Growing up eating mostly Chinese foods, I was introduced to a lot of Asian desserts. Black sesame, red beans are popular dessert options. To this day I still love black sesame and red bean desserts. A couple months back, my mom introduce me to a sesame paste. This was a spreadable black sesame paste to be used on bread and I loved it. After I finished it, I thought about recreating my own homemade black sesame paste.
Black sesame vs. White sesame
Black sesame are usually used in dessert while white sesame can be used in sweet and savoury dishes. You can make white sesame paste and it’s usually used in savoury dishes like a sauce for noodles or dipping sauce. Black sesame has a stronger flavour so they are usually the main flavour in recipes. That is why they are often used in dessert because of the strong sesame flavour.
Ingredients
There are 3 ingredients in this recipe and it’s black sesame, sugar and oil. You might be wondering well how does it become a paste? The black sesame needs to be blended in a food processor or blender. As you blend the oils from black sesame are released and the additional oil will help to blend the black sesame. Adding sugar to black sesame will give a slight sweetness to the paste. I also added sesame oil to enhance the flavour of the sesame.
How to make it
Most of the time store bought black sesame are not toasted unless it’s specified. Toasting will help to bring the black sesame flavour out and also cook the sesame seeds. Toast the black sesame in a pan on low heat. Once the black sesame aroma comes out then you can set it aside to cool.
Once it’s fully cooled, put into a blender with sugar (you can adjust the sugar level to your taste, add more if you don’t want the bitter flavour). Blend until it becomes a paste. Once it becomes a paste then you can transfer into an airtight container and store in fridge for later use.
I like to put it on toast if I want something other than peanut butter or jam. In addition, you can use the sesame paste for fillings in dessert or make a sesame latte (if you don’t drink coffee).
Pro-tip
- Always toast on low heat to prevent burning.
- Use a jar to store the sesame paste. Put it into the fridge and store up to 2 months.
- Use sesame oil to enhance the flavour but if you don’t want too strong of the taste, then use more neutral oil.
Homemade Black Sesame Paste
Equipment
- blender
Ingredients
- ¾ cup toasted black sesame
- 3 tbsp sugar
- 1 tbsp sesame oil
- ¼ cup neutral oil
Instructions
- In a pan on low heat, toast the black sesame
- Once you can smell the black sesame flavour, turn off the heat and let it cool down.
- In a blender, add in black sesame, sugar. Add sesame oil and neutral oil. Start blending. Add more oil if the mixture is too thick.
- Once all black sesame is blended, transfer the sesame paste into an airtight container or a jar.
- You can use it right away or store in the fridge. Best to use it within 2-3 weeks
Hot Oil Noodles (Instant ramen)
