# Why does anyone buy that premade? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 6, 2013, 6:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-anyone-buy-that-premade/652162 "2013-03-06T06:00:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 9
**Author:** ![Amateur\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/59ef9b/32.png) [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2013, 9:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-anyone-buy-that-premade/652162/161 "2013-03-07T21:02:04Z")
> [@bump](#): > > Just for another point of contradiction, Contadina’s “Tomato Sauce” (not paste or puree) has the following ingredients: I’ve conceded that my data was out of date; it looks as if the tomato industry has completely eliminated additives, particularly sugar, from canned tomato products. I think it must have stemmed from the big backlash over such crap in ketchup. You can do any number of searches that will turn up ingredient lists and discussion of the prevalence of sugar in tomato sauce and paste in recent years - about 2008-9 and back, it looks like. There are many cooking, foodie and other discussion threads about this content - which is why I stopped using all cooked tomato products and went to the more basic, and almost additive-free, crushed and diced tomatoes. I don’t usually cite things that have been superseded, and it was useful to update my notes on this. Apologies for the misdirection. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2013, 9:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-anyone-buy-that-premade/652162/162 "2013-03-07T21:08:09Z")
What’s wrong with a little sugar in pasta sauce? It’s one of the ingredients in the recipe given in “The Godfather.” ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2013, 9:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-anyone-buy-that-premade/652162/163 "2013-03-07T21:23:41Z")
> [@NitroPress](#): > > I’ve conceded that my data was out of date; it looks as if the tomato industry has completely eliminated additives, particularly sugar, from canned tomato products. I think it must have stemmed from the big backlash over such crap in ketchup. I don’t think that’s the case. I think you were wrong to begin with. I don’t remember basic tomato paste having any sugar additives. And I don’t know what the ketchup backlash you’re talking about is. Ketchup is full of sugar. I haven’t noticed sugar levels in ketchup going down, either. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2013, 9:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-anyone-buy-that-premade/652162/164 "2013-03-07T21:36:13Z")
Like, for example, [here’s an Atkins thread](http://forum.lowcarber.org/archive/index.php/t-299950.html) from 2006, about someone complaining about tomato pastes without sugar, not realizing, apparently, that tomatoes themselves have sugar in them. > [@](#): > > ETA: I’m not even sure many other brands actually ADD sugar. The sugar content on the labels is mostly from the tomatoes themselves. ---
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2013, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-anyone-buy-that-premade/652162/165 "2013-03-07T21:41:45Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > What’s wrong with a little sugar in pasta sauce? It’s one of the ingredients in the recipe given in “The Godfather.” I add a pinch to homemade ones or else my husband will complain about the acidity/heartburn. (And he’s of Italian descent.) That’s especially true if I use my own home-canned tomatoes as I add citric acid to them at the time of canning to make sure they hit the appropriate pH level for water bath canning. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2013, 10:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-anyone-buy-that-premade/652162/166 "2013-03-07T22:49:38Z")
Even if a product contains only tomatoes, they’re not necessarily good tomatoes. I remember seeing an article about the modern food industry that described the giant tomato farms in Southern California. They breed tomatoes to be turned into packaged foods, like canned tomato sauce and such. The author described following a semi truck carrying tomatoes from a farm and seeing a tomato fall off the truck and _bounce_ on the road. ---
**Author:** ![Labrador\_Deceiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7c8e57/32.png) [@Labrador\_Deceiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Labrador_Deceiver)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2013, 10:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-anyone-buy-that-premade/652162/167 "2013-03-07T22:59:02Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > Even if a product contains only tomatoes, they’re not necessarily good tomatoes. I remember seeing an article about the modern food industry that described the giant tomato farms in Southern California. They breed tomatoes to be turned into packaged foods, like canned tomato sauce and such. The author described following a semi truck carrying tomatoes from a farm and seeing a tomato fall off the truck and _bounce_ on the road. The tomatoes grown for canning aren’t the same ones grown for supermarket produce shelves. The canned varieties are of varying quality, but all are probably far better than those grown for fresh use. ETA: I see that I misread your post. It would be interesting to read more about that. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2013, 11:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-anyone-buy-that-premade/652162/168 "2013-03-07T23:04:31Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > The author described following a semi truck carrying tomatoes from a farm and seeing a tomato fall off the truck and _bounce_ on the road. Not sure what is odd about seeing a tomato bounce. My garden tomatoes will bounce, depending on what kind they are and when they are picked. