Food

From Martinis To Soups To Smoothies: Tahini Is Key

Image by iStock

By Shira Feder April 12, 2018

Oh, tahini. A scant few years ago, nobody even knew who you were, other than hummus’ uglier cousin. You couldn’t go to parties alone, unless you were with one of your chaperones like hummus, baba ghanoush, or halva. You were nothing more than a a Middle Eastern paste of sauce made from ground sesame seeds.

Then Yotam Ottolenghi gave you a makeover. Suddenly you were cool, ready to be drizzled onto yogurt, whisked into a sauce, just waiting to add depth to a dish. From tahini martinis (Toto, we’re not in Kansas anymore!) to creamy tahani and lemon-asparagus soup , tahini is taking center stage in a medley of dishes.

After years of languishing in the darkness, why has tahini emerged into the light only now? “There is little dairy in Middle Eastern cooking, and if you mix tahini with water it becomes dairy-like,” Sarit Packer told the Guardian. Tahini may not technically be a superfood, but it is high in Omega-3 fatty acids and stuffed full of immune system-boosting nutrients.

So mix it into a smoothie. Squirt it into a salad dressing. Dump it into a burger. Or eat it standing in your kitchen with a spoon, in breathless gulps straight from the jar, appreciating this condiment the way it deserves.

Now look at you, Miss Tahini. You’re the star of the show!

Shira Feder is a writer for the Forward. You can reach her at [email protected]

A message from our CEO & publisher Rachel Fishman Feddersen

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning, nonprofit journalism during this critical time.

Now more than ever, American Jews need independent news they can trust, with reporting driven by truth, not ideology. We serve you, not any ideological agenda

At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and polarized discourse.

Readers like you make it all possible. Support our work by becoming a Forward Member and connect with our journalism and your community.

— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO