Napolina Passata Sauce: the feedback review thread
Hello.
This is the feedback thread for those of you who are testing the Napolina Passata Sauce as part of our latest MadeForMums product test.
Please give us your feedback on this thread by answering the following 5 questions and providing your pictures of the meals you made with your Napolina Passata Sauce.
Everyone who leaves quality feedback by answering all 5 questions and providing pictures (and is part of our product test) will be entered into a draw to win the £300 Amazon voucher.
Feedback Questions
1. Please tell us which passata sauces you tested and tell us about the meals you made with them?
2. What did you and your family think of the passata sauces?
3. Please share with us the pictures of your meals that you made using the Napolina Passata Sauces. (To upload a picture, just press the little ‘attach image’ button in the textbox toolbar)
4. At a RRP of £1.50 per jar, do you think this is good value for money?
5. Would you recommend Napolina Passata Sauce to other parents or friends?
Thank you for providing your feedback and good luck.
Note: Any comments and pictures you post on our Feedback thread may be used by Napolina in future advertising and marketing material. See full Ts&Cs here.
Replies
1. Please tell us which passata sauces you tested and tell us about the meals you made with them?
We tested the Italian tomato and herbs and the Italian tomato and red chilli sauces.
Tomato and herbs - we made spaghetti bolognese with beef mince and mushroom and onions. I did add some garlic and a beef oxo as I always do this when making bolognese whether with a jar or from scratch.
Tomato and red chilli - we made chicken, mushroom, onion and sweetcorn pasta with the tomato and red chilli sauce stirred in. No added ingredients were used to enhance the sauce at all such as garlic etc.
2. What did you and your family think of the passata sauces?
In relation to both the sauces, I was very impressed that they were 100% natural with no added nasties.
Tomato and herbs - 2 out of 3 of us really liked this sauce. I think it smelt really fresh and was lovely and thick and a rich red colour when poured out into the pan. I normally cook spaghetti bolognese from scratch, without a jar sauce, as I find them very watery but this was not the case here. I liked the taste of this one and was pleasantly surprised because normally I don't rate jar sauces for bolognese. It had a good tomato taste and the herbs provided a nice added flavour without being too overpowering. I really enjoyed this one.
My 2 year old daughter also really enjoyed this and commented that it was 'very tasty'.
My husband on the other hand was not so impressed. Whilst he didn't dislike the sauce and ate the meal, he commented that it was 'just ok' and he much preferred the meal made from scratch. There is another branded jar sauce which he likes and he said he would prefer to use that one, if he was to choose a ready made sauce for spaghetti bolognese. He said it wasn't brilliant, but wasn't rubbish either. He just didn't think the flavours were very strong and probably wouldn't purchase it again.
Tomato and red chilli - unfortunately none of us particularly liked this sauce. It wasn't inedible and we all ate our meal but we found it very bland with just a slight spicy almost aftertaste to it. The tomatoes really didn't seem to come through as much on this one and we were all disappointed as this was the sauce we were looking forward to the most. It just didn't really taste of much at all the any of us and was just a but spicy but with no actual flavour if that makes sense.
I would like to note though that again this sauce is lovely and thick and not watery at all. It again smelt very fresh when opened and was a lovely rich red colour.
3. Please share with us the pictures of your meals that you made using the Napolina Passata Sauces. (To upload a picture, just press the little ‘attach image’ button in the textbox toolbar)
4. At a RRP of £1.50 per jar, do you think this is good value for money?
Although we didn't enjoy 1 of the sauces I would say they are good value for money (if you like them of course!). They are lovely and thick and not watery compared to a lot of other pasta sauces and the amount that you get in them is a good amount for a family meal for everyone. They aren't particularly expensive. I often find with things that are 100% natural that the price tends to jump up and they tend to be more pricey that things with added ingredients but that is not the case here which is a bonus.
5. Would you recommend Napolina Passata Sauce to other parents or friends?
I was very impressed by the ingredient list of the sauces. They are completely natural but are still flavourful (well one of ours was in our opinion!). I was very impressed by this as I always like to avoid too much added sugar and salt and I know a lot of other people do too so I would definitely recommend them due to this. They also go quiet far, meaning the whole family get a decent share of sauce, without being watery and are good value for money. I wouldn't recommend the red chilli one due to our personal opinion on the (lack of) taste of it but would definitely recommend the tomato and herb sauce.
