Sala season is chock-full of rituals, but some are definitely better than others. Sure, dressing up in your even-better-than-Sunday-best is exciting, as is seeing your favourite cousins crammed onto your tía's antique couch for yet another family photo shoot. Ultimately, no matter how your family celebrates, one thing we can all look forward to is sharing a good meal together. Food, after all, is essential at any Latine gathering.
As a child, I remember eating my mother's homemade empanadas bursting with rich dulce de leche, lovingly hand-shucked corn tamales boiled to perfection by my abuela, and the savory spit-roasted pig my tíos painstakingly prepared and seasoned over the course of several days. Food, as it is for many Latines both in the States and abroad, is integral to how we celebrate any holiday. Making meals together is a time-intensive bonding experience, for sure, but sharing good food with your loved ones is the best part of any dish or dinner.
This year, share the seasonal cheer and joy of food as a love language just a little further by shopping these culinary products from Latine-owned businesses. Whether you're just helping out with tying the tamales or pasteles or this is your seventh year single-handedly preparing buñuelos for a party of 30 or more people, this list has a gift for any foodie, novice or not. From a tostonera that'll impress even the most sceptical abuela to a cookbook that will surely facilitate your next taco Tuesday attempt, this gift guide of spices, tools, and seasonings is sure to please any food enthusiast in your life.
Foodie Gifts: Adobo Seasoning
Adobo Seasoning 2-Pack [1] ($12)
Founded in 2018 and created by the daughter of Dominican immigrants, Maritza Abreu, with its inaugural hot sauce recipe, Pisqueya [2] is an all-natural, ethically sourced Latine food brand launched to address the lack of diverse, clean spice products in the market. Pisqueya now offers customers an array of essential Latine cooking must-haves, including three different hot sauces and a BBQ sauce. Although any of these sauces will ensure the flavourful success of your next asada, their Adobo Seasoning 2-Pack is a can't-miss kitchen classic. This vegan, low-sodium, gluten-free spice mix is also completely sugar-free and made with no preservatives. Described as earthy and aromatic, It includes just six simple ingredients: salt, garlic, onion, oregano, turmeric, and black pepper. The peppers and fresh oregano are sourced directly from farms in the Dominican Republic.
Foodie Gifts: Hot Sauce
Pisqueya Smoky Hot Sauce [3] ($16)
Much like their adobo, the Pisqueya Smoky Hot Sauce is one of the brand's crown jewels. This vegan sauce is not only sugar-free, gluten-free, and preservative-free, but it is also low-sodium, making it a healthy yet flavourful addition to any meat dish or rich, cheesy platter. Made with difficult-to-source Caribbean-grown scotch bonnet peppers (also referred to by Dominicans as ajicitos), this spicy and fresh hot sauce's flavour profile is further augmented by the addition of jalapeño peppers, garlic, vinegar, and just a bit of salt. The inclusion of jalapeño peppers balances out the taste, making this a generally milder hot sauce, perfect for most palettes that still crave a bit of Caribbean heat for their meals.
Foodie Gifts: Sofrito
>Sofrito Trio Combo [4] ($32)
Established to bring genuine Latine flavours back to people's kitchens, Loisa [5] is a food brand co-founded by Kenny Luna and Scott Hattis, with healthy, flavourful spice blends and seasonings pioneered by fellow owner and Dominican community chef Yadira Garcia. Of all their many cooking staples — including a salt-free sazón and adobo — the Sofrito Trio Combo is the perfect Loisa starter product for anyone just now delving into Latine flavours or a decorated chef hoping to incorporate cleaner spices to recipes they've spent years perfecting. Complete with a Classic Sofrito [6] of fresh culantro, ajicito dulce peppers, and tomato, a Sofrito Rojo [7] of olives, capers, and tomatoes, and a Puerto Rican-style Recaito [8] Sofrito of culantro, coriander, and garlic, each sauce in the trio will help elevate the flavour profile of varying dishes.
