Pasta and value pasta - what's the difference?

Birdy12

I needed to buy some lasagne pasta sheets yesterday and saw in Morrisons that they had the 'Morrisons range' next to a 'Value Morrisons range' but both just containing '100% durum wheat'.

Price difference was about 40p so, for the first time, I've gone for the value pack and assume/hope my family won't know any different.

But, can anyone tell me if there is any difference if the ingredients are exactly the same?

Skyllo

Probably a difference in the "quality" of the ingredients.

I've found value pasta to take slightly longer to cook but the end taste is the same and it's a lot cheaper - especially seeing as pasta is something I use a lot of.

Birdy12

Think I may a convert to the value range then. Will have to hide from OH, however, as he considers anything with the word 'value' on it to be cr*p.

We use a lot of pasta too (simple meal for DS and DD is pasta with grated cheese and cucumber/carrot on side. Great for when there's no time/I can't be bothered! I discovered that Asda do a 3kg pack of penne so bought one the other day.

Al1x

I always get the cheapest pasta and rice.. i store it in storage jars so nobody knows its value range!

YORKSHIRELASS

Lasagne sheets have to be one of the best examples of a value product that tastes the same, looks the same and has the same nutritional content. Beware though, Tesco value lasagne sheets are 39p a packet (250g). Regular Tesco Lasagne sheets are 88p for 500g so you arent actually saving as much as you might think - clever old Tesco!

I suspect Morrisons do something similar and the sheets are definitely smaller which suits me because they fit in my dish better!

antrobus

Pasta and value pasta - what's the difference?

Pasta is normally made from 100% durum (hard) wheat semolina - value pasta is a mixture (50:50 usually) of durum wheat semolina and soft wheat semolina. Hard wheat is supposedly better than soft wheat for producing pasta, although whether you can tell the difference after you've smothered the cooked results in tomato and garlic is entirely a matter of personal taste.

Birdy12

YORKSHIRELASS wrote: »

I suspect Morrisons do something similar and the sheets are definitely smaller which suits me because they fit in my dish better!

Snap! I checked the quantity on both the Morrisons normal and value range and they were both the same so, for 40p cheaper, it was a bit of a no-brainer really.

Al1x - I already use glass storage jars for the spaghetti and shape type pasta which are 'on show'. Can't say I've seen a decent one for the sheet type so suspect I'll be using a tupperware box and keeping it in the cupboard!

Birdy12

Al1x wrote: »

I always get the cheapest pasta and rice

I would try the value rice but I'm rubbish at cooking it so end up buying the 'boil in the bag' type . May have to give myself a pep talk and give it another go!

JayJay14

Birdy12 wrote: »

I would try the value rice but I'm rubbish at cooking it so end up buying the 'boil in the bag' type . May have to give myself a pep talk and give it another go!

I can't cook rice of any sort in a pan - it always goes soggy.

I have used these for many years (I'm on my third and it cost half what the first did) works every time.


I always use value pasta/lasagne sheets - though I do like the essential Waitrose lasagne sheets, they are a larger pack and don't work out much more expensive and come in green as well as white.

p-pincher

I love value pasta, by the time it's been smothered in sauce or put in a pasta bake I can't tell the difference, I think it takes a couple more minutes cooking though. Value rice in my opinion is exactly the same as well but I am terrible at cooking rice. Which ever method I try fails miserably. For years i'd buy the expensive boil in the bag types but was sick of the cost so i bought an argos cookworks rice cooker for about a tenner and buy the value rice now. its brill x

blackandwhitebunny

Some of the price difference is the cost of the packaging, the value ranges are in packaging that is white plus one colour much cheaper to produce.