bought tomato sauce goes, it's okay. It's not a thick sauce, it's kind of watery. And then, what I feel, the cardinal sin of red sauce has happened -- there are tomato seeds in the sauce! Gross. I hate, hate, hate that! Who wants to bite into a bitter, nasty tomato seed? Fate sealed.

MB, I don't care HOW many television shows you have...your sauce sucks and it's seriously unworthy of any money, let alone $6! You can put all the buzz words on the label but if your product is bland, watery and annoying, no one will buy it.

Paul Newman's sauce is MUCH better. Hell, even my red sauce is better than that.