We tested the Italian Tomato and Red Chilli sauce and the Italian Tomato and Vegetables
2. What did you and your family think of the passata sauces?
Whilst we didn't dislike the Tomato and Red Chilli sauce we all felt there was no real flavour to it. I'm not a fan of hot chilli sauces but this was a bit too weak and really lacked flavour. I expected it it to be really tomatoey with a chilli kick but it just didn't excite our taste buds and we were all a little disappointed with this jar. If I used it again I would perhaps add some onion and cook it a bit longer to try and help develop the flavour.
I fried chicken and added that to the sauce before stirring in the cooked pasta and served it with grated Parmesan and garlic bread.
The Italian tomato and vegetables was a much nicer sauce and tasted delicious. It was a good colour and there was plenty of sauce in the jar and easily fed my husband and sons. I fried chicken and onion and added that to the sauce before adding fresh tagliatelle pasta. Everyone really enjoyed this meal and my sons have already asked when we can have this tea again. I think it would also be nice to add bacon or king prawns to the sauce.
The sauces were easy to use and perfect for a weekday meal when I don't have a lot of time to cook. I like that they come in a glass jar which can easily be recycled and the jar can be easily resealed and kept in the fridge for smaller families.
3. Please share with us the pictures of your meals that you made using the Napolina Passata Sauces. (To upload a picture, just press the little ‘attach image’ button in the textbox toolbar)
4. At a RRP of £1.50 per jar, do you think this is good value for money?
I think the sauces are excellent value for money and a great store cupboard basic as they can be used as a base for a variety of meals. I especially like that they are 100% natural.
5. Would you recommend Napolina Passata Sauce to other parents or friends?
Yes I would definitely recommend the Italian Tomato and vegetable Napolina Passata Sauce to other people.
I would have to try a couple of different recipes with the Italian Tomato and red chilli sauce before I would recommend that as we did feel that one was a bit bland but the addition of an onion might help.
We tested the Italian Tomato and Red Chilli sauce and the Italian Tomato and Vegetables.
I made Tagliatelle Bolognese with the Tomato and Red Chilli Passata sauce, adding carrot and celery, see photo 1.
I used the Tomato and vegetable sauce to make minestrone soup with added veg and spaghetti broken into bits! See photo 2.
2. What did you and your family think of the passata sauces?
We really liked both dishes. Pasta Bolognese is always a winner in our house and I felt that the added addition of the subtle chilli flavour was just the right strength for the whole family to enjoy. I did not need to add any onion or garlic.
The Tomato and Vegetable sauce was a lovely alternative to plain chopped tomatoes or passata when making the minestrone soup. Again I did not need to worry about adding extra flavour. My 3 year old and my 6month old both enjoyed it and as a parent I was pleased that they were getting extra hidden vegetables in the sauce!
I was really pleased to see that they both had all natural ingredients and no added salt or sugar, meaning my 6 month old son could also have try!
3. Please share with us the pictures of your meals that you made using the Napolina Passata Sauces. (To upload a picture, just press the little ‘attach image’ button in the textbox toolbar)
4. At a RRP of £1.50 per jar, do you think this is good value for money?
When cooking for the children, I normally buy plain Napolina passata sauce at around £1 a carton, so for an extra 50p with the added flavour in order to cook a more interesting meal for the whole family I think it is worth it. I also like that they are in glass jars which can be reused or recycled.
5. Would you recommend Napolina Passata Sauce to other parents or friends?
Yes, it is really difficult to find convenient foods that have no added salt or sugar, especially when weaning a young baby. It is particularly good for baby led weaning as they can easily have what you are eating.
Additional comment by user added by MFM HQ
I would say yes we would recommend both Passatta sauces as they are of a good quality and can be used in a wide range of dishes
Tomato and roast veg - we used this jar as a pasta sauce on its own apart from a small amount of garlic. There was a little extra sauce left over which we used to make a tomato flatbread.
Tomato and chilli - we used this sauce as a base for a spaghetti bolognese, although I did add a little red wine vinegar and some herbs like I normally would. Bolognese is one of our faves and it made a lovely base with a little kick.