Foodie Gifts: Tostonera
Tostonera [9] ($40)
Available in four fun colours to brighten up your kitchen, the Loisa Tostonera is not your mother's tostonera. Instead, this sleek, modern take on a classic tool is a must-have for any tostone enthusiast looking to make this simple plantain snack at home. Made with interlocking hinges for longer durability, rounded edges, and a 100% platinum-grade silicon base to prevent slipping as you smash your tostones, this tool contains responsibly sourced bamboo and a non-toxic, plant-based oil protectant to ensure maximum safety as it's shipped and used. It's also BPA and BPS-free, making it the best for all your plantain smashing needs.
Foodie Gifts: Hot Sauce
Original Habanero Hot Sauce [10] ($5)
Founded by David Figueroa, Melinda's Hot Sauce [11] offers customers 32 distinct, quality craft pepper sauces made with fresh veggies. Of all the different flavour profiles and varying sauce sizes available for purchase, the Original Habanero Hot Sauce is a good starting point for the foodie in your life. Made with habanero peppers, carrots, onions, vinegar, lime juice, salt, garlic, citric acid, and xantham gum, this smooth blend of veggies and peppers packs a palatable mild punch. With only one out of five flames on Melinda's heat ranking, this is a good everyday sauce that will neither overwhelm nor disappoint.
Foodie Gifts: Fruit Spread
Lucuma Superfruit Spread (Six Pack) [12] ($45)
Nexus Organics [13] is a brand created to meet the U.S. consumer need for organic, GMO-free food products. The company was founded by Ismael and Lisa Petrozzi, who bring over 15 years of combined experience working with consumer goods within the U.S. health and wellness industries. With products inspired by the founders' experiences in Peru, the brand offers chocolate and fruit spreads sure to satisfy any foodie's sweet tooth. A sure standout gift for any adventurous food enthusiast, the Lucuma Superfruit Spread (Six Pack) is made with lucuma, described by the brand as an important Incan superfood. The fruit has a low glycemic index but contains iron, calcium, zinc, vitamin A, and B3 to help lower cholesterol and triglycerides.
Foodie Gifts: Taco Seasoning + Cookbook
Taco Trio + Cookbook [14] ($39)
Founded by chef and healthy food access advocate Jocelyn Ramirez, Todo Verde [15] prides itself on being a plant-forward food brand helping others achieve genuine Latine flavours from home through the company's non-GMO seasoning offerings and best-selling published cookbook. The brand's bestseller bundle is the Taco Trio + Cookbook, which includes three staple products: La Verde Vida Cookbook, Al Pastor Seasoning, and Carnitas Seasoning. The cookbook is chock-full of plant-based meal how-tos that are sure to impress even your most stubborn tia. The Al Pastor seasoning is made with fruity ancho and mild guajillo chiles, which results in a smoky spice blend with citrus notes; the carnitas seasoning on the other hand, packs a more umami flavouring, as it contains black garlic, porcini mushroom, and chipotle morita.
Foodie Gifts: Mayonnaise
Squeeze Mayo Variety Pack (Classic + Chipotle) [16] ($19)
Co-founded by Sioma Waisburd, George Todd, and Carsten Hagen, Chosen Foods [17] offers customers a selection of kitchen staples — including avocado oil and mayonnaise — as well as in-house dressings and marinades. A versatile classic, the Squeeze Mayo Variety Pack (Classic + Chipotle) features two 100% avocado oil-based mayos that both fit perfectly into paleo or keto diets. Besides this, the two mayo blends are certified kosher and non-GMO, made simply with cage-free eggs, organic vinegar, organic mustard, and spices. Packed with the good nutrients from the avocados, the Chosen Foods mayonnaise provides a healthy serving of vitamin E and monosaturated fats.
Foodie Gifts: Tortillas
Grain Free Burrito Size Tortillas — Six Pack [18] ($80)
Siete Family Foods [19] is a family-owned brand co-founded by Veronica Garza, who decided to start the brand alongside her loved ones after creating grain-free tortillas to meet her health needs without eliminating the tacos and fajitas she grew up eating from her adult diet. The Grain Free Burrito Size Tortillas — Six Pack offered on the company site are grain-free, dairy-free, no-GMO, gluten-free, soy-free, and vegan, making them a perfect gift for any foodie friend with a restrictive diet. The tortillas are made with a blend of flours, including cassava, tapioca, coconut, and arrowroot flour. They also contain avocado oil, apple cider vinegar, coconut sugar, sea salt, and yeast.
