Nina San Marzano Tomatoes at Costco

[Apizz]

Hi Team,

Has anyone tried the Nina San Marzano Tomatoes that are sold at Costco?  Are they real San Marzano tomotoes?  The can says that they are grown in the San Marzano region.  It's only about $2.50 for a #10 can.  Here is the picture (the best I could find):

https://www.surfasonline.com/products/25841.cfm

[Christopher]

Hey, Apizz,
I have tried the Ninas and think they are very good tomatoes. to my palate they have a sweeter taste than say Cento non-DOP. The value alone is worth the purchase and they make just as good of a pizza or pasta sauce that i have had.
i had read somewhere on here that some new york pizza places use them, but how many or who i have no idea. whether they are actually san marzanos, i doubt it, but i would have to read the label, it does have some Italian seals on there.
Christopher

[scott r]

I agree that those tomatos have good flavor.  The problem with them is that they have a very high water content, so you need to work pretty hard to it all out of there.

Christopher, did you compare them to the cento Italian tomato's, or just some other cento (italian style etc?)  In my  taste tests the cento Italian tomato's still won out even for flavor, and were much thicker. 

One thing is for certain, you can't beat the price!

I am always willing to give things a second chance, so maybe I should do another comparison.

[Apizz]

Thanks guys!  I'll buy some next time I'm there and will report on the flavor. 

They can't be that bad - I saw people carying boxes of them out of the store.

[Christopher]

Hey, Guys,
Scott, i buy the Cento Italian Style Whole Peeled Tomatoes. is there another Italian type packed by Cento? at the store they have the DOP version, Italian style which i buy, and the various purees, filets and crushed types. i have to say i have not liked my sauces made with Cento tomatoes, but unfortunately i think my sauce sucks most of the time, so who am i to say? 
my sauce is the weakest part of my pizza and is hit or miss at best. i can easily get some ninas and i have cans of Centos here and i can do a taste test to finally see what i detect in flavors. to my palate in pasta sauces the ninas are sweeter than the Centos. do you notice that or is it me?
how do you conduct your flavor tests, Scott? raw, cooked, spiced? i would like to try out some varieties and make a better sauce. typically i spice my sauce with a little salt, pepper, oregano and sometimes basil and red wine vinegar. nothing fancy.
Thanks,
Christopher
 

[scott r]

christopher, the reason you are not happy with the cento tomatoes you are buying is that they suck.  The only good cento product says Italian tomatoes, not italian style tomatoes, or filets, or anything else.  Italan "style" are really bad.  When you find the right can I predict that you will be happy with your sauce.  These tomatoes are so good (thank you jeffery V!) that they need no herbs or spices.  If you get right amount of salt in there, and get them thick enough you should be totally happy.  Once you have achieved this you can then start messing around with tiny amounts of oregano, garlic, pepper, sugar, or whatever else you like to spike your sauce with.  I find no need to do this.

P.S. even the DOP san marzano's are not as good as the cento Italian.

Good luck!

[scott r]

First I puree the tomatoes and get them drained so that they are at the same consistency. If one is two watery you will not like it as much.  I then taste to even out the salt levels.  If one is saltier you will probably like it better. 

Then it is time to conduct my two tests.  The first test is at room temp with a spoon.  The second test is on a sauce only pizza spread with weighed out portions of 1/2 of one brand and 1/2 of the other.  I usually leave a small area without sauce in the middle to seperate the two and fill that with some cheese.

[Christopher]

Hey, Scott,
i didnt know that there was another style. bummer. do you have a photo you could link or a source so i can see the can and i will try to find mine and post it. i dont think i have ever seen these italian tomatoes you are referring to or if i have i never noticed.
go figure. back to the drawing board...
Thanks for your help so far. you do learn new things everyday!
Christopher

[scpizza]

Cento is good stuff.

[Christopher]

Hey, Guys,
I finally found the "Italian Peeled tomatoes" sitting, of all places, right next to where the "Italian Style" sit on the shelf. i guess the fact they are in 35 oz. cans instead of the 28 oz. threw me off and made me think they were the same. havent gotten a chance to try them though...

scpizza,
have you tried the non DOP italain peeled? i have read on here they are better than the DOP version...is that your opinion as well?
thanks,
Christopher

[abc]

Hi Team,

Has anyone tried the Nina San Marzano Tomatoes that are sold at Costco?  Are they real San Marzano tomotoes?  The can says that they are grown in the San Marzano region.  It's only about $2.50 for a #10 can.  Here is the picture (the best I could find):

https://
www.surfasonline.com/products/25841.cfm

Yes, these are the ones I buy, from Costco as well.  $2.89 ea. for me.  Last yr it was $2.79

[scpizza]

They are cheap alright, but not very good.

[Apizz]

Well,

We made some kick-ass pizza Napoletana with Nina tomatoes yesterday. They had awesome tangy, long falavor.  But I think they make them with little or no salt, so you absolutely have to add a bunch to the sauce, or it migt be a bit bland.  We added about 1 teaspoon of sea salt to the sauce made from one #10 can.  To make sauce we drained and squeezed the tomatoes and mushed them with a hand-held blender, adding sea salt. Yum!

[Christopher]

Hi, Apizz,
glad to hear you liked the ninas, i bought three cans after this thread came about because i wanted to try them again. today i finally tried the bonta pizza sauce (high yield) mixed with 6 in 1's and some water to thin, which turned out really well. that bonta is super thick like paste, for some reason high yield didnt register as super concentrated. i will play around with it a bit more and report back.
Christopher

[anthony2173]

I bought a DOP tomato today called Napoletano from our local Costco. I was surprised to see a DOP item at $7.00 for three 28oz cans.

I still have 6-in-1 and Stanislaus tomatoes falling out of my ears but couldn't pass up a chance to try some cheap San Marzano's.