Nueva Cocina Latin Cuisine Food Review

Here is a tid bit of history (provided):

When Celeste De Armas and Corina Mascaro met at college they discovered several things they had in common.  Both women were born in Cuba, they loved salsa music, and missed the delicious home cooked Latin meals they grew-up on. They also shared a concern about gaining weight, often called the “freshman 15,” so Celeste and Corina  started paying more attention to what they were eating and changed their diets to include healthier and lighter fare.  Little did they know that eventually they would launch Nueva Cocina Foods, the nation’s first line of all-natural and authentic Latin rice dishes, seasonings and soups. 

Upon graduation, the two friends went their separate ways.  Celeste worked in marketing and executive management with Nestlé USA, General Mills and the Carnation Company.  Corina achieved a great deal of success working in real estate and private banking.  Eventually, her passion for eating Latin cuisine expanded to cooking it too when she began taking culinary classes.  Soon, she was creating her own recipes. She shared her new found love of cooking with Celeste, and over the next few years an idea began to form to create a product line of healthy, authentic and convenient Latin foods.

Finally, in 2005 the two friends launched Nueva Cocina Foods (www.nuevacocina.com ). Nueva Cocina’s growth has been rapid and today the brand has an assortment of 17 different items featuring authentic recipes from Colombia, Cuba, Mexico, Puerto Rico and Spain, among other Latin countries.

The brand is a favorite of many consumers, including vegetarians (14 of the 17 products are meatless), and people who don’t eat gluten (all but two of their products are gluten-free.) It can be purchased at major retailers, such as Publix, Whole Foods, Fresh Market, Amazon.com and on www.nuevacocina.com.

My family tried the Sopa de Lentejas (Latin Lentil Soup), Caldo Gallego (Spanish Style White Bean Soup), and Taco Fresco seasoning.

I loved the Latin Lentil Soup. I never make lentil soup, shame on me, because I really like lentil soup. This brand had a a nice little Latin kick to it, which my family enjoyed. I don't usually purchase soup mixes but I found that this was perfect for a fall day lunch.

The Spanish Style White Bean Soup was also a hit. The entire family likes white bean soups so I wasn't too surprised at how quickly this garlic tasting soup got slurped! I make my own white bean soup but it is very BLAND compared to the spices in this Latin American dish.

We are huge fans of tacos, nachos, enchiladas, etc. I was thrilled to try the Taco Fresco seasoning. I love that it is preservative free (just like their other products) which is why I plan on stocking up on this taco seasoning. Not only is it a seasoning mix but also a veggie mix which is an added bonus. I love sneaking extra veggies while cooking for my family. This seasoning will be great in salsa, too! I used my mix with chicken. We had Chicken nachos. It was yum!

Overall, I was thrilled to try the Nueva Cocina products. I love that a lot of their products are vegetarian and all of them are preservative free, msg free and most all are gluten free! For the most part I cook low sodium and so I do watch the added salt in products like these. I try and balance out the meal with other things that are low to no sodium.

Check out the Nueva Cocina product line and stay tuned for more product reviews, recipes and more!

Disclosure: I was provided with food products to review and blog. My own tasty opinions are expressed here. Feel free to try them and form your own opinion.