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2013, 11:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-anyone-buy-that-premade/652162/169 "2013-03-07T23:16:33Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > Pasteurized milk that’s gone off is really spoiled milk, not soured milk. I’ve used spoiled milk in cooking every once in awhile, but it’s not the same thing as milk that’s been naturally soured, as pasteurization kills the little beasties inside the milk that cause it to sour. So when you see those old-timey recipes calling for sour milk or soured milk, it’s really unpasteurized milk that’s been left to naturally sour/ferment. I can’t answer to old timey recipes, but \*modern \*recipes that call for soured milk, or soured milk as a substitute for buttermilk, mean milk that’s had acid, generally lemon juice or vinegar, added to it to curdle it. [How to Sour Milk for Baking | LEAFtv](http://www.ehow.com/how_4506892_sour-milk-baking.html) ---
**Author:** ![Amateur\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/59ef9b/32.png) [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2013, 11:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-anyone-buy-that-premade/652162/170 "2013-03-07T23:33:05Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > I don’t think that’s the case. I think you were wrong to begin with. I don’t remember basic tomato paste having any sugar additives. Since there aren’t any archives of product content (that I am aware of) I have no particular way to prove my contention other than that I clearly remember searching the shelves for sauce and paste that did not contain sugar or an equivalent, usually as the second ingredient after tomatoes and sometimes ahead of water. As I said, there are any number of discussions and web entries from four to eight years back that mention the same issue and the trouble of finding tomato products with no added sugar; that’s the best I can do within the constraints of time and value. > [@](#): > > And I don’t know what the ketchup backlash you’re talking about is. Ketchup is full of sugar. I haven’t noticed sugar levels in ketchup going down, either. The backlash was against HFCS, but drew a lot of attention to the fact that ketchup is yet another high-sugar food most people aren’t (well) aware of. I can only conclude that the heightened attention to ketchup led to more attention to other tomato products, and the processors made a strategic move to eliminate sugar from the cooked tomato products. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2013, 11:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-anyone-buy-that-premade/652162/171 "2013-03-07T23:42:30Z")
> [@WhyNot](#): > > I can’t answer to old timey recipes, but \*modern \*recipes that call for soured milk, or soured milk as a substitute for buttermilk, mean milk that’s had acid, generally lemon juice or vinegar, added to it to curdle it. [How to Sour Milk for Baking | LEAFtv](http://www.ehow.com/how_4506892_sour-milk-baking.html) OK, that’s acceptable. But a lot of people, at least in my experience, when they talk about using what they call “sour milk” or “soured milk” talk about milk that’s gone off. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2013, 11:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-anyone-buy-that-premade/652162/172 "2013-03-07T23:43:51Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > OK, that’s acceptable. But a lot of people, at least in my experience, when they talk about using what they call “sour milk” or “soured milk” talk about milk that’s gone off. Ew. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2013, 11:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-anyone-buy-that-premade/652162/173 "2013-03-07T23:45:28Z")
> [@NitroPress](#): > > As I said, there are any number of discussions and web entries from four to eight years back that mention the same issue and the trouble of finding tomato products with no added sugar; that’s the best I can do within the constraints of time and value. But I’ve just shown you a discussion from 2006 that states: “I’m not even sure many other brands actually ADD sugar. The sugar content on the labels is mostly from the tomatoes themselves.” No, it’s not definitive, but there’s no counter claims to that in the thread. That jibes with my recollection. I read labels closely. I don’t remember tomato paste ever typically containing added sugar. And I don’t buy that it was any sort of backlash. I mean, if your product contained sugar and now you were eliminating sugar from it, wouldn’t you scream it out loud in your advertisements? “Now without sugar!!!” The sugar-for-HCFS ketchups certainly do. I contend that it never was the case that tomato paste was loaded with sugar. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2013, 11:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-anyone-buy-that-premade/652162/174 "2013-03-07T23:54:25Z")
[Here’s a thread from 2003](http://www.lowcarbfriends.com/bbs/lowcarb-recipe-help-suggestions/139457-sugar-free-tomato-sauce.html): > [@](#): > > Sugar Free Tomato Sauce? > For those that “buy” it, where do you “buy it”? > > […] > > Are you talking about the kind that comes in little 8 ounce cans or spaghetti sauce? Most of the 8 ounce kind that I’ve seen have no sugar. I usually buy Kroger’s brand. > > […] > > I just look at my Classico (from Costco) and Trader Joe’s for sugar and neither has any in them. > > […] > > Hunts tomato sauce does not list any sugar in the ingredients. You should be able to find it nationwide. > > […] > > The label on my 8 oz. Hunts tomato sauce lists the ingredients as tomato puree (water, tomato paste), water, less than 2% of: salt, citric acid, spice, tomato fiber, natural flavor. And this is tomato sauce, not paste, which is even less likely to contain sugar. ---
