Tahini sauce | Tahina salad

Tahini (or Tahina, in Arabic), is very simple, healthy, full of flavor. It’s a good addition to your diet. You only need two ingredients: sesame seeds and oil.

Tahini sauce is a sesame seed sauce made from sesame seeds lightly toasted and crushed with oil, to achieve a pasty texture. This paste can be stored in the refrigerator in a tightly closed container and can be consumed within a month. You will notice that the oil will separate from the paste, but it is normal. You only need to stir it well to mix the mixture when you are going to consume it, and then add a little water, lemon juice, vinegar, salt, garlic (finely chopped or powdered), black pepper and cumin powder and stir everything well. There is then a less pasty, more liquid texture. The consistency of the sauce is to your liking, and you can add less or more water.

​In Egypt, this sauce can be served with bread, as a starter, or as an accompaniment to salads, fish or meat. I was a fan of this sauce and even added the feijoada! See the recipe for feijoada with tahini sauce.

Tahini has a high energy value due to its high fat content. 1 tablespoon, 15 g contains 95 calories and 8 g of fat. However, sesame seeds are very nutritionally rich, due to their high content of polyunsaturated fatty acids, which contain anti-inflammatory properties.
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Tahini is also rich in a substance called sesamine, it contains antioxidant powers and can help protect against free radicals (substances that can damage cells).

Recipe tips:

• Be careful when toasting the sesame seeds so they don't burn, as they can leave a bitter taste.
• Store the sesame paste in the fridge, in a tightly closed container and consume within a month. You will notice that the oil will separate from the paste, but it is normal. You just need to stir it well to homogenize the mixture when consuming.

This sauce is one of those you want to have in your fridge and add your salads, or vegetables! Try it and you'll be a fan, like me.

Tahina | Sesame paste
Ingredients

• 350 g sesame seeds
• 5 tablespoons vegetable oil

Method

1. Toast the sesame seeds in a frying pan. Stir to avoid burning for 5 minutes. (If you burn the seeds, the taste will be bitter).
2. Transfer the seeds to a blender, grind very well to a paste. Check if any of the paste is left on the walls of the blender, and with a spoon scrape the walls so that everything is mixed again, and crush.
3. Add the oil little by little, and grind until it becomes a homogeneous mixture.
4. Reserve in a sterile container with a lid. Store in a refrigerator for up to one month. You can then use the amount of sesame paste when you want to make the tahini sauce (sesame sauce - as described below). It is normal that after storage, the oil will separate from the paste. You only have to stir it again with a spoon to mix.

Tahina salad | Tahina sauce
Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons of sesame paste
• 1 tablespoon white vinegar
• 1 tablespoon of lemon juice
• ½ teaspoon of salt
• ½ teaspoon of black pepper
• ½ teaspoon of garlic powder (or ½ clove of crushed fresh garlic)
• ½ teaspoon of cumin
• 6 tablespoons of water (you can add more or less depending on the desired texture)

Method

1. In a container, mix the sesame paste with the vinegar and lemon. Add salt, garlic and spices. Stir very well.
   
2. Add the water little by little and stir well. The amount of water added can be at your discretion, you can add more or less water depending on whether you want a thicker or liquid texture. Taste and adjust seasonings if necessary.

Did you like this recipe? Let me know if you try it.

Joana Jardim, regitered Dietitian in the UK
Founder of Your Diet Advice