14 Popular Store-Bought Sauce Mixes, Ranked

A good sauce mix is a valuable commodity in almost every kitchen, even for a seasoned cook. While I am no stranger to making up a good sauce from scratch, there are some I shy away from because I just don't care to or do not enjoy making them. However, sometimes a craving will spark, and it's nice to have options.

The right sauce can not only elevate a good meal, but it can also really expand your menu options at home. Premade or jarred specialty sauces can get a bit pricey, depending on what you are looking for and how much you need. That is why it is so nice when you can find something like the perfect seasoning mix to create and fulfill those cooking opportunities.

And after making up and tasting quite a lot, I am happy to report I found a few I would suggest adding to your spice repertoire and some to try out. On the other hand, I also found quite a few that I can definitely tell you to avoid. Here's how these sauce mixes stacked up.

It pains me as a Southerner that a country sausage gravy is at the bottom of my list. I wish I could say that all the other sauces were just so delicious and that this one fought the good fight, but I can't. This gravy was unpalatable. I was really shocked.

The instructions gave a couple of extra steps in the prep that made me feel like this was going to be something special. But problems arose quickly. Even after the special prep and giving it quite a few extra minutes on the burner, it just would not thicken up. And maybe that would have been fine if it hadn't been for the taste, which was a fennel overload. The sausage flavoring was also very artificial and obvious. I literally could only take two bites.

But I did enjoy the skillet breakfast casserole recipe on the back of the sauce packet, which I will be trying with different gravy. I do love it when a sauce mix comes with a recipe! One of my favorite spinach dips that I make for parties and gatherings is from the back of a Knorr vegetable seasoning mix. It's a household staple. So, always check the back of your sauce mix packages. You might find a real gem.

I love pesto. And I love a nice pesto on pasta. It's light. It's flavorful. It's got texture. But that is not what you will find with Knorr pesto sauce mix.

The mix calls for water and olive oil. And in the end, that is all I could taste. There was no basil, garlic, or salt. I simmered it for several minutes longer than it said, trying to urge it to some sort of thickened consistency, but I just could not achieve anything. And while saucing the pasta, this ran like water everywhere.

While I tried my best, bite after bite, to find something of substance to say about this sauce mix, I had nothing, much like what I got from the sauce itself.

Sadly, another white biscuit gravy is at the bottom of the list. Highly disappointing. From the packaging to the lovely stovetop thickening, this gravy gave every indication that it was going to be as tasty as it looked. Really put on a good show. But in the taste category, it went sideways.

As far as peppered gravy goes, I was expecting much more seasoning. The overall flavor was there but extremely mild. Even the pepper just gave a hint of its presence. But that wasn't the worst part. There was a chalkiness to the gravy, like one you would find from an antacid. It overwhelmed the flavor and left a horrible aftertaste. I can only believe it is from whatever milk substitute was used, as this gravy mix was made with water alone.

For this sauce, you have to add milk and parmesan cheese, so I was really hopeful about this one. But that hope faded quickly upon tasting it, as there was absolutely no hint of parm whatsoever. Whatever was in the seasoning mix, plus the cheese I added, was completely lost. There actually wasn't much taste to it at all.

The sauce had a creamy texture, and although it wasn't as thick as a good alfredo sauce should be, there was no flavor. It was easier to taste the noodles when I tried it with the pasta.

As far as having to pay for cheese and milk to add to this mix, this sauce is absolutely not worth it. There are so many better options out there. And regardless of what you have to add, it's still a no on this sauce. It's not going to fulfill anyone's appetite for fettuccini alfredo.

With only milk and butter to add to this sauce, it was fairly simple to make and didn't take long. The consistency was pretty on point, thick and creamy. But again, the flavor just wasn't there.

A good alfredo sauce has a strong sense of cheese, and this had more of a soft acknowledgment. It definitely needed salt and maybe some garlic. There was some flavor already there, but you had to really look hard for it.

