Yas Mean Salsa was born in 2020, during a time when the world was changing and we were spending more time at home. One day, Nino was craving salsa, so he went to the store, grabbed some ingredients, and came home ready to make it. To my surprise, one of the things he picked up was a habanero. I took my first bite, and I fell in love. That moment sparked an idea that wouldn’t leave my head for the next two years. Eventually, I decided to take that idea and turn it into something real—Yas Mean Salsa. I brought together recipes and flavors inspired by both sides of our family, drawing from our Filipino and Jordanian roots. One of the recipes closest to my heart is my grandma’s Serrano salsa, passed down through our Jordanian family.

I don’t have a culinary degree or professional kitchen background. What I do have is a lifetime of memories in the kitchen with my mom and my grandma, who taught me everything I know. Food has always been one of the ways I show love, and feeding people is where I get to express my creativity and artistry. Yas Mean Salsa is a reflection of our families, our cultures, and the flavors we grew up with—brought together in a way that is uniquely ours. Every jar is made with the same love and care I would give the people sitting around my own dinner table. What started with one craving, one unexpected habanero, and an idea I couldn’t let go has grown into a mission: to feed our community the same way we feed our family.