How to Pick the Best Store Bought Prepared Pesto

In case you're curious why Costco wasn't mentioned: ATK has on multiple occasions stated they don't include Costco brand products in their lineups, because Costco requires a membership. ATK wants the brand they recommend to be available to anyone in the US, regardless of membership, and many towns do not have a Costco to begin with.

I loved the look on Julia's face with some of these. And agreed on the Costco pesto; it is better than the Buitoni.

I am sooooo lucky that my fiancé likes making it fresh once a year and packages it up in small quantities for the freezer. We have a local organic farm that sells the basil fresh off the field by the trash bag full. I do have the job of grading all the cheese, but get to nibble on the little ends you can’t grade. Win win!

Costco brand is delicious and inexpensive!

I've probably tried 10 store brand pesto sauces. Costco's kirkland brand pesto is 3x+ the size of other jars for $5 and it's BY FAR the best. It's crazy how much better it is than the others.

Just for the record, some of ATK's own pesto recipes call for the addition of parsley, for exactly the reason mentioned - it will keep it green. Addition - not substitution - being the key phrase.

I love the Costco brand pesto. I’m surprised you didn’t test that.

I WANT MORE JACK BISHOP

I love the knowledge you guys provide, thank you so much, probably saved me some money too. I have tried some nasty pesto sauces lol.

Rana! Found in the refrigerated section ...my #1 choice.

You are all wonderful! Thank you for being so decisive about flavor. I always check your advise on brands; and of course your recipes!

How bout the recipe for the pesto meatballs you mentioned, Julia? Pretty please?

I love Buitoni...been using is for years and it never seems to let me down. I guess the real result for me is that no one notices...and that is good!

Always enjoy your videos as they are extremely informative.

oh jeez, her face while tasting; priceless. Confession: I have a stash of homemade pesto in my freezer, we use it so often that we just make a ton of it in one go and freeze it in ice cube trays and pack it away.

Most big supermarkets have delis where they make their own pesto. Those tend to be much better than anything commercial.

Like the many others who have commented, Costco’s Kirkland brand pesto is so delicious! My favorite!

In one of my markets in NYC, the store has a deli where fresh salads, soups and sandwiches are prepared and sold all day. Along with their "retail" responsibilities, the deli team also is tasked with making certain items for the store to carry in the refrigerator case for sale. Basil pesto is on the list and it's delicious. They make it every day and sell it until it sells out. They buy basil anyway for the produce section, so making pesto in a food processor is not a terrible task for them and I have to guess they are adding a LOT of margin to their sale when they are able to be the maker.

Had a jar of Classico pesto in the fridge, was just thinking the other day that it's not as good as the refrigerated stuff over near the cheese section. Since they didn't talk about it in this video, I'll rattle off some facts: -No pine nuts. -Has basil, parmesan, garlic, olive oil, and salt. -Also has both citric acid and lactic acid, lending a slight sour taste. -It does separate, requiring stirring. -It's okay at best. It's fine if you need something really shelf stable, but if you're making a fancy dinner, please get something nicer. -It mixes alright with mayo, if you're into that. I particularly enjoy that mixture on a frittata, but again you're gonna get better mileage out of a better pesto that isn't mixed with anything.

My pesto of choice is Classico which you didn't taste test, but I will have to try the buitoni now that you said it was the best of the test.