If you need an easy way to start an alfredo sauce and feel comfortable in the kitchen spicing your own way, then this would be a good place to start. But if the point of using a mix is the work should be done for you, go with a different option. Even if that means you pay a few dollars more.

Biscuit gravy just did not bring its game to the sauce mix arena this time through. Like its sausage-flavored cousin, the fennel is too strong in this gravy mix, albeit I am not a huge fan of fennel. It's a big flavor and needs to be used sparingly.

I will say that this gravy cooked to the perfect consistency looked beautiful, and made an abundant amount. My husband did say he would eat it with a few spice tweaks. So, again, if you are comfortable spicing your own gravy, this is a great place to start for the price and portions. And bonus, there is a broccoli cheese soup recipe on the back.

The thing that upset me the most was just laying my eyes on the directions: Bring to a boil. Generally, when someone is told to bring something to a boil, you set the burner on high and stand back. But you cannot do that with a delicate milk-based sauce like hollandaise. (Alfredo sauces are a bit more hardy regarding this issue.) It will scorch, taste horrible, curdle the texture, and leave you with a very difficult pot to clean.

What you are going to want to do is mix the packet together with the milk first. Then, you are going to put your butter in and bring the heat up to under medium, stirring the mixture all the while. When the butter melts, that is your cue to raise the heat a bit more. Do not go too high. Keep increasing the heat a little at a time while stirring until you get a small boil happening. Then, you want to immediately turn the heat to low for exactly one minute.

I generally only get hollandaise on my eggs benedict when I go out to brunch. And there is good reason for that. Hollandaise is a very difficult sauce to make. And while this mix did bring the consistency of a hollandaise sauce, that was about all it offered. The taste fell flat.

It looked great. The consistency was faultless. There was even a creaminess about it. But you had to fight to find the flavor. If the seasoning had been doubled, then Knorr would probably really have something here. But as is, I would leave this sauce to the professionals.

Kroger's mushroom gravy mix delivers exactly what you would want for the price you pay, which is under a dollar. You only have to add water and stir. To get to the thickness I personally like, I had to simmer for double the time on the packet. But that was the only downside.

It had a very nice aroma of mushrooms, and there were dried mushrooms in the mix that plumped a bit while simmering. It gave the gravy a nice texture and an extra bite of mushroom. The flavor went just to the edge of too much without going over. I think a fan of mushrooms would enjoy this over a pork chop or potatoes. You could also use it to make a thick mushroom cheeseburger. Just some food for thought.

When I opened this packet, it smelled delicious. The air was filled with the aromas of basil, garlic, and oregano. I was immediately excited to see how this sauce was going to play out. And I was definitely surprised.

It was sweet! Sweeter than you would expect from a spaghetti sauce. And I do enjoy a sweet tomato sauce from time to time. There was a touch of basil that came through on occasion. But the tomato was the frontrunner on taste, to the point of overpowering anything I had smelled from the mix alone.

I immediately began thinking it would be great if I added some salt and garlic. By doubling the paste, it makes an excellent pizza sauce, which is what I plan on doing with the leftovers. So, there is something to work with here if you want to get creative. It just isn't necessarily working for its named purpose.

This is a store brand mix and costs under a dollar. When I opened the package, I was not hit with any herby aroma. It only needed some tomato paste and water and is beyond simple to make. It didn't even have to be tended on the stove, as you cover it and just let it simmer.

So, I was more than surprised when I finally got around to tasting it. The Italian seasoning in this is perfect, allowing you to taste all the hearty profiles. The tomato doesn't overpower the spices. There was a slight hint of sweetness, but not too much. There were even bits of onion that created a lovely texture and pop.

It is as good as some very nice homemade sauces I have tasted. It is better than more than a few jar sauces I have had. It could compete with a restaurant or two as well. This is a great sauce that I would highly recommend to anyone who doesn't know how or is simply not in the mood to make a homemade marinara. I would go as far as to suggest keeping it in your pantry and skipping the pasta sauce aisle in the grocery store altogether.

