Ragu has a new twist on its familiar sauces: a simmer sauce for chicken. Called Chicken Tonight, this new way to prepare chicken comes in a variety of flavors: chicken cacciatore, herbed chicken with wine, country French chicken, creamy chicken with mushrooms, and salsa chicken. The 24.5-oz. bottles retail for $1.79.
Don Russell: "This sauce has a strong yet pleasant flavor. I suppose some of that credit goes to the chablis wine. Ragu is definitely not just flour, water and coloring. The generous amount of diced carrots and assorted herbs was another plus. All members of our family thought Chicken Tonight was more than just an ordinary sauce or gravy. I can see us using this again.Nihla Lake: "We tried the Chicken Tonight simmer sauce for country fresh chicken. It was very easy to prepare and smelled delicious while it simmered for 40 minutes, but when it was done all the kids said, `Yuck!'
"My husband and I loved it - especially warmed up the next day. The children aren't used to food cooked in wine. The sauce has a nice blend of carrots, mushrooms, onions, garlic and sweet cream in a base of white wine, but it is a little high in sodium and fat content. This will be good for a candlelight dinner for two once in awhile."
Judy Slack Wilson: "This is good! It's simple to make - easier to prepare than a lot of things. Chicken can be so messy. The kids really liked this so I'll buy it again."
Edyth Jensen: "We tried the chicken cacciatore. It was quick and easy to use. The flavor was full and rich with tomatoes, red and green peppers and spices. We really enjoyed it. We will probably use it again."
Linda C. Tingey: "I had the creamy chicken and mushroom Chicken Tonight. It was very interesting! I've never served chicken with a cream sauce before. This is very smooth and tangy and was delicious served on baked potatoes. It was very tasty and the fat content was good. I think I would try this again."
Rich Firmage: "We're not great salsa fans, but the Chicken Tonight salsa had a good flavor. It was very easy to prepare. We were surprised it was a Ragu product since it is Mexican rather than Italian. You could use this for many different dishes."
Conclusion: When you're tired of fried chicken, give these new sauces a try. Our panel gives them a round of thumbs up!
The Deseret News testing panel independently tests products purchased by the Deseret News. Readers with suggestions for products to be tested should contact the Today Section, Box 1257, Salt Lake City, UT 84110.