At last I've discovered the absolute best Italian tomato sauce available off a store shelf. It's Lucini Tuscan Marinara sauce with Roasted Garlic.

http://www.lucini.com/products/spicy_tuscan.php?sec=products

Over the years I've had occasions to try about every tomato sauce. I can cook from scratch any basic or variation, using either fresh homegrown tomatoes or making a darn good one with canned San Marzano tomatoes from Italy. The best sauce needs ripe sweet Creole or Roma tomatoes, onion, minced garlic, great olive oil, fresh finely chopped basil, maybe a little fresh oregano plus salt and freshly ground pepper. It takes a little work and is great. If the tomatoes aren't luscious enough one needs to enhance with a little bit of tomato paste.

Lately I sometimes just want to take things easy. A new friend and I were out at Kroger a few days ago. We saw the Lucini products on the shelf 'on sale' for about $6.99 a jar. Yes, that was high. Nearly as high as Rao's sauces which I've tried a few times and never thought worth the money.

I bought a couple of jars of the Lucini because the label stated all the ingredients were fresh when cooked, there was no sugar in the sauce, and the sauce was made in Italy in small batches. How better to get genuine Italian flavour?

We later enjoyed the sauce on simple cheese ravioli. It was atonishingly good and did taste fresh. The texture was exactly as if I had made it from scratch. The roasted garlic was extremely mild. I'd feared it might be too strong. Americans tend to overdo garlic, as my Italian friends say. The chopped basil in the sauce had stayed green and gently flavourful.

Yes, I know thatsa pricy pasta sauce, but I'll cut back elswhere, such as just oil and balsamic vinegar on salads and no meat!

So far, there's only one other sauce which is nearly as good and is far cheaper: Bertolli's Tomato Basil.

http://www.bertolli.us/pastasauce.aspx

Bertolli uses tomatoes fresh from the field which they process and cook into sauces immediately. Their's is about $3.29 or less. My problem with it: it has a bit of an overcooked taste.

Tell me about your sauce discoveries. I'm all for cooking easy these days.

Bertolli's Tomato Basil is the only jarred sauce allowed to enter my household. It's the only sauce I have found that doesn't have sugar as one of the first few ingredients and doesn't overdo it on the garlic.

I'll have to try the Lucini, thanks for the heads-up.

I usually get crushed tomatoes or tomato sauce and add whatever seasonings I'm feeling that evening.....Muir Glenn if it is on sale...

OMG! I just discovered this Lucini sauce last month. A specialty shop in Maui had it on their shelves, so I thought, "Why not?"

It's really good -- way better than I had expected. I'm in shock that it somehow found its way onto a large-scale chain-grocer's shelf. Good for Kroger, and even better for you!

I buy Classico for that reason - no sugar - hate sweet spaghetti sauce! I must have a look for the Lucini.

I buy Ragu sauce.

Should I be ashamed...??

I buy sauce.

Should I be ashamed...??

I completely overlooked this part of your post! Have you tried the Patak's sauces?

http://www.pataks.co.uk/products/index.php


Their Tikka Masala sauce is very good. Authentic? Hmm, can't say, but it is very tasty. Easiest dinner in the world: get cooked peeled deveined shrimp from seafood counter. Buy jasmine rice. Prepare rice, and put sauce in large saute pan and add shrimp. Heat till bubbling (just use directions on jar). Serve over the rice. Done. Two pots, 20 minutes, happy family. My kids prefer the coconut one (Korma--it's more mild) and the mango chicken one (saute diced chicken instead of shrimp in above "recipe").
Look for them. They are good!