10 Trader Joe's Products You Need For The Best Pasta Night

Cooking a delicious, authentic Italian meal can come down to two things: simplicity and quality. However, to make simple ingredients sing, it can take hours of simmering and a hefty amount of prep work. Sometimes, you want to enjoy your pasta night without a full afternoon of prep and laboring over a sauce. Enter Trader Joe's. While the grocer may not scream "authentic Italian," it's a wildly underrated destination for serious pasta night staples. 

In addition to its cult-favorite snacks, freezer-aisle finds, and cheap wine, it offers a diverse selection of high-end products to pull off a dinner that feels straight out of Italy, all without sacrificing quality or flavor. Now, while any Italian nonna may frown upon it, the grocer has a wide variety of frozen pasta dinners. Trader Joe's also has a wide range of jarred sauces, bronze-cut pastas, imported cheeses, and premium olive oils. It even rotates in seasonal pasta sauces and pasta types. We picked 10 popular products from the store's wide selection to help you curate an authentically inspired Italian meal on your next pasta night.

Start the meal off right with this Italian classic appetizer. Made with Roma tomatoes soaked in oil, basil, garlic, and spices, the Trader Joe's bruschetta sauce is raved about on Reddit. "I love this sauce so much. If they ever discontinue it, I will riot," said one Redditor on this Trader Joe's thread. Priced at $3.49 for a 14-ounce tub, top a toasted baguette with it or toss it into your pasta for a no-prep, easy-but-delicious meal.

People over on this vegan Trader Joe's Instagram account love the store's kale cashew and basil pesto. Beyond its named ingredients, the $3.99 tub is simply made with olive oil, lemon juice, water, garlic, salt, and pepper. You won't even need the Parmesan in this creamy pesto when you toss it with your favorite noodles on pasta night.

Fiery, fruity, and savory, this thick Italian sauce is made with sun-ripened Calabrian chili peppers. A chili hot sauce is emulsified in its tomato base, then balanced with honey, spices, and olive oil. "This sauce is so full of flavor!! Since we discovered it about a year ago, we make pasta about once a week and use this sauce every time," said this Redditor on a thread about the sauce. This $4.99 jarred sauce will bring a kick to any pasta and taste like you've been simmering it for hours.

Cacio e Pepe is one of the simplest pastas to make, but sometimes you want minimal effort with maximum flavor. Enter Trader Joe's frozen cacio e pepe spaghetti. Frozen noodles are coated in Pecorino Romano cheese and black pepper to create this authentic Roman dish. A $3.99 package comes with six pasta nests, making a perfect meal for two. I will never make cacio e pepe myself again!" said one Redditor in a thread about the pasta, where most really enjoyed it.

Sedanini is a traditional Italian short-cut pasta shaped like a tube, ideal for creamy, tomato, or meat sauces. Priced at $2.99, Trader Joe's has made the tube noodles from red lentil flour, resulting in a pasta packed with 15 grams of protein per serving. Pair it with TJ's marinara or the above Calabrian chili spicy pasta sauce.

Zesty and creamy, the grocer's alfredo sauce is begging to be married with linguini. Made with classic Parmigiano Reggiano and Romano cheeses, garlic, and heavy cream, the sauce is perfect for this chicken Alfredo recipe. The 16-ounce jar costs $3.49.

Meatballs can be a lot of prep work, and when you're short on time but want an authentic Italian meal, you need something a little quicker. These Italian-style frozen meatballs from Trader Joe's bring the flavor without all the extra labor and ingredients. The 16-ounce package, priced at $6.49, contains medium-sized meatballs made with high-quality ground beef and seasoned breadcrumbs. They come flame-broiled, so just heat up in your microwave or let them warm up in your sauce for a few minutes before serving over spaghetti.

Italian for "garlic and oil," Aglio e olio is a traditional Neapolitan dish featuring long pasta tossed in pantry staples. Inspired by that classic, Trader Joe's conceived this savory, garlicky, and salty seasoning blend. Sprinkle it in your favorite pasta, make a cultured salted butter, or combine it with olive oil for a dipping sauce with that extra "wow-factor." Snag a 1.7-ounce jar for $2.49.

No pasta meal is complete without a quality bread for dipping and savoring. Bring a myriad of flavors to your meal with this mouth-watering focaccia bread with roasted tomato and parmesan. Priced at $4.99, the focaccia bread is baked on a heated tile in a stone-hearth oven. The grocer's supplier then tops each loaf with extra-virgin olive oil, roasted tomatoes, herbs, and finely grated Parmesan cheese. This would be an excellent addition to any pasta dish or dipped in balsamic vinegar.

As most Italians and chefs will tell you, Parmigiano Reggiano reigns supreme when it comes to cheeses. And it's the perfect topper for any pasta dish. Nutty, intensely browned-butter notes and umami-packed, the cheese is the perfect topper for any pasta dish. While a bit pricey at $19.99, Trader Joe's wedge is worth the splurge, as it's aged for over 55 months. It's made in the Parma-Reggio Emilia region of Northern Italy, which adheres to strict cheesemaking traditions passed down for over 1,000 years. Only cow's milk, animal rennet, and salt are used for this one-pound wedge of wonder. All you need to do is grate and enjoy.