2. What did you and your family think of the passata sauces?
Both kids are dairy free so I've been struggling sometimes for ideas to make their meals more exciting. They devoured the flatbread as an alternative to garlic bread and there was no pasta left in the dish, they even had seconds! The adults enjoyed it too, what we managed to get of it!
3. Please share with us the pictures of your meals that you made using the Napolina Passata Sauces. (To upload a picture, just press the little ‘attach image’ button in the textbox toolbar)
4. At a RRP of £1.50 per jar, do you think this is good value for money?
I think £1.50 is fair especially considering it contains other ingredients that you would have to purchase separately if you were using as a plain passata for a pasta sauce, but in all honesty I would probably stick to the cheaper versions if using them as a sauce base!
5. Would you recommend Napolina Passata Sauce to other parents or friends?
Yes, it went down well with the kids which is enough for me to recommend it to other parents, as my kids wouldn't hesitate to tell me if they thought something was yucky!
1. Please tell us which passata sauces you tested and tell us about the meals you made with them?
We tested the tomato and vegetable sauce and the tomato and chilli sauce.
With the tomato and chilli one we made a vegetarian chilli and also used it as a stir in sauce with our tortelloni and gnocchi.
2. What did you and your family think of the passata sauces?
Both sauces had a nice consistency to them and the flavours were good.
3. Please share with us the pictures of your meals that you made using the Napolina Passata Sauces.
4. At a RRP of £1.50 per jar, do you think this is good value for money?
If using as a sauce to coat things and just add a bit of flavour then yes, these are well worth the money.
5. Would you recommend Napolina Passata Sauce to other parents or friends?
Overall we enjoyed testing these sauces and experimenting with them, thank you
We tried out the Napolina Italian Tomato & Red Chilli passata sauce first. My kids are fans of chilli in food thankfully. I made pasta topped with mince, sauce, onions and peppers topped with fresh basil and mozzarella. The sauce was beautiful with just the perfect amount of chilli.
2. What did you and your family think of the passata sauces?
My family loves both meals and cleared their plates both times. Hubby even had seconds.
3. Please share with us the pictures of your meals that you made using the Napolina Passata Sauces. (To upload a picture, just press the little ‘attach image’ button in the textbox toolbar)
4. At a RRP of £1.50 per jar, do you think this is good value for money?
5. Would you recommend Napolina Passata Sauce to other parents or friends?
1. Please tell us which passata sauces you tested and tell us about the meals you made with them?
We tested the Italian Tomato & Vegetables which we used to make my signature dish - sausagey pasta!!
2. What did you and your family think of the passata sauces?
Italian dishes are always a big hit in our house so we all enjoyed them!
I have to admit we are not usually chilli people so I was a bit apprehensive about using the Tomato & Chilli Passata. However I think because we used lots of other ingredients in our lasagna, it dulled the chilli so it was definitely manageable. I imagine it probably wasn’t that hot in the first place which is good for most families. I actually quite enjoyed it in the lasagna - it gave it a slight kick at the end of each mouthful which I can deal with and my daughter enjoyed it too!
3. Please share with us the pictures of your meals that you made using the Napolina Passata Sauces. (To upload a picture, just press the little ‘attach image’ button in the textbox toolbar)
4. At a RRP of £1.50 per jar, do you think this is good value for money?
They are lovely sauces but being tight on money at the moment, I would say no. I would however buy them if they were on offer and we were in need of a quick dinner!
5. Would you recommend Napolina Passata Sauce to other parents or friends?
Yes I would, they are very tasty, probably the most ‘homemade’ like sauce in a jar you will find!
We tried the Italian Tomato & Herbs & the Italian tomato & vegetable sauces. I am not the most courageous of cooks - I struggle to find the time & the confidence when it comes to cooking, so it was wholewheat pasta spirals the first evening - with the Italian Tomato & vegetable sauce stirred through, served with fresh spinach & sprinked with mozzarella.
The second evening, we had wholewheat pasta spirals (again!) served with Italian tomato & herb sauce with some homegrown courgettes & tomatoes.
