The 5 Best Vodka Sauce Brands Of 2023
Pasta is a staple meal in nearly every household because it’s relatively easy to cook, not overly time-consuming, and it satisfies hunger on all levels. The secret to a great pasta dish is rarely the pasta itself.
It’s the sauce that really counts.
So what’s the best vodka sauce brand? The best brands include Yo Mama’s Foods, Happy Belly, Primal Kitchen, Hoboken Farms, and Botticelli. The best vodka sauce brands balance the tomato flavors with the creaminess. The vodka should be present in the slight heat of the dish, without overpowering the flavor.
The quality of the ingredients in a vodka sauce really does have an impact on the enjoyment. If you’re going to pay for a premium sauce because of the vodka, you want to make sure that everything else going into it is equally high-quality.
In this article, we’ll explain why vodka sauce is worth the premium label and price tag and we’ll share our 5 favorite brands.
To make our decision, we expected unparalleled flavor, great core ingredients, a reasonable price tag, and, wherever possible, a strong brand to pull our attention towards the product.
What is Vodka Sauce?
Vodka sauce is an American-Italian cuisine collaboration that adds a twist to a traditional tomato-based pasta sauce.
Cooking with alcohol is common in Italian cuisine, but that alcohol is usually wine. As you may have guessed, a vodka sauce uses vodka instead.
Adding alcohol to a red sauce releases fresh flavors from the tomatoes, balancing out the sweetness and adding a subtle, unique heat.
More importantly, alcohol acts as an emulsifying agent. It allows you to add cream to a tomato sauce without the oil from the cream reacting to the acidic tomatoes. This can break the sauce, separating the fat from the water.
Vodka sauce, then, is a lightly creamy, very well balanced, and high-quality tomato sauce that is perfect for any pasta dish.
What Does Vodka Sauce Taste Like?
Vodka sauce does not taste like vodka, but the sharp alcohol does provide an interesting heat to the sauce that pairs well with a light touch of red pepper flakes.
The tomatoes retain their sweetness but are tempered, and the cream is still rich and luxurious, but it isn’t as heavy or overwhelming as some cream-based sauces can be.
Vodka sauce elevates all the natural flavors and richness of the ingredients you’re used to enjoying in a rose or pink sauce, but it brightens and clears the flavors at the same time.
The Best Vodka Sauce Brands
Vodka sauces are almost always premium quality goods because there is much more to the recipe than a simple marinara or tomato-based sauce demands.
The ratio of ingredients needs to be analyzed and perfected to an almost scientific degree to create the ideal balance of rich, creaminess, and sweet yet bright fruit-forward tomato flavors.
Not all pasta sauce manufacturers have the patience, skill, or determination to come up with their own signature blend, but the ones that do will help you prepare a meal that your friends and family will talk about forever.
Our favorite vodka sauce brands bring more to the table than just an easy meal:
| Rank | Product | Brand | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Keto Vodka Pasta Sauce | Yo Mama's Foods | Keto diet |
| 2. | Vodka Cream Pasta Sauce | Happy Belly | Value for less |
| 3. | No Dairy Vodka Sauce | Primal Kitchen | Dairy-free diets |
| 4. | Vodka Sauce | Hoboken Farms | Overall flavor |
| 5. | Alla Vodka Pasta Sauce | Botticelli | Traditional taste |
They feature high-quality ingredients, carefully balanced flavor profiles and the best of the best even have fun and clever branding to back up their clever sauces. So read on for more information about these fabulous vodka sauce options.
1. Keto Vodka Pasta Sauce by Yo Mama’s Foods
Beyond the obviously saucy branding, this vodka sauce tastes as fresh and velvety as the packaging promises.
It has the most enticing nutritional label of any we’ve seen and it still provides truly exceptional flavor. Made with non-GMO tomatoes, and no added sugar, this low-carb vodka sauce will delight without disappointment!
Key Features:
- No sugar added, low carb and sodium.
- Paleo and Keto friendly as well as Gluten-free.
- Made not only with vodka but also with white wine.
