I love quick recipes that use healthy ingredients and work for family dinners in a variety of ways. This simple tahini dressing is just that – easy to make, simple to customize and oh so delicious on just about everything.
What is Tahini?
Tahini is a paste made with sesame seeds, ground and then stored in its own oil. It’s a delicious and great way to incorporate sesame seeds into one’s diet. I was introduced to this versatile paste during my years living in Dubai. In Middle Eastern food, tahini is added to various dips like hummus, baba ghanoush and foul and drizzled on everything else. One rarely ever eats it on its own though. If you’re new to Tahini a good way to start is by diluting it with lemon juice, salt and water.
My simple Tahini dressing started like that, just with lemon juice and I kept adding flavours till I arrived at this recipe. It’s one that my kids love and as a result this condiment has become a weekly feature.
Benefits of Sesame Seeds
Sesame seeds are a powerhouse of nutrition. Humble and often under-appreciated like most of their “seedy” cousins, sesame seeds are full of flavour and aroma. In addition to delicious flavour, sesame is known for nutritional qualities that our body needs. The seeds are full of heart-healthy, anti-inflammatory micro-nutrients along with anti-oxidants that help boost health. You can read more about What’s the deal with Seeds right here.
Traditional Indian wisdom has also shown that sesame seeds create heat and energy in the body. That is why sweets using sesame seeds like gajak and rewri are widely available in northern parts of India during the cold, winter months. My grandma used to pack us a mixture of peanuts, sesame seeds and shakkar (unprocessed sugar) in our school lunch box. “All energy-giving foods,” she used to say. Perfect for the brr-cold months of January.
Sesame seeds have long been one of my favourite seeds before I knew – or cared – that I was eating a seed. So when recently I started cooking with more pantry staples I knew I wanted to include a sesame seed dish, et voila. Super Simple Tahini dressing. But first a little bit about Tahini.
Real-Life Kitchen Tips
- Sesame seeds are often eaten lightly roasted and sprinkled on everything. You’ll find them in Middle-Eastern and Asian cuisines but recently more dishes around the world include sesame.
- Once you have mixed all the ingredients, hand-whisk them together to avoid the natural lumpiness that forms with tahini and yoghurt.
- You can skip the mint or replace with another herb if you like
Super Simple Tahini Dressing
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp plain yoghurt
- 1 tbsp tahini paste
- 1/2 juice of Lime
- 2 tbsp chopped fresh mint
- Salt & Pepper to taste
Instructions
- Whisk ingredients together.
- Add a little bit of water to thin the consistency.
- You could also add a little bit of the oil from the tahini paste if you like.
- Drizzle on your favourite salad and toss.
- Using this dressing as a dip? Skip the water and leave the consistency little more viscous.
