Yishi Foods creates flavors like matcha latte, taro bubble tea, and black sesame.
Unbeknownst to her , Lin Jiang ’s dreams of entrepreneurship began when she was a little girl growing up in Qingdao , a coastal city in China cognize for its beer . Each dawn , Jiang ’s mother would prepare her a hearty , hot cereal grass for breakfast compose of buggy black sesame seeds .
decade later , the black sesame cereal would become the inspiration for Jiang ’s Asian - instigate oatmeal brand , Yishi Foods .
“ I worked in research and analytics for a consulting chemical group and , in the position , I would always eat oatmeal , ” Jiang explain . The options , however , were lusterless : Jiang could choose between cinnamonapple , which was fragrant but repetitive , or brownish sugar , which was too sweet for her liking . “ I just wished there was well oatmeal — and I thought of my mom ’s black sesame cereal . ”
Photo courtesy of Yishi Foods
Jiang decided to protrude bringing her own burgoo into work , load with black sesame seed as a nod to her childhood favourite . Her coworkers were intrigue by her dark - hued breakfasts and the nutty aroma , and all it took was one taste to be hooked . One of her coworkers enjoyed her oatmeal so much that they began require to purchase their own bowls . hint also began to roll in — could Jiang possibly prepare an oatmeal made with dasheen , pep up by a coworker ’s puppy love withtaro Milk River teatime ?
The answer is yes . Jiang , who is presently an MBA candidate at the University of Chicago , realize there was a void in the oatmeal market that she could fill . “ A lot of times in business school day , for entrepreneurship , everyone is speak about discover a marketplace problem — and fixing the problem , ” Jiang explains . “ So we ’re attempt to sate a spread , while also bringing more customers into this category . ”
Yishi Foods first found in 2019 , under its adjourn name , Crave Natural . Alongside spotlighting Asian ingredient and flavors , it was of import to Jiang to feature constitutional , plant - base ingredients high in protein and fiber and without all the bring sugar . She even seek out advice from a fellow grad shoal classmate with a register dietitian background while perfecting her recipes , some of which went through over 50 iterations before Jiang settled on her formula .
As Jiang ’s business expanded , she decided for a name change , settle on the word Yishi , which translates to ritual in Chinese . “ The story and brand name flavour I ’m examine to tell is that food , especially use up healthy food , is a really special , almost pompous , outcome , ” Jiang say . She describes her own breakfast rite — feeling at repose with euphony and a steaming bowl of oatmeal before diving into the topsy-turvydom of the day . “ Breakfast is a ceremony that needs jubilation . ”
There are now five flavors of oatmeal to choose from at Yishi Foods : toasted bootleg sesame , taro bubble tea leaf , matchalatte , red bean berry , and sweet osmanthus with turmeric and almonds . Preparing the oatmeal is as easy as microwave , pouring blistering water over a roll and covering , or combining a milk of choice forovernight oats . The product can be buy online or bump at Whole Foods and 99 Ranch markets across the nation .
Jiang already has young flavors in the workplace , but wo n’t share exactly what is up her sleeve . “ It may not be oatmeal , ” she hints , but rules out congee — for now . “ When we look at how our product are place the market place , we want to have our unique position , which is Asian - inspired flavors . So while staying true to that , the mission is to present these nip to American consumer . ”
Photo courtesy of Yishi Foods
Though Jiang ’s mum was the stirring behind her first oatmeal recipe , she discouraged these entrepreneurial dreams at first , incognizant of how impactful her black sesame food grain would be on her girl ’s life . “ She was sceptical and wanted me to retrieve a business , ” Jiang explains . “ But now , the brand is growing very quickly and I can feel my mummy is majestic that I ’m sharing her story . Her eyes are coruscate . ”
Photo courtesy of Yishi Foods