Foodie Gifts: Chocolate
Chocolate Sauces & Condiments [20] ($24)
Chocolate Cortés [21] was established in the Dominican Republic in 1929 by Don Pedro Cortés Forteza. It is a 4th generation, family-owned, Caribbean chocolate business. Their Chocolate Sauces & Condiments are the perfect blend of sugary and savory, as the condiments are concocted from cacao and then modified with other ingredients — such as chili in the hot sauce or garlic in the sazón — to achieve the desired flavour. This four-bottle kit contains the Cortés Chocolate Seasoning [22], Chocolate Salt [23], Chocolate Hot Sauce [24], and Chocolate Syrup [25], making this a versatile gift perfect for any foodie looking to experiment more in their kitchen. These sauces and spices can be used for a variety of dishes, ranging from grilled steak to sweet waffles.
Foodie Gifts: Chamoy
I love Chamoy — Original [26] ($12)
Annie Leal, born and raised in Mexico, grew up eating chamoy on everything — from fruits and veggies to desserts and more. She founded I Love Chamoy [27] shortly after her father was diagnosed with diabetes, restricting him from being able to enjoy this classic sweet and spicy sauce due to its sugar content. Leal's signature I love Chamoy original sauce is made with zero sugar and aspartame though, making it a healthier alternative to traditional chamoy without sacrificing any of its classic flavour. Made simply with select ingredients like chile and monk fruit, this healthy sauce is sure to liven up any snack or meal this holiday season.
Foodie Gifts: Chili Crisp
Mi Macha Es Tu Macha Holiday Gift Set [28] ($50)
Founded by three friends, Daniel Lubetzk, Miguel Leal, and Rodrigo Zuloaga, SOMOS [29] facilitates the cooking of Mexican cuisine by providing customers with the spices and foods needed to do so. The Mi Macha Es Tu Macha Holiday Gift Set comes with three brand essentials: the Mexican Chili Crisp in two flavours — Mango Pineapple and Nuts and Seeds — as well as a colourful spoon and lid that can replace the brand's standard lids for a more personalized serving experience. The two Mexican Chili Crisp flavours are gluten-free, non-GMO, and entirely plant-based, made with a blend of avocado oil, ground chiles, nuts, and seeds. The serving spoon and lid were designed in Jalisco, México, made with Madera Parota wood, and feature hand-painted designs from artisans in Oaxaca, México.
Foodie Gifts: Mortar + Pestle
Mini Mortar + Pestle Set [30] ($14)
Carina Santoyo founded CEREMONIA [31] after quitting her job in 2014 and travelling abroad to Southeast Asia, where she was inspired to create a home goods brand that could partner with the local artisan families she'd met throughout her trip. Today, CEREMONIA offers a truly diverse array of handcrafted home goods. If you're just looking for something to elevate your kitchen supplies though, the Mini Mortar + Pestle Set will do the trick. Handmade with pine wood, this elegant yet simple tool will facilitate the mixing process for any set of spices, condiments, or sofrito blend. The site also suggests it can be used as a mixing container when making face masks at home, making this mini mortar versatile and stylish.
Foodie Gifts: Coffee
Supremo Roast Coffee Bag [32] ($34)
787 Coffee [33], founded by Brandon Ivan Pena, works to bring people the best quality coffee possible, as the brand sources its beans directly from its local farm in the mountains of Maricao, Puerto Rico. Made sustainably and ethically farmed, the Supremo Roast Coffee Bag [34] is a brand classic, with a rich flavour that features notes of chocolate and fruit alike to entice your palette. Grown at an altitude of 3000 feet with no added chemicals, this tasty coffee is sure to satisfy your cravings for a more flavourful wake-up beverage when a regular cup of jo isn't cutting it.