Again, Pioneer came in with a few extra prep steps, making me feel like I was really up to something good. (But fool me once.) So, I was tentative and not expecting much from this brown gravy.

It cooked up nicely and had the perfect consistency in a few short minutes. But then the real test came with the taste. It blew me away! It was delicious and delightful. Creamy, savory, and rich, it had all the flavors of a Thanksgiving stuffing bursting throughout. There is even a lovely hint of mushroom. It was great tasting on its own and very much so over potatoes.

There is also a recipe on the back for mushroom gravy. And while I do not make it often, if I'm going to make a mushroom gravy, I would do so with this mix. I will also be grabbing a few packets to keep in the pantry for mashed potatoes and pork chops.

Making a bearnaise sauce is tricky and not very easy. It is, however, quite easy to mess up. So, I was personally excited to discover this sauce mix. But I will say I did not expect a lot.

You can throw out the "cooks in 4 minutes" announcement on the pouch. Just like the hollandaise, this is going to need to be a slow rise to boil. You'll need to add milk to the mix first, and then add butter, boil, simmer, and done.

While I first thought the sauce looked a bit runny, it thickened up to the correct consistency within half a minute of leaving the burner. It was thick enough not to spread too far when drizzled but had a wonderfully thick, creamy texture. It was rich, buttery, and robust with herbs. I was shocked! There was so much flavor.

Before tasting this, I would have reserved all meals with bearnaise sauce for dining out. But now, I will be using this mix. It would be lovely on a filet or grilled flank steak. It is absolutely wonderful.

I have to say I really like the sophistication of Kinder's packaging, especially for a lower-cost item. I'm even happier to say that this gravy mix deserves to look special because it is a real treat. Opening the packet, you are hit with a delicious aroma of turkey and spices. It quickly mixes up to a lovely golden-brown color, and the consistency is easy to obtain and maintain.

The taste is rich, creamy, and full of comfort, everything you want from a brown gravy and more. It is so authentic in its homemade taste that I would be happy to serve it at a holiday or special meal besides mashed potatoes, stuffing, chicken breast, or possibly roast. I highly suggest Kinder's bone broth gravy. And I plan on looking into the other flavors because I feel there is an opportunity for a great beef stew base in the mix.

I'm not a huge enchilada fan. I don't believe I've ever ordered them dining out. I have never made them in my home and have only had them when given a plate or offered a bite. But I have never really enjoyed the taste of enchilada sauce. I've always found it grainy with too much paprika for my taste. So, I was the most surprised at this enchilada sauce making it to the number one spot.

It cooked up with the same consistency and look of every other enchilada sauce I've tried, but the taste was not grainy at all. The paprika was there, but not thick or overwhelming. It was spicy and aromatic and had small bits of onion that added a nice bite. A little smoky and perfectly savory, I was more than happy to see the recipe for a full enchilada meal right on the back. And while I haven't done it before, I will be making enchiladas now. McCormick won me over.

Not judging a book by its cover, all mixes were given equal attention in mixing, making, and tasting. They were all tasted alone and also over a subtly flavored, yet appropriate pairing. As far as ranking, level of difficulty was considered with the thought that a mix should be fairly easy to prepare. I also don't think a mix should cost very much when there are plenty of other options. So, the mixes that had recipes, healthy portions, simple necessary additions (like a cup of water), and alternate use tips were given extra points for value.

None of these mixes were overly complicated. Almost all of them even reached the desired consistency and appearance. It really all came down to the flavor, and there were very extreme differences. Some I hope I never have again.

But trying a new sauce mix is almost always worth the gamble because the payoff can be great. Recall my Knorr spinach dip. I use the vegetable seasoning mix all the time, and that isn't what it's labeled use! Plus, just trying these few mixes, I not only found new sauces, but new dishes that I can add to my menu. And that is truly a lot wrapped up in one little package.