2. What did you and your family think of the passata sauces?
I really noticed the fresh smell of both sauces when I opened each jar - rich & flavoursome & very inviting as I began cooking with it.
The Italian tomato & vegetable sauce went down particularly well with my 7 year old son! Often when I use a pre-made sauce, I find them very sweet - but these had a perfect balance of flavours & really did taste homemade.
3. Please share with us the pictures of your meals that you made using the Napolina Passata Sauces.
4. At a RRP of £1.50 per jar, do you think this is good value for money?
I think this is really good value. The sauces are very versatile & one jar easily fed our family of three. It's a good option for a quick, cheap, healthy meal when combined with pasta & veg.
5. Would you recommend Napolina Passata Sauce to other parents or friends?
Definitely. We really enjoyed tasting the Napolina sauces. We often but store own brand sauces, but this experience has shown me that it's worth paying a little extra for the quality.
Thank you for allowing us to take part
Tomato and vegetables - put in slow cooker with chicken breasts, the shredded the chicken and had with pasta.
Tomato and herbs - pasta bake with loads of leftover vegetables from the fridge.
2. What did you and your family think of the passata sauces?
I love the fact that they come with no added salt or sugar so there's no mum guilt about giving them to our toddler. For myself and my husband we did we had to add our own seasoning just a bit.
I also thought the texture was great for little fussy eaters, nice and smooth, our toddler loved them.
3. Please share with us the pictures of your meals that you made using the Napolina Passata Sauces.
4. At a RRP of £1.50 per jar, do you think this is good value for money?
I think it is okay value for money, don't think I would say good necessarily. I would probably wait until had a multibuy offer if I'm honest.
5. Would you recommend Napolina Passata Sauce to other parents or friends
Yes, especially similar families to ours. That is those that want a tasty but easy and convenient meal that is suitable for the whole family.
Please see below.
4. At a RRP of £1.50 per jar, do you think this is good value for money?
5. Would you recommend Napolina Passata Sauce to other parents or friends?
We tested the tomato and chilli passata and made pasta with peas and tuna, as well as pork mince and rice stuffed in peppers.
We also tested the tomato and herb and made pizza, adding pepperoni and cheese.
2. What did you and your family think of the passata sauces?
Lovely. It has a great base flavour which you can add to both. I loved that it had no added salt or sugar.
Our 17th month old didn’t find the tomato and chilli one too spicy and really enjoyed it. It’s a sweet tomato flavour.
The herb one is really tasty for a pizza base.
3. Please share with us the pictures of your meals that you made using the Napolina Passata Sauces. (To upload a picture, just press the little ‘attach image’ button in the textbox toolbar)
Yes, definitely.
1. Please tell us which passata sauces you tested and tell us about the meals you made with them?
We tested the tomato and chilli and Italian tomato and vegetables.
With the tomato and chilli we had meatballs and linguine and with the tomato and veg I mixed in some chicken, pepper and onion and served with pasta.
We enjoyed the sauces however I felt that the chilli was a little bit over powering. They provide a great base for making a wide variety of dishes and I tried to be as inventive as I could.
It's great value for money considering the size of the jar. I would be happy to pay that.
Yes I would definitely recommend this sauce.
4. At a RRP of £1.50 per jar, do you think this is good value for money?
Thanks for a great, tasty product test!!! 😀
We tested the Italian Tomato and Red Chilli and Italian Tomato and Vegetables sauces. With the tomato and vegetable sauce we made a meatball pasta for tea with the kids. We added in extra vegetables and had it with rigatoni and garlic bread. With had the tomato and red chilli sauce for lunch with ricotta stuffed pasta, chorizo slices and a bit of grated cheese. We mixed the sauce with some cream cheese to reduce the spice.
2. What did you and your family think of the passata sauces?
We really enjoyed the Italian Tomato and Red Chilli sauce. We mixed it with some cream cheese because my eldest [3 years old] can be quite sensitive to spice. Even with that it still had a bit of a kick to it which we all loved. I thought it might put her off but she said it was her 'favourite lunch'. Definitely a hit! Delicious and really quick and simple to do with the stuffed pasta.
We found the vegetable sauce a bit bland and if we were to use it again I think we'd add in quite a bit of extra flavour. It just had the overwhelming taste of tomato and not much else. But both the kids [1 and 3] ate it up really happily so possibly one we could use for them, giving them extra hidden veg.
