Heritage, Process and the People Between

The recipe line behind the brand

The Bachan's origin can be read in two lines of inheritance. Its name uses Bachan, the word for grandma, and its founder and CEO, Justin Gill, carries the Bachan's Japanese Barbecue Sauce recipe kept for generations.

Justin Gill with his Bachan, Judy Yokoyama

Justin Gill's grandmother Judy Yokoyama is the Bachan at the center of the lineage. Judy Yokoyama was born in Sebastopol, CA in 1936 and survived a two-year displacement in a Japanese internment camp before teaching Justin and his parents Japanese barbecue sauce preparation.

Judy Yokoyama packing bottles of the family sauce

The shared property kept three generations in close contact. Justin ate often with his Bachan and grandfather, while cooking beside Judy allowed Japanese-American customs and family memories to be communicated through the meal itself.

A Bachan's family cooking memory

Justin's early responsibilities included the family landscaping operation. During the holidays, sauce moved alongside that work as Justin and his father carried bottles from a family-made batch to the people they served.

The Bachan's family making sauce together

Shared meals make room for Bold, Fresh, Umami Flavor™

Bachan's describes family food as an ongoing exchange. The recipe recalls those who made it before, the gathering creates today's memory, and the same practice can be handed to those who follow.

Justin Gill, Judy Yokoyama, and the Bachan's family

Our Ingredients Matter®

Justin's original family preparation sets the reference point. Bachan's selects high-quality non-GMO ingredients and uses a cold-fill technique that lets the sauce be made without adding preservatives, flavorings or additives.

Japanese Barbecue Sauces

Green onion, ginger, and garlic
Green Onion, Ginger and Garlic
This blend builds its aromatics from ginger, organic garlic and green onion.
Traditionally brewed soy sauce
Non-GMO Traditionally Brewed Soy Sauce
Bachan's premium non-GMO soy sauce follows a brewing method practiced across hundreds of years.
Aged Japanese mirin
Aged Japanese Mirin
Family-owned makers in Japan who have worked for generations are the source for Bachan's real mirin.
Organic rice vinegar
Organic Rice Vinegar
The organic rice vinegar uses selected organic rice grown in the US, and the rice vinegar ages for a month after traditional brewing.

Japanese Dipping Sauces

Stone-ground sesame
Stone Ground Sesame
Neri Goma contributes thickness and creamy richness because the roasted sesame is stone-ground.
Crushed sesame seeds
Crushed Sesame Seeds
Another sesame note is created by Suri Goma, the real crushed sesame in the formula.
White miso
White Miso
The white miso made from fermented rice and soybeans brings together mildness, sweetness, savoriness and umami.
Ginger
Ginger
The sauce turns to real ginger for its vivid zesty finish.