"I'm so excited for Laoban's new Bao Buns to hit freezers nationwide," says Co-Founder Chef Tim Ma. "We've spent the last year working on the recipes to make sure we're bringing the restaurant experience straight to your home kitchen. The final recipe gives me visceral memories of eating Bao buns as a child with my family, and I hope it evokes that same feeling for everyone who eats them."

To define some core trends in Asian and Asian -inspired sauces and ingredients, Prepared Foods turned to regular contributor and research chef Robert Danhi.

In the context of Asian cuisines, extracts and essences are typically used sparingly due to their high potency. This allows for significant flavor enhancement using minimal quantities. Primary examples include soy sauce and fish sauce (nuoc mam or nam pla). 

The cousin of the dumpling, bao buns are a Chinese specialty comprising fluffy dough filled with savory or sweet stuffing.

The acquisition, which consists of a combination of DDC’s cash and stock paid out over four years, is expected to accelerate new product innovation for Omsom, with R&D anticipated to take half the time from idea to aisle. 

Both sauces come in a squeezable format, making them easy to use for dipping, drizzling, or drenching. The consistency of the sauces is thicker than normal, more like a traditional BBQ sauce, which enhances their versatility and application.

In addition to its original slow-simmered bone broth, the Nona Lim lineup now includes soups, fresh noodles, stir-fry kits and the latest Instant Noodle Bowls and Heat & Serve Meat Entrees.

The inspiration for the recipe came courtesy of team member Feng Walkup, an international account manager of the fresh meat category at Hormel Foods and a 24-year veteran of the company. Walkup has been preparing and enjoying sweet garlic ginger pork for years, as the recipe has long been a family staple. 

SeaPak Shrimp & Seafood contains four servings per package, each serving size of 11 shrimp without sauce contains 210 calories, 10g of fat, 9g of protein, and 1g of dietary fiber.

All four of Omsom’s Saucy Noodles SKUs – Garlic Black Pepper, Chili Sesame, Soy Garlic, and Coconut Lemongrass Curry  – will be available for purchase in all Whole Foods Market locations across the country.