If you want to go where the most interesting new brands are, the world of foods is where it’s at. Over the pandemic, food brands, once the grocery store staple, have become the go-to DTC brand with many presenting a modern, wellness-oriented take on classic foods or centering the narrative on authenticity.
Below, we share 5 of our favorite female-founded food brands that you should try!
Dona Chai makes single-sourced artisan chai with high quality ingredients
Dona Chai has quickly become one of the ‘it’ brands in the world of artisanal foods. Their teas are available as concentrates and loose leaf, with their Masala Chai and Turmeric considered the must-try products. Founded by Amy Rothstein, Dona Chai is a purposefully small-batch brewer out in Brooklyn, New York.
Besides being stocked at high-end stores like Whole Foods, Dona Chai is also known to collaborate with similarly high-end food brands in Brooklyn such as their popular Cherry Chai jam with the artisanal Brin’s Jam. Dona Chai elevates foods into an experience not only through high-quality ingredients but also in delivering it all in a modern, well curated and designed package.
Fly by Jing shakes up the landscape for Chinese hot sauce
There was a time when exquisite Chinese sauces were relegated into the far corners of Chinatowns, away from the gaze of mainstream Western consumers. Fly By Jing, founded by Jing Gao, changes all that. Launched at a time when the conversation of inherent microaggression and racism in the food world was taking hold, Fly By Jing as a brand is as refreshing as the flavors of their delectable sauces. Chinese-American Jing Gao is equal parts taste-master, and story teller, whose genuine experience, cultural roots, and skill at adapting traditional Chinese tastes to modern, mainstream American tastebuds have catapulted Fly By Jing to the shelves of Targets around the country, effectively reaching the average American household.
Fly By Jing’s Sicuan Chili Crisp is a culinary delight that adds a touch of savory heat that elevates any dish, while Mala Spice Mix provides that perfect numbing spice that will make your slurp up the last of your noodles. Fly By Jing’s flavors are as bold, and dynamic as their entire presentation would suggest, you really can’t go wrong.
Diaspora Co. sources the most divine, ethical, fair-trade spices.
Spices are the unsung heroes of the culinary world. It’s an essential in our foods, and even drinks, and as we’re uncovering, they host a wealth of health benefits too. From anti-inflammatory Turmeric, to happiness-inducing Cardamom, spices are one of our most important food categories. But there’s the thing, spice has always been rooted in inequity. From the start of the spice trade that provided major business for colonialism, to now, the procurement of spices has usually been an unequal arrangement.
Sana Javeri Kadri, founder of Diaspora Co. personally sources all of the ingredients sold under the brand. Not only do they have to be “cream of the crop,” she really makes sure she knows where spices are being made and sourced from to ensure she, and collectively, her customers, are supporting farmers and suppliers with fair-wages.
While the social mission of Diaspora Co. would be good enough for most, we’re particularly impressed at the breadth and depth of their assortment. Where ordinary stores may carry one type of Masala, Diaspora Co. offers 6 different types, similarly there’s two types of Turmeric, and two types of Cardamom. All ingredients are single-sourced, and not only is the origin shown, but so is the harvest year. Their quality is so good that wellness-brand Golde (who was featured as one of our favorite female-founded wellness brands) has gone on record as sourcing from them!
The Qi makes aesthetic, experiential whole-flower teas that’ll spellbind you.
The Qi makes “drinkable flowers,” or blooming flower teas that will visually spellbind you as they expand in water, while tasting like pure drinkable beauty. Founder Lisa Li worked with small farms in China to source each flower, from their Shangri-La Rose Tea, to their Blue Lotus Tea.
While The Qi is the definition of aesthetic goals, their teas are hand-picked, small-farm grown, sustainably sourced, and 100% traceable. Moreover, Lisa Li’s impetus for creating this line came from seeking a wellness ritual to ease her own anxiety, and stress. The Qi’s teas are the height of sensorial, and you’ll absolute delight in steeping a cup every morning.
Omsom brings delicious Asian flavors that can be added to upgrade any dish.
When it comes to flavor profiles, Asian cuisine is where it’s at. From Vietnamese lemongrass, to Korean Bulgogi, Asian flavors have made their distinctive mark. But replicating it at home, is no simple feat. Omsom seeks to bring the signature Asian flavors we’ve all come to know and love, and offer them in packs that can be quickly added to any dish for a deep, flavorful infusion.
Founded by Vanessa and Kim Pham, daughters of Vietnamese refugees, Omsom is Vietnamese for noisy, rambunctious, a testament to the modern take in disrupting traditional Western flavors (or the lack thereof) with their love letters to the Asian culture through loud, proud, tantalizing Asian flavors that serve as an opportunity to connect between cultures and generations.
