How about a delicious protein packed, vegan sauce that will take your taste buds to the moon? This Mean Green Tahini sauce is so easy to make and can be used with everything; from a dip, to a spread, to a salad dressing. It’s quick and easy to make, it lasts for about a week in your fridge, and it’s packed with nutrients and healthy fats to help your body thrive.

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What is Tahini?

As usual I always like to start my posts off giving you some history or background information about the origin of the food. So let’s talk Tahini. Tahini is basically a paste made from crushed sesame seeds. Sesame seeds and pasted actually date back to 3500 BC. It is said to be of Arabic origin, however many countries in the Middle East and Africa make and use tahini dating back hundreds of years.

Actually the best tahini comes from Ethiopian sesame seeds called humera seeds. The difference is that this type of sesame seeds has a higher fat content, making the tahini paste richer, smoother and creamier. So when looking for Tahini look for Ethiopian humera sesame seeds.

What makes it so delicious?

Tahini has a toasted nut flavor similar to sesame seed oil, with the consistency of natural peanut butter. This paste is not nor savory, yet has a slight bitterness to it. Keep in mind any excessive bitterness is a sign of low-quality tahini.

Normally we can buy this concentrated paste in a jar and then we dilute it with water to get a sauce. Once you get a smooth and fluid consistency you can flavor it with spices or sweeten with honey. Tahini is high in fat, however is also nutritionally dense. It contains a lot of Vitamin B and E, magnesium, iron, and surprisingly high in calcium. So not only is it delicious it is also healthy and really good for you.

How to use it?

Today I am giving you a savory recipe of a Mean Green Tahini sauce. Tahini can be made into a salad dressing, as a sauce or in recipes to make them creamier. It’s used in many vegan and plant based recipes as a substitute for mayo or cream. Tahini is also delicious in baking like my Sesame Tahini Thins, or halvah, which is tahini and honey made into a bar like candy. In any case which every way you eat it, it’s delicious.

Buying Tahini

There are many brands and types of tahini out there. A key point when buying Tahini is to make sure it is a fluid liquid paste and not chunky or with dry thick amounts of paste at bottom and oil on top. I prefer to buy organic tahini if possible as then you avoid extra pesticides and GMO from seeds. Most of the time you will find Tahini at your local supermarkets next to nut butters and jams. Also you can find a variety of tahini types from different parts of the world in specialty shops like middle eastern markets, or kosher markets. Remember try looking for the Ethiopian Humera seeds. These are some brands I tried and loved – Har Bracha Tahini, Humera Tahini, and Al Arz Tahini.

Be sure to check out some other recipes on the blog that would go great with this sauce:

Seedy crackers

Za’atar Bread Delight

Healthier Hummus

Easy Peasy Pita Chips

Recipe: Mean Green Tahini