This 10-minute tahini paste has three ingredients: raw sesame seeds, oil, and salt. Tahini is super simple to make at home because it's literally just toasting the sesame seeds and then blending them.

What is Tahini Sesame Paste?

Tahini is a key ingredient in Middle Eastern cooking, and it's made with a few ingredients: toasted sesame seeds, neutral oil, and salt. The consistency of tahini (before it separates) is similar to homemade nut butter.

Use tahini in tarator tahini dressing, tahina falafel sauce, roasted red pepper hummus, pistachio halva, and smoky baba ganoush.

Ingredient Notes

Sesame seeds: You have 2 options here: raw or toasted. If you get raw sesame seeds, then you will need to toast them yourself, which is very easy to do. If you find toasted sesame seeds, then you can bypass the toasting step and just directly add them to the food processor. Make sure your sesame seeds are not expired or rancid.
Oil: You can use a neutral-flavor oil or olive oil. I prefer to use olive oil because I like the taste of olive oil.
Salt: I add a little bit of salt to my tahini to balance it out.

How to Make Tahini

Toast raw sesame seeds in a nonstick skillet on medium-low heat. Continuously stir to toast the seeds evenly.

Once the sesame seeds slightly change color, remove from the stove.

Use a food processor to blend the toasted sesame seeds. It takes a little bit of time for the sesame seeds to start to break down and form a paste. About halfway through blending the sesame seeds, add the oil slowly until you reach your desired consistency. I prefer a thicker paste closer to peanut butter, so I do not add much oil.

Optional Blender Step

I will share a trick I've discovered that makes this sauce even better. Once the desired consistency is reached in the food processor, transfer it to a blender. Blend the tahini sesame paste on high for about 30 seconds. The tahini paste will be extra smooth and creamy. If you don't have a blender, you can stop at the food processor step.

Tips for Toasting Sesame Seeds

The key to toasting sesame seeds is low and slow. It's very easy to burn the seeds and not realize it.
Don't overfill your nonstick frying pan. Toast the seeds in a few batches if needed. This ensures that the seeds are evenly toasted.
You will notice a very slight color change when the sesame seeds are toasting. I keep some raw sesame seeds next to me to compare the color. Once you notice the slight color change, it's time to remove the seeds from the pan. Once you notice the seeds are slightly darker, it's time to take these sesame seeds off the stovetop!

📋 Recipe

Easy Tahini Sesame Paste

Author: Lily Guidry

Course: Snack

Cuisine: Middle Eastern

Prep: 2

Cook: 8

Total: 10

5 from 4 votes

Print Pin Rate

Servings 24

This easy tahini sesame paste is made with only 3 ingredients: sesame seeds, oil, and salt. It's delicious, smooth in texture, and has a long shelf-life.

Ingredients

US Customary - Metric

2 cups sesame seeds
5 tablespoon oil
salt about ½ tsp

Instructions

If using raw sesame seeds, split sesame seeds into 2 batches. Heat a wide nonstick frying pan on medium-low heat. Add the raw sesame seeds stirring continuously until the seeds start to change color. This should take about 3 to 4 minutes. Toast the second batch of sesame seeds. Allow the seeds to cool.
In a food processor, add all of the sesame seeds and salt. Blend on high. Once the sesame seeds start to become a paste, add the oil alternating between blending and adding oil until the desired consistency is achieved.
If desiring a smooth paste, add the tahini sauce to a Vitamix blender. Blend on high for about 30 seconds until smooth.
Transfer to an airtight storage container.

Equipment

Notes

If substituting toasted sesame seeds for raw sesame seeds, skip the first step of toasting the seeds.
Storage: Store the tahini sauce in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 6 months. I do not recommend freezing tahini.
For a smoother tahini paste, use a blender after the paste is formed in a food processor.