Biggest Drawback: To bring as much flavor and creaminess to a pasta sauce while still being low in sugar, sodium, and carbs is a tall order. It costs a bit extra to get this kind of quality, so the price may be a little premium, but not extravagantly so.
2. Happy Belly Vodka Cream Pasta Sauce
Happy Belly is an Amazon brand which makes this product a real bargain, but that’s not all it has to offer.
The ingredients list is simple and, though it is a bit high in sodium, it doesn’t have any added sugars and it still tastes great. With 6 jars of this delicious, Kosher sauce, you’ll be free from disappointment for a long time.
Key Features:
- Simple ingredients list that does NOT include high fructose corn syrup.
- Packaged in plastic bottles, reducing the potential for damage during the shipping process.
Biggest Drawback: The flavor of this sauce is mild and stable, and it doesn’t have as much of a kick as homemade vodka sauce will have. For some, it’s too bland. For others, it’s a perfect opportunity to add your own herbal infusions for fresh flavors every time you use the sauce.
3. Primal Kitchen Vodka Sauce
Primal Kitchen is almost a celebrity brand, created by Mark Sisson, famous fitness author behind the Primal Blueprint movement.
The brand is focused on “real food” ingredients that bring as much exceptional flavor as nutrition to a meal. This vodka sauce is proof that you don’t need to compromise on taste to be able to enjoy a healthy “real” meal.
Key Features:
- Dairy-free and vegan, using cashews to achieve the creamy texture and flavor.
- Highly processed soy and canola oils are replaced by healthier avocado oil.
- Made with mostly organic ingredients and no added sugars.
Biggest Drawback: It’s a premium sauce so the price tag may seem premium to some, compared to some of the other options on our list. It isn’t just branding, however, you really are paying for higher quality, and it’s definitely worth trying.
4. Hoboken Farms Vodka Sauce
Hoboken Farms is another really fun brand that creates incredibly delicious sauces.
The vodka sauce, according to their marketing, is “an almost mythical combination of savory cheese and sweet cream,” and we can’t argue with that assessment in the least. With rich olive oil and fine cream used, this one is sure to please.
Key Features:
- No added sugars or preservatives.
- Gluten-free, Keto, and kosher-friendly.
- Made with heart-healthy olive oil instead of soy or canola.
Biggest Drawback: The flavor is unarguably “sauce-um” (get it? like awes-ome), without a doubt, but depending on how much, or how little you like to spend, it could cost a bit more than you expect.
Vodka sauce is traditionally a more premium pasta sauce than a simple marinara or other plain tomato-based sauce, so you shouldn’t expect similar costs.
5. Botticelli Alla Vodka Pasta Sauce
Vodka sauce is a marriage of Italian and American cuisines and the Botticelli brand embraces this to the fullest, with a true Italian company driven by American demand.
The flavors of all their pasta sauces are top-notch thanks to the rich, premium quality of Parma food valley tomatoes.
Key Features:
- A product of Italy made with world-renowned Italian tomatoes.
- Make with fresh Italian extra virgin olive oil.
- Enhanced with not only light cream but also a variety of authentic Italian cheese.
Biggest Drawback: Of all the sauces in our list, this is probably the lightest in terms of creaminess. The tomatoes are the highlight and they are beautifully flavored, but if you’re looking for the heavy creaminess that American’s have come to love, you’ll find this sauce slightly lacking.
Related Questions About Vodka Sauce
What Does Vodka Sauce Go With?
Vodka sauce tastes delicious in nearly any pasta dish. It can be swapped out for any recipe that calls for a traditional tomato-based sauce, but it is even more of a comparable substitution for tomato-cream sauces.
The vodka helps balance the acidity of the tomatoes and the heaviness of the cream, so it works well with most ingredients. Lobster ravioli, meatballs, and even ratatouille all pair well with vodka sauce.
Does Vodka Sauce Have Vodka in it?
Yes, vodka sauce does actually contain vodka. It’s not just for shock value or as a conversation starter.
The vodka enhances the flavor of the tomatoes in the sauce and allows for cream or heavy cream to be added to the sauce in a way that blends smoothly, without the oil and water separate.
