Reviewer’s Note: Samples of the products discussed here were provided to me for reviewing purposes at no cost.
Photo credit: ElbowFoods.com
“Thick and Rich Flavor” promises the label on this product that recently arrived for review in the Flavorful World kitchen. In claiming thus, the label tells no lies.
Having been burned by my share of runny tomato-based supermarket pasta sauces, I found the finely chunky texture of Glicco’s Pasta Gravy oddly comforting on first opening it. The inviting aroma of tomato and herbs was enough to elicit a prompt spoonful tasted right from the jar. When I took it, the first flavor notes to register on my tongue were of oregano and onion.
Intent on testing the product’s versatility in addition to its immediately encouraging taste, I used my sample to make three dishes. My first outing consisted of lamb meatballs baked about halfway to doneness, then covered in Glicco’s Pasta Gravy and placed back into the oven to finish cooking. Next, I moved on to a baked macaroni and cheese (extra sharp white cheddar and fontina) made with a béchamel into which I stirred several tablespoons of the product. After that it was all about spaghetti (selected for a more classic touch) and wilted fresh spinach, simmered in the sauce and topped with diced pork jowl bacon. In each case, not only did the product play nicely with all ingredients present, but with each dish it seemed that a different flavor element of came to the forefront of the gravy. With the meatballs, the strength of the gravy’s onions lent depth to the dish. The sweetness of creamy tomato ruled the macaroni and cheese. When the gravy met my spaghetti, spinach, and bacon, herbal notes like oregano and basil came front and center.
Glicco’s Pasta Gravy seems more like something I would taste in the home of a friend or relative who cooks than something I would purchase and scoop out of a jar. There may exist other pasta sauces that currently can claim greater brand recognition and are more widely available than Glicco’s. However, based on my sampling and the sense of comfort I derived from enjoying something that tastes so homemade, I feel confident that I can go ahead and replace the word “currently” in the preceding sentence with “temporarily.”
