Trader Giotto's Penne Arrabbiata

If you want frozen, ready-to-heat pasta entrees, Trader Joe’s is a great place to look for them. This distant cousin to Aldi has sold a range of frozen pastas over the years, including mushroom ravioli, meat lasagna, and fettucine alfredo.

I recently tried another frozen pasta from TJ’s: a spicy penne arrabbiata. This is a product of Italy. The package states this is “a classic Italian dish made with imported macaroni pasta & an authentic spicy tomato sauce.”

We buy products ourselves for review. I paid $3.49 for a 16-ounce package of Trader Giotto’s Penne Arrabiata at my local Trader Joe’s in 2024. That comes out to about 22 cents per ounce.

If you’re looking out for allergens, this contains wheat. This is vegan.

The full ingredients list includes parcooked macaroni pasta, tomato juice, water, tomato, onion, sunflower seed oil, extra virgin olive oil, salt, sugar, wheat starch, parsley, garlic, chili pepper, and white pepper.

There are about three 1-cup servings per package. One serving has 180 calories, 4 grams of total fat (5% DV), 0.5 grams of saturated fat (3% DV), 640 mg of sodium (28% DV), 29 grams of total carbohydrates (11% DV), 2 grams of dietary fiber (7% DV), 2 grams of total sugars, less than 1 gram of added sugars (2% DV), and 5 grams of protein.

Trader Joe's Penne Arrabbiata — Nutrition information and ingredients. (Click to enlarge.)

The package has instructions for cooking this from frozen in the microwave or in a skillet on the stovetop.

To microwave, place contents of the bag in a microwave-safe dish. Cover and heat on 50% power for 4 minutes. Uncover and gently toss. Recover and continue heating for 3 minutes longer. Toss and serve.

To heat in a skillet, heat 1 or 2 tablespoons of water or olive oil over medium heat. Add pasta and sauce. Stir until sauce is melted and pasta is heated, about 6-7 minutes. Serve right away.

You can add grated parmesan cheese to taste.

Trader Joe's Penne Arrabbiata 3 — Ready to serve after heating in a skillet.

I liked this. It’s on the mild side of spicy and tasted very good. It has plenty of sauce with good tomato flavor, with small bits of onion and tomato. The pasta was al dente and just right. I would buy this again.

The Verdict:

Trader Giotto’s Penne Arrabbiata features penne pasta in a mildly spicy tomato sauce. It has a simple ingredients list and is a product of Italy. We approve.