The Best Store-Bought Pasta Sauce: What Brand To Hunt For

Some folks spurn the notion of using anything but the best homemade pasta sauce for exceptional Italian cuisine, which is fine for people who have the time to spend balancing flavors over the stove for the perfect meal. Still, store-bought sauce has a home in many pantries due to the convenience it offers when toiling in the kitchen isn't on someone's to-do list. With the plethora of brands available on your local grocer's shelves, finding one that hits the mark can be tricky, but when we ranked store-bought pasta sauce brands, we discovered one that rose above the competition by providing a welcome zing.

Mezzetta Spicy Marinara spices up its sauce with a blend of black pepper and crushed chili peppers that augment its bold character. Still, it has more to offer the taste buds than heat. Onions, garlic, olive oil, and fresh basil intermingle with plum tomatoes from California and the San Marzano region of Italy, which are often heralded as the best tomatoes for making homemade pasta sauce. It also avoids being a watery mess like some store-bought sauces, boasting enough body to elevate it into chunky territory. Despite the fact that it comes from a jar, this spicy marinara has a look and flavor that screams homemade, and consumers who have tried it generally give it high praise.

Even those who prefer to make their own pasta sauce on Italian night have given Mezzetta Spicy Marinara rave reviews. On the Mezzetta website, comments like "By far the best jarred sauce I've tried and actually has a kick of spice," and "Nothing beat homemade until I found Mezzetta. I hardly make my sauce from scratch anymore," fill the review section. One could entertain the possibility that perhaps the company's website might be filtering out bad reviews. Yet, similar comments appear in other spaces where people are rating the product.

"This sauce is so light and fresh and the spice is just right!" reads one comment from a City Market shopper. A customer from Walmart, where the marinara enjoys a 4.7 out of 5-star rating, acknowledged that it hits the mark in terms of flavor and cost, saying, "This one is absolutely delicious and the price is very reasonable compared to other brands." It isn't the cheapest product available, but it doesn't hold the title of most expensive either. Mezzetta's sauce generally ranks somewhere between Prego and Rao's pricewise, and considering how beloved it is to many folks, you could call that a steal. There are plenty of ways to elevate subpar store-bought pasta sauce, but you likely won't need those techniques with Mezzetta brand Spicy Marinara.