3. Please share with us the pictures of your meals that you made using the Napolina Passata Sauces. (To upload a picture, just press the little ‘attach image’ button in the textbox toolbar)
Meatball Rigatoni with Italian Tomato and Vegetable Sauce
Chorizo and stuffed pasta with Italian Tomato and Red Chilli Sauce
4. At a RRP of £1.50 per jar, do you think this is good value for money?
I think £1.50 is a decent price for these jars; the ingredients are good quality. Because we usually make our own pasta sauces in bulk for cheaper than that, I wouldn't personally buy them for £1.50, especially not the vegetable one. We can get them in a local shop for 89p so at this price I'd definitely pick up the chilli one for a quick lunch/dinner option. I would also be tempted to try other flavours of this sauce if they were on offer.
5. Would you recommend Napolina Passata Sauce to other parents or friends?
For a quick win with nice flavour I'd definitely recommend the chilli one. It was such a hit in our house. I wouldn't recommend the vegetable one at all because of its bland flavour. But I'd be prepared to try other flavours or would look out for this in the shops if I was looking for a passata sauce so I'd recommend it for this reason. The simplicity and quickness of cooking makes it a really useful go to ingredient.
1. Please tell us which passata sauces you tested and tell us about the meals you made with them?
Italian Tomato & Herb
We made a bolognese using this sauce. Ordinarily we would use a tin of plum tomatoes and a mix of fresh and dried herbs, so it was interesting to test whether this jar matched up to our classic version.
Italian Tomato & Vegetables
We made a tomato and orzo bake using this sauce. We added chopped roasted red peppers, sardines, rocket and sardines, topping with feta.
2. What did you and your family think of the passata sauces?
Italian Tomato & Herbs
Although it was tasty and you could tell they were good quality, flavoursome tomatoes, we did end up adding some fresh herbs for an extra punch. The bolognese was a big hit though with the whole family. It was great that there was no added salt, sugar or preservatives, as is often the case with jar sauces, so our 7 month old could eat a whizzed up version too - his first ever spag bol!
Italian Tomato & Vegetables
The vegetable flavour got a bit lost amongst the other bold flavours of our dish. A plain passata would have worked just as well. I did like knowing that there were more hidden veggies in there for my boys though. Again both our boys seemed to enjoy it!
3. Please share with us the pictures of your meals that you made using the Napolina Passata Sauces.
Griffin’s first ever spag bol!
Tomato & Orzo Bake
4. At a RRP of £1.50 per jar, do you think this is good value for money?
For the size jar I would say it’s definitely reasonable. A similarly sized jar of plain passata costs about £1.25 so it makes sense that you’d pay a bit more for the extra ingredients.
5. Would you recommend Napolina Passata Sauce to other parents or friends?
I would recommend these to people who want a quick and easy dinner and for those that don’t have a lot of dried or fresh herbs in their kitchen.
1. Please tell us which passata sauces you tested and tell us about the meals you made with them?
We received the tomato and herb and the tomato and vegetable sauces. I made a beef bolognese with the tomato and herb sauce and a tuna pasta sauce with the tomato and vegetable
2. What did you and your family think of the passata sauces?
both meals went down well and I was especially glad of the extra veg in the tomato and veg sauce as it got more veg into 2 fussy toddlers! Definitely a tasty pair of sauces and adds a lovely flavour. Fresher and deeper than usual.
3. Please share with us the pictures of your meals that you made using the Napolina Passata Sauces. (To upload a picture, just press the little ‘attach image’ button in the textbox toolbar)
4. At a RRP of £1.50 per jar, do you think this is good value for money?
it depends, then if the sauce is usually in this jar size then maybe but my usual sauce is less for a lot more so I might switch to these ones for a special meal as opposed to just the regular weekly pasta!
5. Would you recommend Napolina Passata Sauce to other parents or friends?
They were tasty so I would recommend them but not necessarily as a first choice but as sauces I have tried and liked.
1. Please tell us which passata sauces you tested and tell us about the meals you made with them?
With the Italian tomato & red chilli sauce we made a sausage and pasta dish with red and orange peppers and onions, topped with parmesan. With the Italian tomato and vegetables we made a cheesy bacon pasta dish.