**Author:** ![Red\_Stilettos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/fbc32d/32.png) [@Red\_Stilettos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Red_Stilettos)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2013, 12:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-anyone-buy-that-premade/652162/175 "2013-03-08T00:15:46Z")
> [@Labrador\_Deceiver](#): > > The tomatoes grown for canning aren’t the same ones grown for supermarket produce shelves. The canned varieties are of varying quality, but all are probably far better than those grown for fresh use. > > ETA: I see that I misread your post. It would be interesting to read more about that. The book is Tomatoland by Barry Estabrook. Great read if you are at all interested in industrial agriculture. For the record, the bouncing tomato was a rock hard green tomato that fell out of a tractor trailer going 60 down the highway. He was commenting on how strange it is to harvest tomatoes at that stage. ---
**Author:** ![Labrador\_Deceiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7c8e57/32.png) [@Labrador\_Deceiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Labrador_Deceiver)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2013, 12:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-anyone-buy-that-premade/652162/176 "2013-03-08T00:18:17Z")
> [@Red\_Stilettos](#): > > The book is Tomatoland by Barry Estabrook. Great read if you are at all interested in industrial agriculture. For the record, the bouncing tomato was a rock hard green tomato that fell out of a tractor trailer going 60 down the highway. He was commenting on how strange it is to harvest tomatoes at that stage. Do they typically pick canning tomatoes when they’re green? ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2013, 12:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-anyone-buy-that-premade/652162/177 "2013-03-08T00:41:16Z")
> [@WhyNot](#): > > Ew. [Here’s a thread](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=645769) where a few people (including me–but I said in my most recent post I do it sometimes) mention using spoiled milk. ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2013, 12:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-anyone-buy-that-premade/652162/178 "2013-03-08T00:46:49Z")
> [@NitroPress](#): > > Since there aren’t any archives of product content (that I am aware of) I have no particular way to prove my contention other than that I clearly remember searching the shelves for sauce and paste that did not contain sugar or an equivalent, usually as the second ingredient after tomatoes and sometimes ahead of water. As I said, there are any number of discussions and web entries from four to eight years back that mention the same issue and the trouble of finding tomato products with no added sugar; that’s the best I can do within the constraints of time and value. > > The backlash was against HFCS, but drew a lot of attention to the fact that ketchup is yet another high-sugar food most people aren’t (well) aware of. I can only conclude that the heightened attention to ketchup led to more attention to other tomato products, and the processors made a strategic move to eliminate sugar from the cooked tomato products. I’m honestly having a tough time believing your assertions, given both the lack of evidence and your previous assertions being incorrect. ---
**Author:** ![papergirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/aca169/32.png) [@papergirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/papergirl)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2013, 1:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-anyone-buy-that-premade/652162/179 "2013-03-08T01:48:36Z")
This is an interesting thread. I’m feeling a little guilty about my jar of garlic on the counter now, but I don’t think I’m up to dealing with raw garlic yet either. I make a lot of stuff from scratch, but I have a lot of free time. I’m fairly quick with a knife, but it can be really time-consuming to peel and dice all the vegetables I want to add to my soup or stirfry. Then there’s time to saute, simmer, test, add more crap, etc. If I were more pressed for time, and had the funds to do so, I’d probably buy pre-chopped veggies, or hit a salad bar and buy everything freshly chopped by someone else. ---
**Author:** ![Catamount](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/catamount/32/2840_2.png) [@Catamount](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Catamount)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2013, 2:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-anyone-buy-that-premade/652162/180 "2013-03-08T02:17:43Z")
I see premade stuff as a necessary evil. Sure we’d all (well, some of us) would like to make everything from scratch, but the way modern life is set up we don’t have that option. Great-grandma could do it because she was home all day, but most of us can’t do that. So we get the pre-chopped stuff and the jarred sauces. Think of it this way: if we didn’t have those convenience items, more people would be eating crap processed food. This way more of us can cook real food. And everyone knows you don’t make fresh marinara sauce in winter. You make it in the summer when your tomatoes are ripe and you jar it then for winter. :rolleyes: Sheesh, people.\* \*Alert to the humorless: that was a joke. My homemade pasta sauce doesn’t last long enough to make it into the jar, anyway. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-anyone-buy-that-premade/652162.md?page=8) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-anyone-buy-that-premade/652162.md?page=10)