When Kayla Casteñeda was a child, she spent several days at her grandparent's house in Central California — where she learned how to prepare “aguas frescas” with the ripe fruit that her grandfather, a farmworker, collected from the fields. “Agua fresca,” which literally translates to “fresh water,” is a popular type of beverage in Mexico and Latin America. The drink is made from an array of fruits, flowers or seeds blended with water and sugar. In the middle of the pandemic, Castañeda decided to honor her family’s heritage and created Agua Bonita, a brand of canned aguas frescas that contain 80% less sugar than the traditional Latin American drinks. Today, Agua Bonita is a full-fledged business that is available in more than 1,000 stores across the country, including Walmart.

This episode was produced by Miguel Estrada.
It was edited by Ashley Chaparro.

Follow Kayla Castañeda at @so.fresca.so.clean.

Follow Ashley Chaparro at @ashleychaparro23.

If somebody could name a quintessential symbol of Mexican gastronomy, that ingredient would be salsa. Whether it’s hot sauce, salsa verde or habanero, salsas help enhance the flavor of many Mexican traditional recipes by adding depth, and most commonly, spice to the food. So when Hector Saldivar moved from Mexico to CA, he realized salsa options at U.S. grocery stores didn’t resemble the flavors he was used to growing up in Monterrey. Inspired by his mother’s traditional recipes, Hector decided to launch Tía Lupita, a brand of healthier Mexican-inspired food products that includes hot sauces, tortilla chips, tortillas, and salsas. Today, Tía Lupita products are available in over 4,000 retail locations across the country, including Whole Foods, Target and Walmart.

This episode was produced by Miguel Estrada. It was edited by James Jeffrey.

Follow Tía Lupita Foods at @tialupitafoods.

Follow Ashley Chaparro at @ashleychaparro23.