How are you doing? We’re living in extremely stressful times, and I know that all I want to do is cook.
I’ve been bringing you some pantry recipes over the last two weeks, but I’m looking ways to help you make your meals as delicious as possible.
I know that we’re all probably eating a lot of canned food right now.
I’ve been making a whole lot of beans. And you all know how much I love pasta!
That’s why today, I’m talking about 3 ways you can make canned pasta sauce taste better.
Because not everyone wants to spend hours making homemade sauce right now.
I get it.
But even if you’re using canned sauce from the grocery store, you can follow these simple tips that will liven up your dish.
Need a good store bought sauce brand? I recommend anything from a local Italian shop, but if you can’t get your hands on that, I like the Simply Nature brand from Aldi.
Tip #1: Add More Seasoning
This might seem straightforward, but adding more seasoning to your canned pasta sauce will make it taste better!
While warming your sauce on the stove, add some oregano, garlic, or any of your favorite herbs that you have on hand.
Mix in well with sauce and let it simmer on low for at least 10 minutes to let the flavors come together.
Tip #2: Add Some Butter
Butter makes everything taste better, right?
Adding a little bit of butter – about one tbsp – after simmering your sauce actually makes a huge difference to the taste of store bought sauce.
Why? It adds a creamy element to the dish that is lacking from canned pasta sauce.
I always finish my bolognese sauce with butter or milk at the end, so why not do the same thing with store bought sauce?
Tip #3: Add Starchy Pasta Water
I cannot stress this tip enough.
ALWAYS save a mug full of pasta water!
There’s actually science behind this. When you add some of the starchy pasta water to your sauce while mixing with the pasta, the starch in the water helps bind the sauce to the pasta.
This helps everything come together in your dish eliminates having your pasta and sauce being two different things. The pasta water brings it all together.
A great example of this is my Lemon Ricotta Pasta. The pasta water in this dish makes up half of the sauce!
It’s a magical ingredient that nobody should ignore.
Bringing it together
I hope these 3 ways to make canned pasta sauce taste better can help you make your meal even better during these stressful times for humanity.
I want to remind you that I’m here for you! If you have any questions about cooking or want to see certain recipes, feel free to reach out in the comments and on social media.
