The Best Canned Tomatoes Money Can Buy, According to an Italian Chef

When it comes to building flavor, few ingredients are as foundational as canned tomatoes. Whether you’re making pizza sauce, tomato soup, shakshuka, or even bloody Mary mix, the quality of your tomatoes can make or break the dish. Any old canned tomato won't do; choose the wrong one, and you risk metallic notes, sharp bitterness, or watery, blandness.

Call me dramatic, but this definitely is not a “to-may-to, to-mah-to” situation.

To find out which brand truly delivers, I turned to someone who would know best: a master pizzaiola. Giorgia Caporuscio is the head pizzaiola and owner of Don Antonio in New York City, ranked seventh best pizzeria in the United States and 29th in the world by 50 Top Pizza. She was born in Terracina, Italy, and trained in Naples, the heart of pizza culture. This dough-slinging, sauce aficionado knows her way around a tomato.

The canned tomato she wholeheartedly trusts in her kitchens—both at Don Antonio and at home—is Mutti.

Why Chefs Love Mutti Tomatoes

Many canned tomatoes lean too sour or too flat, which can throw off the flavor of a sauce or soup. Mutti strikes the sweet spot, Caporuscio says, with a natural balance that gives sauces depth without overwhelming tang. She notes that Mutti delivers a "balanced acidity, which is important for not just pizza, but also many other Italian dishes."

That subtle, well-rounded flavor allows the tomatoes to complement other ingredients rather than compete with them, making every dish taste fresher and more harmonious.

Texture is just as important as flavor when it comes to canned tomatoes. Many brands are too watery, which can dilute sauces or make a pizza crust soggy. That thicker, more concentrated consistency is especially useful for pizzas, baked pastas, or any dish that needs to hold up under heat, explains Caporuscio. It also allows the tomato flavor to shine through, giving sauces a rich, satisfying body without adding extra cooking time.

Mutti’s tomatoes are grown across Emilia-Romagna, Puglia, and Campania, regions known for their fertile soil and perfect growing conditions. The tomatoes are processed within hours of harvesting, ensuring peak freshness and flavor are captured in the can.

Most of the brand's products, like Polpa (crushed tomatoes) and Passata (purée), contain nothing more than 100% Italian tomatoes and a pinch of Mediterranean sea salt—no citric acid, additional sugar, or additives. Mutti has been around for 120 years, and refers to itself as “Italy’s #1 Tomato.

Mutti’s canned tomatoes are pure, bright, intensely tomato-forward, and far less salty than most American brands (so be sure to taste and season as you cook); it's easy to see why Italian chefs swear by it across the globe. Try using the brand's Polpa for pasta or soups, or the silky Passata as a quick, flavorful pizza sauce base.