Brandon Castaneda and his mother turned a family cooking idea into EZ Bombs; in 2026, the seasoning startup raised $25 million after expanding to more than 8,000 stores

Brandon Castaneda, his mother Tina Castaneda and sister Nichole Munoz turned a family cooking tradition into EZ Bombs, a food business selling shelf-stable seasoning products for traditional Mexican dishes. Founded in late 2023, the company has grown from selling through TikTok Shop and Amazon to securing distribution across more than 8,000 US retail locations, including Walmart, Target and Costco. On 14 October 2026, EZ Bombs announced a $25 million Series A funding round led by CAVU Consumer Partners. The investment will support its retail expansion, manufacturing capacity, new product development and executive recruitment.What inspired Brandon Castaneda and his mother to launch EZ BombsAccording to the company's official announcement published in Business Wire, EZ Bombs was founded by Brandon Castaneda's desire to recreate the meals his mother prepared while he was growing up. Although he enjoyed Tina Castaneda's cooking, he found it difficult to prepare the same dishes himself.This inspired Brandon and Tina to explore a way of packaging the flavour bases behind her recipes into convenient, shelf-stable products. His sister, Nichole Munoz, subsequently joined the venture, bringing her experience of building social media audiences to lead the company's social media strategy. Tina became the face of the brand, while Brandon took on the role of chief executive officer.The family founded EZ Bombs in late 2023, building its business around a simple concept: making traditionally time-consuming meals easier to prepare without requiring home cooks to source and measure numerous individual ingredients.Why did EZ Bombs introduce the Birria Bomb as its first productEZ Bombs introduced its first product, the Birria Bomb, to simplify the preparation of birria, a traditional Mexican dish known for its slow-cooked meat and chile-rich broth.Preparing birria traditionally involves combining ingredients such as dried chillies, garlic, onions, tomatoes and spices to create its distinctive flavour base. EZ Bombs brought these ingredients together in a single, pre-portioned seasoning ball.The product can be added directly to a slow cooker, pressure cooker or cooking pot, allowing consumers to prepare the dish without separately measuring and preparing each seasoning and aromatic ingredient.The company also pointed to the increasing popularity of birria in the United States. According to Datassential, birria's presence on US restaurant menus increased by 350 per cent between 2021 and 2026. EZ Bombs used the dish as the starting point for its seasoning bomb concept before extending the product range to other recipes.EZ Bombs sell more than one million units through TikTok ShopTikTok Shop became EZ Bombs' first major sales channel, allowing the company to demonstrate how its products worked through short videos and live shopping sessions.Tina Castaneda featured in videos showing herself dropping a Birria Bomb into a cooking pot. The demonstration illustrated how the product could replace the preparation of more than a dozen individual ingredients, making the cooking process more convenient.EZ Bombs became the number one food and beverage product on TikTok Shop in 2025. It sold more than one million units and recorded the platform's largest live-show sales.The company's social media presence helped it introduce the product to consumers before expanding into traditional retail distribution. Its marketing also remained closely connected to Tina's original recipes, which continued to provide the foundation for its seasoning bombs.Which major US retailers sell EZ Bombs seasoning productsAfter establishing its presence through online marketplaces, EZ Bombs moved into physical retail distribution. The company reported that it had expanded from zero retail locations at the beginning of 2025 to more than 8,000 locations by October 2026.Its products are now available through major US retailers, including Walmart, Target, Costco, Kroger, Albertsons and Publix. Consumers can also purchase them through Amazon, TikTok Shop and the company's official website.Beyond its original Birria Bomb, EZ Bombs has introduced separate seasoning bombs for Pozole, Tinga, Chicken Chipotle and Chile Colorado.Each product contains the flavour base for a particular dish, eliminating the need for home cooks to identify, measure and prepare the individual ingredients themselves. The company said additional Mexican seasoning bombs were scheduled to enter retail stores later in 2026.EZ Bombs uses its $25 million funding to expand its seasoning businessOn October 14, 2026, EZ Bombs announced a $25 million Series A funding round led by CAVU Consumer Partners. The investment comes as the company builds on its growth across social commerce platforms, online marketplaces and national retail distribution.As part of the agreement, CAVU Principal Brandon Neumann will join EZ Bombs' board of directors. The funding will be directed towards expanding retail distribution, increasing manufacturing capacity, developing new products and recruiting additional executives.Neumann highlighted the company's approach to simplifying meal preparation as one of the factors behind the investment. "Most seasonings are sold as ingredients while EZ Bombs starts with the meal," he said.He also pointed to the company's transition from online demand to national retail distribution, noting that its growth and profitability from the beginning had attracted CAVU's attention.The investment will also bring support from UNCOMMON, CAVU's in-house value-add team. The team will work with EZ Bombs on retail expansion, brand development, digital commerce and executive team development as the business grows.Campany expansion plans following its $25 million Series A fundingEZ Bombs plans to build on its existing product range, which includes seasoning bombs for Birria, Pozole, Tinga, Chicken Chipotle and Chile Colorado. Additional Mexican seasoning products are expected to enter retail stores later in 2026.The company also intends to increase its manufacturing capacity to support its expanding distribution network. Executive recruitment is another priority identified in its funding announcement. EZ Bombs said it was hiring across the United States, including for remote positions.Founded by Brandon Castaneda, Tina Castaneda and Nichole Munoz in late 2023, EZ Bombs has grown from a family-led online business into a food brand available in more than 8,000 retail locations. Its $25 million Series A investment from CAVU Consumer Partners marks a new stage in its expansion as it looks to introduce more convenient seasoning products to US households.You use AI every day. Now get your AI Quotient. Take the AIQ test.