Traditions with sesame

Sesame seeds, among the oldest oilseeds cultivated, are used across the world in bread, sweets, oil, paste and sauces. They top the bagel and the Turkish simit, make tahini and halva in the Middle East, appear in the Japanese gomashio and the Korean namul, and form the base of South Indian chutneys and the til sweets of Makar Sankranti. Because they are small, many and fertile, sesame is a symbol of abundance in several traditions. These pages show where it features.

Where it is used

In India, til laddus are made at Makar Sankranti and Pongal, and sesame is used in the rites of the ancestors. In the Middle East, tahini and halva are staples, and in Turkey simit rings are covered in seeds. In East Asia, sesame oil is a finishing touch, in Japan, sesame tofu and gomashio, in Korea, roasted seeds on bibimbap. In West Africa, benne seeds are brought from the diaspora and used in the Carolinas.

What it means

Sesame was the seed of immortality in Hindu tradition, and offered for the dead in shraddha. In Chinese weddings, sesame cakes stand for abundance. The phrase open sesame, from the Arabian Nights, relates to the way a ripe sesame pod bursts open. In the American South, benne wafers are said to bring luck, a custom carried by enslaved West Africans, and celebrated today at New Year.