I’m picky when it comes to pasta sauces. Growing up with an Italian grandmother who made pasta sauce from scratch with hand-picked tomatoes and basil, I have to be. Few jarred pasta sauces have ever compared to her recipe, so when I come across a new pasta sauce on the market, I’m skeptical. Will the quality of this sauce be just as good? Will it be perfectly balanced with acidity and sweetness, or will it just be overly sweet? Is it a worthy replacement for my grandmother’s sauce if I don’t have any of her jars on hand?
As a pasta sauce skeptic, I was given the opportunity to try The Pasta Queen’s new line of sauces. Available at Walmart this month, social media star Nadia Caterina Munno — aka “The Pasta Queen — is selling five of her signature sauces: Marinara, Spicy Vodka, Arrabbiata, Lemon Temptress, and Four Cheese. They’re made with whole Italian peeled tomatoes, no added sugars, and real ingredients.
But how do they taste? I popped open each jar and tasted these sauces with a simple bowl of cooked penne and took some notes. Here are my thoughts on each new sauce.
