What is tahini?

Question

It's an ingredient in Hummus, but not sure where to find it.

Answer 1

Sesame seed paste. I know they have it at my local Winco, but it can be hard to find in grocery stores. You can usually find it at a health food store or specialty high end grocery (a Whole Foods type place), or a middle eastern market if you have one.

Answer 2

Tahini is a paste made from ground sesame seeds. It is a major ingredient in hummus and other dishes from the Middle East. It can be purchased fresh, in cans, in jars, or dehydrated. Tahini comes in two varieties — 'hulled' and 'unhulled'. Both types are relatively high in vitamins and proteins. Unhulled tahini is quite bitter but has a much higher proportion of vitamins, calcium, and protein because the sesame seeds are ground whole.

If you're looking for a place to buy it, try a middle eastern store, however you can leave it out of the hummus, just try a little lemon juice instead!

Answer 3

Think peanut butter, only made with sesame seeds. To make tahini, sesame seeds are soaked in water for a day, then crushed to separate the bran from the kernels. The crushed seeds are put into salted water, where the bran sinks, but the kernels float and are skimmed off the surface. They are toasted, then ground to produce their oily paste. There are two types of tahini, light and dark, and the light ivory version is considered to have both the best flavor and texture.

Tahini is most closely associated with the Middle East, where it is eaten as is, and often used in making hummus (mashed chickpeas, flavored with lemon juice and garlic), baba ghanoush (a purée of eggplant, lemon juice, garlic, and oil), halvah (a confection that includes honey or cane syrup), and other traditional dishes.

Answer 4

Tahini

A rich creamy paste, made from sesame seeds and sesame oil, which is used to enrich the flavor and texture of many Middle Eastern sweet and savory dishes. It is very similar to peanut butter (except thinner in consistency) and can be made by grinding sesame seeds with light sesame or vegetable oil, a little warm water, and salt. Tahini is packaged in jars or cans and is available made from raw seeds, roasted seeds and with or without salt. It is best served at room temperature and used as a sandwich spread, an appetizer spread, a dip, an ingredient in sauces for topping pasta and falafel, or mixed with onion and garlic seasonings as a salad dressing. Tahini can also be used in making a variety of desserts requiring a nut paste. Tahini is a key ingredient for making a hummus dip when mixed with chickpeas, or baba ghanouj dip when mixed with eggplant. Tahini is also known as sesame butter.
Tahini does not require refrigeration and can be stored for long periods of time in cool dry areas. When stored, the sesame oil may separate from the mixture of solids. This is due to the fact that tahini does not contain emulsifiers to keep the ingredients from separating. To re-mix the contents, turn the can or jar upside down for 30 minutes or so before using.


You can find it in ethnic food stores.

Answer 5

Tahini (or "tehina"/"thina" in Arabic and Hebrew, "tahin" in Turkish, French, Dutch and Danish) is a paste made from ground sesame seeds. It is a major ingredient in hummus and other dishes from the Middle East. It can be purchased fresh, in cans, in jars, or dehydrated. Tahini comes in two varieties — 'hulled' and 'unhulled'. Both types are relatively high in vitamins and proteins. Unhulled tahini is quite bitter but has a much higher proportion of vitamins, calcium, and protein because the sesame seeds are ground whole.

Answer 6

Tahini means: A thick paste made from ground sesame seeds! you can find TAHINI IN YOUR LOCAL GROCERY STORE! IT HAS A GREEN CAP AND THE JAR IS A TANISH COLOR! IT ALSO HAS SOME ARABIC WORDS RUNNING ACROSS THE JAR! AND YES YOU USE TAHINI IN HUMMUS! IDLEAST I DO! GOOD LUCK!!!!

HOPE I'VE BEEN A GREAT HELP!!!

Answer 7

Tahini (or "tehina"/"thina" in Arabic and Hebrew, "tahin" in Turkish, French, Dutch and Danish) is a paste made from ground sesame seeds. It is a major ingredient in hummus and other dishes from the Middle East. It can be purchased fresh, in cans, in jars, or dehydrated. Tahini comes in two varieties — 'hulled' and 'unhulled'. Both types are relatively high in vitamins and proteins. Unhulled tahini is quite bitter but has a much higher proportion of vitamins, calcium, and protein because the sesame seeds are ground whole.


[edit] Etymology
Tahini, or more accurately tahinia, is an Arabic word, the root word is tahn which means grind. The Arabic word for flour, taheen, also comes from this root word.


[edit] Uses
As a spread, tahini can replace peanut butter on bread. Tahini paste is often used in a wide variety of dishes. It can be found in most Arabic restaurants as a side dish or as a garnish. It is often mixed with lemon juice, salt and garlic, then thinned with water to create a sauce. Tahini sauce is a popular condiment for meat and vegetables in Middle Eastern cuisine. It is also a main ingredient in soups, such as in the Greek tahinosoupa.

In Turkey, tahini mixed with Pekmez is common as a breakfast item, especially in winters.

Tahini is also the main ingredient in the Mediterranean type of halva.

Tahini is becoming more common in European cuisine and can be found as an ingredient in many pricey ready made supermarket sandwiches.

Sesame paste is also used in Japanese and other East-Asian cooking; the Japanese term for it is neri-goma. A popular dish mixes chopped boiled spinach, sesame paste, mirin, soy sauce, and sugar. Another dish, goma-dofu (胡麻豆腐), is a custard of sesame paste mixed with soymilk and thickened with agar-agar.

Answer 8

Tahini is to sesame seeds like peanut butter is to peanuts.

Answer 9

A thick paste made from ground sesame seeds.

Answer 10

A paste made from ground sesame seeds.