Although I grew up in Israel and was familiar with tahini, the first time I had tahini as a dip, rather than as the sauce that moistens your falafel, was when I moved to New York in 1997. My friend-sister, Tamara, made it for a party at her apartment in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. She made it creamy and fluffy, and it was a revelation to me. I didn’t know you could play with the texture. Since then, it has become something I eat with omelets, frittatas, shakshuka, falafel, sweet potato boats, roasted cabbage, sweet potatoes or cauliflower. I even mix it with vermicelli noodles or drizzle it over ratatouille.

Tahini is a creamy and nutty Middle Eastern condiment made with tahini butter, (ground sesame seeds), lemon juice and water. To make good tahini you need to use Middle Eastern or Ethiopian tahini butters. They’re made the old-fashioned way, the sesame seeds are stone-ground as opposed to processing them in a food processor. The stones gives the tahini butter a natural salty flavor and runny texture. You should make sure that it says on the packaging stone-ground. In Los Angeles I buy it in the Middle Eastern, Persian or Armenian supermarkets or on Amazon.  

Preparing tahini is easier than tying your shoelaces. All you have to do is mix tahini butter with the same amount of water and lemon juice until it’s smooth. To make it silky and fluffy, whisk it or blend it in a blender. You can make it thick and creamy to eat as a dip or make it runny to drizzle over roasted veggies or in a falafel sandwich.