Tahini is a ground paste made from hulled sesame seeds, commonly used in Middle Eastern cuisine. It is used in dishes such as hummus, baba ghanouj, and halvah, and as a basis for sauces. Tahini can also be used as a substitute for sesame paste in Asian cooking.
One of the mainstays of Middle Eastern cuisine is tahini, a ground paste made from sesame seeds. In Arabic and Hebrew, it is known as techinah, while the Turkish word, tahin, is obviously closely related. The root of the word appears to be an Arabic word meaning “to grind,” which is also used as the basis for other words describing ground foods, such as flour. Unlike sesame paste, a popular ingredient in Asian cooking, tahini is made with sesame seeds that have been hulled, so it is a more refined product and also has less nutritional value, as the outer coating of sesame seeds is been removed. Also, tahini tends to be lighter in color than Asian sesame paste.
To make tahini, sesame seeds are typically blanched in hot water to remove their hulls, which float to the top. The hulls are skimmed off and the remaining flesh of the seeds is drained off before being ground, usually with a small addition of salt and sometimes olive as well. The result is a thick, nutty paste, like nut butters in texture and flavor. When stored in an airtight container, tahini can be kept at room temperature, but once the container is opened, it needs to be refrigerated so the oil from the sesame seeds doesn’t go rancid.
In Middle Eastern cuisine, tahini appears most often in hummus, baba ghanouj and halvah. Both hummus and baba ghanouj use a base of tahini, lemon, oil, and garlic to hold the dish together, while halva is a dessert candy made with tahini and a sweetener like honey. Often, other ingredients are added to halva to add texture and flavor. All these dishes are very popular throughout the Mediterranean.
Also, tahini is used as a basis for sauces. Tahini rich sauces are used as a condiment for meats, vegetables and salads. Typically, the sauce is made by diluting the tahini with ingredients such as lemon juice or water, and ingredients such as dill, pepper or other herbs may be added for flavor. Many of these sauces also incorporate olive oil, a staple of Mediterranean cuisine.
Tahini can also be used to replace sesame paste in Asian cooking. Especially in Japan, sesame paste is used as a base for many sauces and dips and is also sometimes used in soups. Tahini’s flavor is comparable to sesame paste, although it tends to be creamier, with less of the slightly grainy texture of sesame paste.
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