Restaurant to Retail
This summer, Wow Bao, a fast-casual restaurant chain based in Chicago, expanded its retail frozen grocery distribution by partnering with Meijer and Ahold Delhaize. Meijer is the first retailer to carry the Szechwan-Style Spicy Pork Bao, which is made with roasted pork, cabbage, ginger, garlic, and chili crisp-gochujang sauce inside a soft, fluffy bao.
In June, Wow Bao was recognized by the National Frozen & Refrigerated Foods Association with the “Most Disruptive Product Award.” Some of their new summer offerings include Ginger Chicken Potstickers and Chicken and Pork Soup Dumplings.
Taste of Italy
Mooney Farms, located in Chico, Calif., introduced a new Tuscan Rice variety to their Bella Sun Luci Italian products line at Costco stores in the Los Angeles area. Each box contains six microwavable pouches with whole grain rice, tomatoes, and Italian herbs like basil. The microwavable pouches are preservative-free and ready in under 90 seconds.
Mary Mooney, CEO of Mooney Farms, said, “We’re excited to bring the taste of Italy to Costco with our Tuscan Rice!” The Bella Sun Luci line also includes sun dried tomatoes in premium oil, sauces, spreads, and salad dressings.
Growing Distribution
MìLà, which started as a small shop in Bellevue, Wash., has now become a national Chinese foods products company. They have added two new flavors of potsticker-style dumplings, Chicken and Beef, to select Walmart stores nationwide.
The Chicken Dumplings are made with savory ground chicken, cabbage, and green onion, while the Beef Dumplings contain ground beef, onions, and soy sauce. The MìLà line includes soup dumplings, potstickers, Chinese noodles, vegan Chinese noodles, and Asian sauces.
Vegan Dumplings
DamduOne frozen vegan dumplings, imported and distributed by K Food America in Westwood, N.J., are now available online. They come in varieties like Original Vegetable Dumplings, Vegetable and Japchae Dumplings, and Vegetable and Kimchi Flavor, among others.
The dumplings feature wheat protein with no odor or aftertaste and can be prepared by steaming, air frying, microwaving, boiling, or pan frying. They can be found on Amazon and Walmart.com.
New Line
Laoban Dumplings in Washington, D.C., expanded their frozen line with new bao buns at select Whole foods Market stores nationwide. Flavors include Chinese Style BBQ Pork, Spicy Beef, and Sesame Chicken. Each 10oz package contains four buns that are microwave-ready in just one minute.
Chef Tim Ma, Co-Founder of Laoban Dumplings, expressed his excitement about the new bao buns and hopes they bring the restaurant experience to home kitchens.
Source link
Emil Kovács graduated from the Journalism program at Eötvös Loránd University in Hungary. During his journalism studies, he focused on data journalism, investigative reporting, and multimedia storytelling. He gained experience by writing for the university’s student newspaper, where he gained attention for his articles on social issues. After graduation, Emil began working as a reporter at a European news agency, where he conducts in-depth analyses of international news and current events.
