When cooking at home, it’s easy to get into a rut. Same-old salad. Same-old salmon. Same-old pasta dish. Sometimes, however, all it takes is a new ingredient to change everything. One favorite? Tahini. Not only is it delicious, but it’s also high in protein, minerals, healthy fats, and antioxidants. And if that isn’t enough to convince you, consider this: Beyoncé apparently uses tahini as an ingredient in one of her go-to salad dressings.
What is tahini?
Tahini, also known as tahina, is a paste made from hulled, ground sesame seeds. It has a soft, creamy consistency and is made by mixing roasted and ground white sesame seeds with olive oil, avocado oil, or sesame oil.
You probably know tahini as one of the main ingredients in hummus, but it’s also present in other classic Middle Eastern dishes such as halva with almonds and pistachios and baba ganoush. Many dishes from North Africa and parts of Asia also feature tahini.
What does tahini taste like?
The flavor of tahini is mildly nutty and just a tiny bit bitter. Its neutrality, richness, and depth of flavor make it suitable for dishes that range from savory to sweet. It has a smooth, creamy texture similar to thin almond butter or peanut butter.
One tablespoon of tahini has:
- Calories: 89
- Protein: 3 g
- Carbohydrates: 3 g
- Fat: 8 g
- Fiber: 2 g
- Copper: 27% of the Daily Value (DV)
- Selenium: 9% of the DV
- Phosphorus: 9% of the DV
- Iron: 7% of the DV
- Zinc: 6% of the DV
- Calcium: 5% of the DV
What are the health benefits of tahini?
Tahini is high in protein, antioxidants, healthy fats, and contains essential minerals such as calcium, selenium, iron, and zinc. Below, a breakdown of some of the benefits of tahini.
- Tahini is high in antioxidants, especially lignans such as sesamin, which reduce the damage caused by free radicals in our bodies.
- Tahini possesses anti-inflammatory properties.
- Tahini may reduce the risk of certain diseases such as type 2 diabetes.
- Tahini may help lower high blood pressure, bad cholesterol and triglycerides,…
