Edible Sacramento Fall 2022

TASTY FINDS

Real Mojo Foods WRITTEN BY ANNA QUINLAN

W hat does it take to launch a successful artisanal craft food business in the era of fast-fooddrive throughs and Costco delivery service? Like many timeless recipes, the ingredients for such an enterprise are simple: passion, a strong work ethic, and a little bit of magic. (An amazing garlic pickle oering helps, too.) WhenDennelyn “Dee” Siazon pursued a culinary arts diploma through the former International Culinary Center in Campbell, Calif., she had no intention of launching Real Mojo Foods, a pur veyor of small-batch pickles, jerkies, and sauces from simple, fresh ingredients. She simply wished to reconnect with the joy she felt as a young girl during Wisconsin summers spent picking and pre serving fruits and vegetables with her mom. When friends started asking to purchase the products she was making, however, a busi ness was born. Siazon began selling her wares at local events, connecting with customers immediately. “At one pop-up event, a customer was super excited to see our pickles and wanted a sample,” Siazon recalls. “She immediately commentedhowit brought herback toher childhoodandsharedher fondmemories of her grandmothermaking homemade pickles.” When another early customer declared that the products were “magical,” Siazon decided to name her business Real Mojo Foods, since mojo is a synonym for magic. “At the time, my pickles and hot sauces were the only products available,” Siazon says, “so I was on the search to find other goods.” This led her to Cheryll and Jon Lubin, who were making jerky with a similar devotion to creative flavors and a farm-to-fork men tality. The Lubins were accepted into the Alchemist Microenter prise Academy, a 12-week incubator programhosted by Sacramento

nonprofit Alchemist CDC. (See edible Sacramento’s story about this Alchemist CDC program in our Spring 2022 issue.) Siazon says the 12-week program gave themthe support and resources they needed to take their busi ness to the next level.

From left: Cheryll and Jon Lubin, Dee Siazon’s business partners. Photo courtesy of Real Mojo Foods; Pickled carrots and dill chips, just two of the delicious pickled items sold by Real Mojo Foods; Delia and Denneyn “Dee” Siazon. Photos by Anastasia Murphy

Real Mojo Foods’ products are currently available in seven specialty stores in the Bay Area, as well as Warehouse Creative in Old Sacramento, which carries RMF’s pickles, hot sauces, barbe cue sauce, and Bloody Mary kits, complete with the ever-popular bacon jerky. Siazon says Northern California consumers have been very supportive. “They appreciate the artisanal foods they can buy at local events and specialty stores as compared to the grocery store,” she says. “Plus, the strong diversity in California spurs our flavor pro files, and access to fresh produce influences great quality products without the use of preservatives.” Siazon is currently working on a new teriyaki sauce and addi tional jerkyflavors, and she has dreams of expanding to amobile hot foodbusiness. Sheenvisions servinghandmadehot dogs andsausag es using local ingredients with unique flavor profiles and toppings “that represent my Filipino heritage combined with my Midwest upbringing, aswell as travel inspirations fromaround theworld.” Sounds prettymagical to us.

Real Mojo Foods Realmojofoods.com

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