Sesamum indicum, one of the first oil-yielding plants to be taken into cultivation, in Egypt or the Near East. Wild species, with one exception, are African; but there is a secondary ‘source of diversity’ in India, where sesame was introduced in very early times. The name sesame is one of the few words to have passed into modern languages from ancient Egyptian, in which it was sesemt.
Sesame is an upright annual herb, up to 2 m (6′) tall and bearing its seeds inside small, sausage-shaped pods about 3 cm (1.25″) long. The pods of primitive strains have a tendency to split abruptly open when ripe, allowing the seeds to scatter. This may account for the command ‘Open sesame’ in the tale of Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves.
The seeds are numerous, pear shaped, and no more than 3 mm (0.1″) in length. They may be white, yellow, brown, or black, according to variety, with a white inside which is revealed when they are hulled. They have a pleasantly nutty flavour, which is developed by roasting. The oil produced from them, in the unrefined state, also tastes slightly nutty. Thus both the seeds and oil have a role in flavouring, besides providing a simple food or cooking medium.
Sesame is often mentioned by classical writers. The Greek authors Herodotus (5th century bc) and Strabo (1st century bc) both mention its being cultivated for oil in Babylonia, and this is confirmed by an entry for sesame oil on a clay tablet forming part of the accounts of Nebuchadnezzar's palace (6th century bc). Theophrastus (4th century bc) described sesame as being grown in Egypt. In the 1st century ad Dioscorides mentioned the sprinkling of sesame seed on bread in Sicily, a practice which has continued to the present day, e.g. on hamburger buns.
Further east, sesame had long been grown in Persia and India. It was probably introduced from Persia into China early in the Christian era, but the first firm evidence of it in China dates from the end of the 5th century ad; see Laufer (1978).
In Africa the cultivation of sesame dates back to early times not only in Egypt and Ethiopia but also further to the south and west. Other species of the genus, e.g. S. alatum (tacoutta), were also gathered from the wild by tribes in the regions of the Sudan and former Tanganyika. It was from W. Africa that slave traders took seeds to America. Substantial quantities are now grown in Guatemala, Venezuela, Mexico, and the south of the USA (where the W. African name ‘benni’ survives as ‘benniseed’), although the main producing countries are China and India.
Considered simply as a source of oil, sesame has a low yield, on average 150 kg per hectare (135 lb an acre). Even the olive, whose yield is notoriously low, averages 200 kg a hectare, and the prolific oil palm more than 1,000 kg. However, sesame oil is of high value, free of unwanted odours, with good keeping qualities, and high in polyunsaturated fatty acids (oleic, linoleic); and sesame seeds are in strong demand for flavouring.
Sesame oil is important as a cooking oil in S. India. In Japan it is said to have been the only cooking oil used in the distant past, and is still the most highly esteemed (although nowadays frequently mixed with a less expensive and more neutral-tasting oil). The Chinese prize it highly; their name for it means ‘fragrant oil’. In some regions it is used for general frying purposes; in others it will be added to dishes, both sweet and savoury, in small amounts just before serving, so that its fragrance is not lost.
In W. and C. Europe sesame seeds are not much used except for sprinkling on bread and cakes, but at the eastern end of the Mediterranean it becomes more common. Notable uses there are for tahini, a ground sesame paste, and in sweets such as halva.
In India, where the name gingili (Anglicized to gingelly) is used, the seeds have many roles in cookery: sprinkled on breads, pastries, and biscuits; used as an ingredient in a sweet called tilkuta; also in pilafs, sauces, stuffings, and sometimes fried and sweetened. In China the seeds are used as a coating for small, deep-fried titbits, and in confectionery, practices now common elsewhere too.
However, it is probably in Japan that the use of sesame seeds has been most highly developed especially in shojin-ryori, i.e. the vegetarian cooking traditionally developed and practised in Buddhist monasteries and temples, whose influence on Japanese home cooking is considerable. Although sesame is cultivated in Japan, the demand for sesame seeds far outstrips the domestic production, and much is imported.
All three types of seeds are sold in Japan—black, white, and brown (or golden). There seems to be little or no difference in taste, and which type is chosen for a particular dish is largely a matter of habit based on aesthetics. However they are to be used, they are always lightly roasted in the first place. Roasting such tiny seeds evenly and without burning requires care. Traditionally this is done in a horoku (a shallow, oval, unglazed earthenware dish used for slow cooking) over a charcoal fire, but nowadays it is common to use a small frying pan.
The roasted seeds are often sprinkled over rice or other cooked foods as an added flavour. They are sometimes mixed with salt and placed on the table as a condiment (goma-shio, i.e. sesame-salt). Also, sesame seeds are one of the main components of various dressings, for aemono (see Japanese culinary terms) and dipping sauces.
It is rare for sesame seeds to become the chief ingredient of a dish, but one notable exception is goma-dofu (sesame tofu). For this seeds of the white type are roasted, ground to a smooth paste, mixed with water and arrowroot, cooked slowly, and set in a rectangular mould. The result is eaten by itself or used as a garnish in a clear soup.
Alan Davidson was a distinguished author and publisher, and one of the world's best-known writers on fish and fish cookery. In 1975 he retired early from the diplomatic service—after serving in, among other places, Washington, Egypt, Tunisia, and Laos, where he was British Ambassador—to pursue a fruitful second career as a food historian and food writer extraordinaire. Among his popular books are Seafood of South-East Asia, North Atlantic Seafood, and Mediterranean Seafood. In 2003, shortly before his death, he was awarded the Erasmus Prize for his contribution to European culture.
Laufer, Berthold (1978), Sino Iranica, repr of 1919 edn, Taipei: Ch'eng Wen.
