New year, new resolution to eat healthier? Say YES to locally-made Yeshi salad dressing, a gluten-free, nut-free and vegan option that doesn’t sacrifice on flavour.
Yeshi is gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free, egg-free and 100% plant-based, making it acceptable for vegan diets. Oh, and you won’t find any artificial colours or flavours in the recipe either — only real ingredients you’d have in your own home kitchen. So, what exactly is in Yeshi? Nutritional Yeast is the base in the dressings, giving them their delicious, slightly sweet taste, creamy texture and nutrient density, including essential B-vitamins and amino acids.
Based in Cobble Hill, owners Paul and Barbara Kleinschmidt started the company once they were empty-nesters, needing a hobby. A wonderful cook, Barbara would always bring her own homemade dressing when dining out. Having food allergies, they were pretty conscious of what they put in their bodies and they’d grown tired of the same old choices at every restaurant. The idea was born to “sell that dressing!”
Paul and Barbara started testing different recipes. Friends and co-workers loved them. In spring of 2017, they started taking Yeshi to local farmers markets and the response was overwhelming. People said they put the dressing on everything! By autumn that year, the obvious next step was to venture into retail, launching into grocery stores around Vancouver Island, BC and Alberta. Since June 2022, Yeshi has become a favourite in stores across Canada and launched into the USA in May 2024.
We stock all five varieties — Original, Golden Ranch, Caesar, Smokey Chipotle and Sesame Ginger — available in our produce department, alongside those veggies!