History of Sesame Seed

Used throughout history for witchy things, these seeds were once used by elderly women to slow the aging process. Romans ate sesame seeds with the hope that the seeds would give them strength. In Hindu legend, these seeds are said to be representative of immortality.

As a spice, sesame seeds were highly prized by the Babylonians and the Assyrians, who believed that the Gods drank wine made from the seeds the night before they created the Earth. Over 5,000 years ago in China, the seed oil was used to burn as a light source, but it was also used to make soot for the ink blocks used for writing and in some forms of art.

Sesame seeds came to America with African slaves, who called the seeds benne seeds. The seed became a popular ingredient in the American South and is still popular there today.

Sesame Seed Cultivation

Sesame plants like well-drained soil but they can survive in many different types of soil. It thrives in the places like India, China, Korea, Egypt, and East Africa, but it can also survive in the desert conditions and is often the only plant able to live in areas that are on the edge of the desert because their extensive root system is able to expand and find water from a wide range of earth. Despite their strong resilience, sesame plants are terrible in soils with a lot of water or soils that have a high salt content. The seeds are encapsulated in seed pods which may be called "buns." When the seeds have fully ripened, the seed pods burst. Farmers cut the seed pods down by hand and store them in an upright position until the pods split in a process called dehiscence. Sesame seed pods only take 90-120 days to fully mature. The plants shift from a green color to a yellow-brown color as they mature. The plants themselves may reach up to six feet in height.

Our Organic Toasted Sesame Seeds come from Mexico. 

Types of Sesame Seed

There are three types of sesame seed.

1. White Sesame Seed is slightly sweeter. It is used in dressings and it delicious with tofu. The toasted version, like our Organic Toasted Sesame Seed, is excellent in many dishes. We also carry conventional, non-organic Toasted Sesame Seeds.
2. Brown Sesame Seed is sometimes called golden sesame seed. It is popular with vegetable dishes, especially root vegetables.
3. Black Sesame Seed is much more intense and have a stronger flavor and aroma than the other sesame seeds. Black seeds are popular in Japanese and Chinese cooking.

Cooking with Sesame Seed

Toasted sesame seeds are wonderful for making a quick salad dressing that is popular in Japan. Get your ingredients together and dedicate just a few minutes to this dressing and you will have yourself a quick, delicious dressing in very little time. You need two tablespoons of mayonnaise or plain yogurt, two tablespoons of organic toasted sesame seeds, one tablespoon of sugar, ½ tablespoon of white vinegar, ½ tablespoon of soy sauce, and ½ tablespoon of sesame oil. Start by grinding your sesame seeds down into a powder. The chunkiness or how fine ground the sesame seed powder is, is up to you. Combine all ingredients and mix until it is a liquidly consistency. If it is too thick, you can add a little bit of water or even some dashi, which is a Japanese stock broth that is made with bonito flakes.

Sesame seeds are popular in Greek cooking. Pasteli is a popular dessert or candy made with the seeds and honey. It is somewhat sticky, and in Greek baking it is rather chewy. Some versions of this candy are hard and crunchy all the way through.

Add these as a crunchy component to your baking. Breads of all kinds taste great with them as either an ingredient or a garnish, but you may also add them to plenty of variations of fruit tarts or biscuits.

Sesame seeds pair well with chicken, pork, breads, noodles, soy sauce, chickpeas, shallots, garlic, mint, cilantro, mustard, vegetables, tofu, and grilled meats.

Some tasty recipes that feature Toasted Sesame Seeds include Mole Poblano, Simple Sesame Chicken, and Spicy Thai Noodles.

Organic Toasted Sesame Seeds are a key ingredient in our Organic Everything Bagel Seasoning. 

What Does Sesame Seed Taste Like?

Organic Toasted Sesame Seeds have a nutty, earthy flavor. They have a more pronounced flavor than regular white sesame seeds.

Substitutions and Conversions

You can replace any kind of sesame seed for another kind, as they are very similar in terms of flavor profile. Black sesame seeds tend to be slightly more intense, but that can be fixed by using less of the black sesame seeds in place of the others in your cooking.

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