2. What did you and your family think of the passata sauces?
We very much liked the fact that both sauces were 100% natural. Usually we make all our sauces from scratch as many of the ready made ones have added preservatives. Both sauces looked appetising and had a good consistency.
Both my husband and i felt that the tomato and red chilli sauce lacked depth of flavour. I don't like to eat very spicy food so i could definitely detect the chilli but had we not added the peppers, onion and cheese the sauce would have been quite bland. My 3 year old unfortunately didnt like the sauce, she found it too spicy, but my 1 year old ate everything on her plate.
We all preferred the tomato and vegetables flavour and all of us finished our meal. It had a better all around flavour and had we only added the sauce to the pasta without the extras it would still have made a tasty but simple meal.
3. Please share with us the pictures of your meals that you made using the Napolina Passata Sauces. (To upload a picture, just press the little ‘attach image’ button in the textbox toolbar)
4. At a RRP of £1.50 per jar, do you think this is good value for money?
Yes i think at £1.50 per jar they are excellent value for money. The jars are quite large and very easily make a meal for 4 people. Considering they are 100% natural i think they are a very good price. They are also very versatile and can be added to all kinds of dishes.
5. Would you recommend Napolina Passata Sauce to other parents or friends?
Yes i would. Although we weren't fans of the tomato and red chilli flavour we would still buy the tomato and vegetables flavour and i think it would be popular with a lot of families.
1. Please tell us which passata sauces you tested and tell us about the meals you made with them?
We had the pleasure of enjoying (testing 😊) the Napolina Italian Tomato & Vegetable passata sauce and the Napolina Italian Tomato and Red Chilli passata sauce
2. What did you and your family think of the passata sauces?
My first impression was the colour of the passata. Yes, tomatoes are red and so is their juice. But surprisingly enough a lot of passata sauces have food colouring in it. This mostly happens if the tomato content is under 50%. I was happy to see that the sauces are 100% natural.
As a Ghanaian family, we tend to use a lot of tinned tomatoes and passata sauces in our dishes”. My sons on the other hand are firm believes/ worshippers/ followers of the very trendy beige diet. On a good day, of course, they will eat a different colour, my main struggle is to sneak in hidden vegetables. I was therefore very excited to use the Tomato and Vegetable sauces for one of the dishes. I love the fact that there was celery in it, as I tried many many MANY times to chop or blend celery into one of their meals. Of course, they would smell, sense, taste it ☹.
My husband, MIL and I like spicy food, so I reserved the Red Chili passata for us. I must say that I didn’t really get any chilli taste at all, I did expect some sort of spicy-ish taste. So that was slightly disappointing but could also be that we are just used to the spice of a habanero chilli. Nonetheless, both sauces tasted amazingly fresh.
3. Please share with us the pictures of the meals that you made using the Napolina Passata Sauces. (To upload a picture, just press the little ‘attach image’ button in the textbox toolbar)
For the kids, I made an Egg and corn beef stew out of the Tomato and Vegetable passata. This was accompanied with fried plantain and plain basmati rice. Both boys enjoyed their meal and didn’t taste a difference. As corn beef has high salt content, the only other spices used were smoked paprika and ginger.
The adult meal was Chicken parmigiana on a rocket bed with sweetcorn and mixed potato mash. I didn’t use any additional flavouring for the passata as I wanted to taste the natural flavours. The chicken was seasoned anyway. I loved the taste of the fresh passata against the mash and rocket. My mother in law was pleasantly surprised as well. My husband didn’t like it very much as he said it wasn’t spicy enough. He did however finish his plate and had a second helping as well.
4. At an RRP of £1.50 per jar, do you think this is good value for money?
I believe £1.50 is reasonable. I would pay up to £2 for a passata that has 100% natural ingredients.
5. Would you recommend Napolina Passata Sauce to other parents or friends?
Yes, I would recommend this product and I would like to try the sauces with a pasta dish. I think the red chilli passata would work brilliantly in an eggplant lasagne
The winner of the £300 Amazon voucher is @JenandDyl
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Thanks again everyone - we're going to lock this thread now as the product test is now closed.