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Tahini sauce
ṭaraṭor · Tarator · Taratour · Tehina sauce
A Levantine sesame sauce of tahini thinned with water and brightened with lemon and garlic, the base of tarator served with falafel and shawarma, with Egyptian and Iraqi variants.
A sesame paste that becomes a sauce
Tahini is the ground sesame paste of the eastern Mediterranean. In the Levant it becomes a sauce when it is thinned with water and sharpened with lemon and garlic. The sauce is usually called tarator, the name the Levant gives to the tahini sauce served with falafel and shawarma.
The paste itself is old. A 10th-century Arabic cookbook, Kitab al-Tabikh, includes a recipe for ground sesame used as a condiment, and a 14th-century writer describes Middle Eastern people grinding sesame and mixing it with date honey. The word comes from Arabic, from a Levantine pronunciation of tahina, related to the verb meaning to grind. The sources reviewed give no dated first recipe for the lemon and garlic sauce itself.
Sources for this section
What the paste is
Tahini is made from sesame seeds that are usually hulled and roasted, then ground into an oily paste. Unhulled seeds make a slightly bitter product that is more nutritious. Because the paste separates in the jar, it is stirred before use, and the oil is part of its character.
The sauce depends on how the paste is handled. Mixed with lemon and garlic it thickens first and then loosens as water is added, so the cook adds water slowly and stops when the sauce reaches the right texture. The sources give no fixed ratio of sesame paste to water.
Sources for this section
Regional sauces
In the Levant, tahini is the main ingredient of tarator, served with falafel and shawarma. Middle Eastern tahini sauces usually include lemon juice, salt and garlic, thinned with water. In Egypt, tehina is often blended with lemon juice, garlic and water, then seasoned with salt and cumin.
In Iraq a sweet form, rashi, is made by mixing tahini with date syrup, and it is eaten as a dessert. That is a different use of the same paste and is not the savoury sauce described here.
Sources for this section
Making and keeping it
Whisk the tahini with lemon juice and crushed garlic. Add cold water a little at a time until the sauce is smooth and pourable, then salt it to taste. Add cumin for the Egyptian style. The sauce is served at once or kept covered in the refrigerator.
The sources give no validated shelf life for this sauce. Garlic in an emulsion at room temperature is a food-safety concern, so keep the sauce cold and do not leave it out.
Sources for this section
History
The word tahini is Arabic, from a Levantine pronunciation of tahina, related to the verb meaning to grind. A 10th-century Arabic cookbook includes a recipe for ground sesame used as a condiment, a 13th-century anonymous cookbook lists tahini in hummus kasa, and a 14th-century writer describes making tahini with date honey. The sauce of tahini with lemon and garlic is documented more recently in the Levant; the sources give no dated first recipe for it.
Ingredients
Scaling: not stated
Tahini (sesame paste)Stir well before measuring; the oil separates in the jar.
Amount not stated
Lemon juiceFresh.
Amount not stated
GarlicCrushed or finely grated.
Amount not stated
WaterAdded gradually to thin the paste.
Amount not stated
Amount not stated
Cumin (optional)Ground.
Amount not stated
Method
Risks and precautions · Standard risk
Raw garlic in an oil and water emulsion at room temperature
Garlic in oil at room temperature is a botulism concern. Keep the sauce refrigerated and do not store it at room temperature.
Hazard sourceRefrigerate promptly and keep cold.
Control sourceSesame is a common allergen.
- Stir the tahini well so the oil and the paste combine.
- Mix the tahini with lemon juice and crushed garlic. The mixture will thicken and stiffen first.
- Thin it with cold water a spoonful at a time until it reaches a pouring or spreading consistency.
- Season with salt. Add cumin if making the Egyptian style.
- Serve at once or keep covered and refrigerated. The sources give no validated storage time.
Conditions
Temperature controlRefrigerated
Places
Levant
Traditional use · Region evidenceWikipedia says tahini is the main ingredient of tarator in the Levant, served with falafel and shawarma. The article does not give the tarator recipe, and this row does not place a single origin.
Egypt
Traditional use · Country evidenceEgyptian tehina is often blended with lemon juice, garlic and water, then seasoned with salt and cumin, as the Wikipedia article states.
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Sources
WikipediaHistory · Method · Regional use · Ingredients
TahiniEtymology from Levantine tahina, to grind
10th-century Kitab al-Tabikh, 13th-century hummus kasa, 14th-century date honey account
Tarator as the Levant tahini sauce served with falafel and shawarma
Lemon, salt and garlic in Middle Eastern tahini sauces; Egyptian cumin variant
Rashi, date syrup dessert in Iraq
Cited in: A sesame paste that becomes a sauce; What the paste is; Regional sauces; Making and keeping it
FoodSafety.govSafety
4 Steps to Food SafetyGeneral refrigeration guidance; does not validate a recipe-specific shelf life
Cited in: Making and keeping it