Yesterday at the grocery store I spent a good 20 minutes reading and comparing the labels on the tomato/spaghetti sauces. Most were between 8-12 carbs for a half cup after the fibre was subracted, and every single one was loaded with sugar.

Has someone found a brand (preferrably something available in Canada) that is low carb and sugar free.

I've never had much luck making my own using real tomatoes. It's always runny and bland.

If what I'm looking for doesn't exist, then I'm throwing in the towel on commercial varieties and will need to lock myself in the kitchen until I can make something decent of my own.

I use tomato paste to make my own sauce. They don't add sugar to most them.

Wa'il

Most of the Classico brand pasta sauces have no added sugar. The Spicy Red Pepper variety is 6g carbs for a 1/2 cup serving. Most of them do average around 8g per serving though. Even plain tomato sauce runs 6 to 8g for a 1/2 cup, and tomato paste is 6 - 7g for only 2 Tbsp. And making home-made sauce from scratch is still going to be carby, since a lot of the water evaporates out with long, slow cooking ... and it becomes more concentrated. Just what you want for flavour, but not helpful in the carb department.

Add lots of meat, and chunky low carb veggies like zucchini, mushrooms and bell peppers to stretch it out.

p.s. - Classico has complete nutrient info on all their products at their website ... http://www.classico.com/products.asp

Doreen

Thanks you guys! *pouting* guess I'll keep tomato sauce on the wish list till I can have more than 30 carbs a day. An investment of 8 gr is more than I am willing to use for a single ingredient right now.

I don't like the smooth and un-naturally thick jarred varieties, theough I agree with Doreen about the Classico. It's not bad!

Not using onions but using a clove or two of garlic instead will lower the carb count further.

Simple Tomato Sauce
Makes 1 1/2 cups
2 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 cup finely diced onion
1 28-oz. can Italian plum tomatoes, well drained and finely chopped
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

In a heavy pot, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and sauté until translucent. Add the tomatoes and cook at a lively simmer until the sauce has reduced and the oil starts to float to the top. Season to taste.

Total: 327 cals
Fat: 28 grams
Carbs: 20 grams
Fiber: 4 grams
Protein: 4 grams

Thanks so much Karen for posting that recipe. I'll definitely be giving it a try (that is after I spend another 20 minutes reading the labels on the cans of plum tomatoes)

Geez, I remember posting when I first started how much I hate cooking form recipies, and that 3 ingredients in a dish are 2 too many. I can proudly say I am a changed person.

Angela
Don't give up on tomatoes and sauces. like the recipe posted, they are very "doable" and minus fiber, its even a better value. You don't really eat an entire serving anyway, really.
On most things you can use a 1/2 cup in the entire recipe then just deduct.

I make a beef crust pizza, and using just a scant 1/2 cup over the entire top, you are getting 1/4 of that( if you serve 4) Just watch out for Ketchup. its high, I have a LC recipe for homemade, I will post if you like. also BBQ sauce.
Jane

I've never liked canned tomatoe sauce. I always found that there was a "not quite right" taste to it. I love using tinned crushed tomatoes (read the ingredients on different brands).

I make up a batch of pizza sauce with a few shakes of "Mrs. Dash" Italian spice mix. What I don't use, I keep in the freezer. It is easy to defrost when the need arrives or spoon out for smaller uses. The water does separate out a bit but is easily mixed back in. The fresh tomatoe/herb taste is better than anything I've found in a sauce. If I want a more concentrated taste I just add a spoon of tomato paste (which I also keep in the freezer).