Israeli Couscous
We tasted five supermarket products, plain and in our Cook's Illustrated recipe …
Published: July 2015
Buy the WinnerDried White Beans
We’ve always been a little prejudiced in favor of dried beans over canned. But i…
Published: May 2014
Canned White Beans
Think canned cannellini beans are no match for dried beans cooked from scratch? …
Published: May 2014
Buy the WinnerJasmine Rice
We put six brands of jasmine rice—from supermarket varieties to high-end mail-or…
Published: March 2014
Buy the WinnerSupermarket Hummus
This creamy chickpea spread has gone from health food obscurity to the No. 1 ref…
Published: January 2013
Buy the WinnerWild Rice
Who knew wild rice was actually an aquatic grass? See which brand swam to the to…
Published: January 2013
Buy the WinnerDried Rice Noodles
We gathered three national brands, tasting them plain and in our Thai noodle sti…
Published: September 2012
Buy the WinnerSpaghetti
Our tests proved that once pasta is topped with sauce, flavor differences from b…
Published: January 2012
Buy the WinnerSupermarket Cheese Ravioli
Store-bought cheese ravioli offer convenience, but would any pass muster?
Published: January 2012
Buy the WinnerWhole Wheat Lasagna Noodles
When last year’s whole wheat spaghetti tasting turned up more than one pasta tha…
Published: September 2011
Dried Black Beans
Canned beans may be convenient, but their flavor and texture never measure up to…
Published: March 2011
Buy the WinnerWhole-Wheat Pasta
Whole-wheat pasta used to be awful, with mushy texture and a cardboard taste. Ha…
Published: January 2010
Buy the WinnerSteel-Cut Oats
Judging from the brands and styles cramming supermarket shelves, there's an oat …
Published: July 2009
Buy the WinnerStone-Ground Oats
We tested one brand of stone-ground oats. Could they please our tasters' palates…
Published: July 2009
Arborio Rice
Arborio rice makes the best risotto, but does the best Arborio have to come from…
Published: May 2008
Buy the WinnerPenne
Are the specialty brands and Italian imports worth the extra price?
Published: July 2007
Buy the WinnerLong-Grain White Rice
Since white rice is neutral in flavor, does it matter which kind you use? We tas…
Published: February 2010
Buy the WinnerFarfalle Pasta
Can American brands compete with pricey Italian imports?
Published: November 2003
Buy the WinnerNo Boil Lasagna Noodles
We first tested brands of no-boil lasagna noodles, and then cooked two lasagnas,…
Published: September 2002
Buy the WinnerCanned Baked Beans
A sweet discovery helped us see which baked beans are best.
Published: June 2009
Buy the WinnerMultigrain Bread
At the supermarket, these loaves range from pale and fluffy to dark and hearty, …
Published: October 2012
English Muffins
Are there real differences among the four major national brands of English muffi…
Published: February 2009
Buy the WinnerReady Rice
It’s called “ready rice” for a reason: Microwave it for less than two minutes, r…
Published: August 2012
Buy the WinnerMacaroni and Cheese
We tasted 25 boxed and frozen versions of mostly clumpy, gloppy, wimpy mac and c…
Published: April 2011
Buy the WinnerCanned Black Beans
While salt can be both friend and foe, mush is always a foe.
Published: February 2010
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