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Rao's Homemade pasta sauces are beloved for their fresh, clean taste and natural ingredients. Yet they can be pricey, with some varieties ringing up for as much as $10 at grocery stores. Although Costco offers a two-pack of Rao's marinara for between $12 and $14, making each 32-ounce jar around $6 or $7, its own Kirkland Signature marinara is a much better deal; some customers even claim it tastes very similar.
Though many consider Rao's Homemade Marinara the absolute best pasta sauce you can buy at the store, the Kirkland Signature Organic Tuscan Marinara is an affordable dupe. Sold in a three-pack of 24-ounce jars for around $10 to $12, it ends up being $2 or $3 less than buying Rao's — even at Costco. If you regularly use marinara and are always looking for a bargain, this deal is for you. Costco's sauce is made in Italy with just six organic ingredients: Tuscan-grown tomatoes, Toscano PGI extra virgin olive oil, onions, carrots, basil, and sea salt. It doesn't include any added sugar or artificial flavors, either. And that commitment to quality is reflected in its taste, which is why it regularly sells out.
Rao's, which is not organic, is made from similar ingredients, though its recipe doesn't include carrots and instead adds garlic, black pepper, and oregano. Costco's sauce is described as chunkier, although some shoppers say it's a little watery (likely due to the use of fresh, organic tomatoes). The Tuscan tomatoes also add a different flavor profile to the sauce. Italian tomatoes taste better because heirloom varieties have a rich, sweet, tangy taste that allows the sauce's other ingredients to deepen and become more complex.
Read more: 12 Best Costco Prepared Foods To Buy And 10 To Avoid
Customers love Costco's pasta sauce, and have great tips for upgrading it
Like Victoria Organic pasta sauce, another Costco brand that is a Rao's copycat for less, Kirkland Signature Organic Tuscan Marinara is beloved by customers. One raves on Reddit, "We are picky about sauce and love this one! Rao's is way too sweet." Another Redditor agrees, saying, "Unpopular opinion, but I like it MORE than Rao's."
However, most customers admit that they end up leveling up this store-bought sauce to make it their own. In another post to Reddit asking for opinions on the sauce, a Costco member says, "I love it!...it just tastes like cooked down tomatoes, but that's all I want from a jarred sauce." They go on to say that they buy it for situations when they don't have time to cook down fresh tomatoes, and it's the perfect base for a fast, easy pasta sauce.
Another person on Reddit explains, "Kirkland's is a perfect base for making your own marinara sauce." In the same post, another shopper agrees: "When doctoring up the sauce to make a Bolognese or whatever...the Kirkland organic marinara tasted better than the Rao's using the same ingredients." Someone else comments, "I thought this was a great choice especially for the price and ingredients. I added some fresh herbs, a splash of red wine vinegar and a little olive oil and let it simmer fairly slow and low to thicken it up a bit and it was awesome." All in all, if you don't have time to make a traditional marinara sauce from scratch and want a bargain alternative that still tastes good, this Kirkland Signature product is made for you.
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Read the original article on Tasting Table.
