Along with cashew butter and peanut butter, tahini is in a three-way-tie for being our favorite nut/seed butter.
WHAT IS TAHINI?
Tahini is made by grinding sesame seeds into a smooth paste. Sometimes the sesame seeds are hulled, sometimes they’re left unhulled; sometimes roasted, sometimes raw. We like to use tahini to make dressings,soft serve, snack bites, stuffed dates, and SO many other dishes. The possibilities are endless!
ORIGIN OF TAHINI
Tahini is an Arabic name for ground sesame seeds. However, its origins are thought to have been in Persia, where it was called “ardeh.” Tahini later found its way to other countries and was held as a delicacy as sesame seeds were rather expensive to procure. In some cultures, tahini was even used as currency. (source)
THE GROUND RULES
Despite being made with just one ingredient (sesame seeds), not all tahinis are equally delicious. So we decided to put different brands to the test!
We did a formal, side-by-side review of some of the most popular tahinis on the market. Our goal was to see which brands delivered on taste, texture, and stir-ability and which ones weren’t worth the hype, saving you the time and money of doing the research yourself!
- We tested 9 tahinis. Some were purchased from Amazon (for accessibility’s sake) and others were from a variety of health food stores.
- This review isnotsponsoredin any way. We were not given free productorcompensated for any of our reviews, and we had no contact with any of these brands.
- Weexcludedany products containing ingredients other than sesame seeds.
- We tried to be as unbiased and objective as possible when reviewing.
- We tested each tahini by the spoonful, grading on a scale of 1-5 (1 being poor, 5 being excellent) on:
- Stir-ability
- Taste
- Texture
- Overall thoughts
- For consumer awareness, we also examined:
- Cost per ounce (US $) —subject to variability
- Hulled or unhulled
- Glass or plastic jar (and whether BPA-free)
- Quality of ingredients (i.e. organic, non-GMO, etc.)
- If we would repurchase
RESULTS
First place: Baron’s Organic Tahini
Second place: Soom Foods Pure Ground Sesame Tahini
Third place: Okka Organic Ground Sesame Tahini
Fourth place: Whole Foods 365 Organic Tahini
Fifth place: Trader Joe’s Organic Tahini
Sixth place: Pepperwood Organic Whole Seed Sesame Tahini
Seventh place: Al Arz 100% Pure Sesame Tahini
Eighth place: Haddar by Baracke Tahini
Ninth place: Joyva Sesame Tahini
THE REVIEW
#1: Baron’s Organic Tahini
Stir-ability: 4.75 – Only a little oil on top. Stirs really easily with almost no effort and appears runny and creamy.
Taste: 4.25 – Nutty and kind of reminiscent of cashew butter. Naturally mild sweetness and not too bitter.
Texture: 5 – About as creamy and smooth as it gets.
Overall thoughts: 4.25 – We love how easy it is to stir and how creamy it is, and the flavor was pretty delicious.
Approximate cost per ounce: $0.47
Hulled or unhulled: Hulled
Jar material: Plastic
Quality of ingredients (i.e. organic, non-GMO, etc.): Organic, non-GMO, heirloom-quality seeds
Overall score: 18.25/20
Would we repurchase? Yes
#2: Soom Foods Pure Ground Sesame Tahini
Stir-ability: 4 – Has a ~1 inch visible layer of oil on top, however, the tahini on the bottom is creamy and soft and takes only a little effort to stir.
Taste: 5 – Not too bitter. Really buttery. Tastes exactly as you’d hope tahini would taste.
Texture: 4.25 – A little more effort to stir and a little grittiness remains, but overall quite smooth.
Overall thoughts: 4.5 – Taste is near perfect, but some others had a slightly creamier texture.
Approximate cost per ounce: $0.72
Hulled or unhulled: Hulled
Jar material: Plastic
Quality of ingredients (i.e. organic, non-GMO, etc.): Single-sourced origin
Overall score: 17.75/20
Would we repurchase? Yes
#3: Okka Organic Ground Sesame Tahini
Stir-ability: 4.75 – Only a little layer of oil on top. Stirs easily and appears very creamy and runny.
Taste: 3.75 – Salty although no added salt in ingredients. Not too bitter and really pleasant overall.
Texture: 5 – Buttery smooth.
Overall thoughts: 4 – Everything was perfect, except that the flavor tasted a little saltier than we were hoping for (despite being unsalted).
Approximate cost per ounce: $0.61
Hulled or unhulled: Hulled
Jar material: Plastic
Quality of ingredients (i.e. organic, non-GMO, etc.): Organic, Non-GMO
Overall score: 17.5/20
Would we repurchase? Yes
#4: Whole Foods 365 Organic Tahini
Stir-ability: 3.5 – Oil was separated on top from seed butter portion on the bottom. Not incredibly difficult to stir, but you have to work at it for a good minute to get it to combine.
Taste: 4.5 – Noticeable, enjoyable nuttyness. Not too bitter and really pleasant.
Texture: 4.5 – Really creamy and smooth. Only complaint would be it is a little on the runny side.
Overall thoughts: 4.5 – Taste is really nice, overall easy to stir, and it has a nice creamy texture.
Approximate cost per ounce: $0.40
Hulled or unhulled: Hulled
Jar material: Plastic
Quality of ingredients (i.e. organic, non-GMO, etc.): Organic, Non-GMO
Overall score: 17/20
Would we repurchase? Yes
#5: Trader Joe’s Organic Tahini
Stir-ability: 4 – A little oil on top, but it seems to stir without much effort at all. Can visually see a bit of subtle grittiness when stirring.
Taste: 4.5 – Mild and pleasant overall. Not too bitter and tastes high quality and fresh.
Texture: 3.75 – It leaves a slight gritty residue when swirled around the mouth.
Overall thoughts: 4.25 – Seems fresh, high-quality, really pleasant tasting. Only complaint is we wish it was a little more smooth and creamy.
Approximate cost per ounce: $0.35
Hulled or unhulled: Hulled
Jar material: Glass
Quality of ingredients (i.e. organic, non-GMO, etc.): Organic, Non-GMO
Overall score: 16.5/20
Would we repurchase? Yes
#6: Pepperwood Organic Whole Seed Sesame Tahini
Stir-ability:4 – A little separation of oil on top and seed butter on bottom, but it is very runny and quite easy to stir.
Taste: 4.25 – Not too bitter on the front end, but has a bitter finish, despite being nutty and pleasant overall.
Texture: 4.25 – A little grittiness, but overall quite smooth.
Overall thoughts: 4 – Nice flavor, but could be a little less bitter and more creamy.
Approximate cost per ounce: $0.57
Hulled or unhulled: Unhulled
Jar material: Plastic
Quality of ingredients (i.e. organic, non-GMO, etc.): Organic, Non-GMO
Overall score: 16.5/20
Would we repurchase? Yes
#7: Al Arz 100% Pure Sesame Tahini
Stir-ability: 4 – A minimal layer of oil on top, but the tahini on the bottom is quite soft. It takes a little effort to stir, but overall smooth.
Taste: 3.75 – Salty, slightly tart, and not too bitter. Tastes salted even though no salt has been added.
Texture: 4.75 – Super buttery, but a little on the oily side.
Overall thoughts: 3.75 – Everything was pretty great, but the flavor tasted a little off.
Approximate cost per ounce: $0.59
Hulled or unhulled: Hulled
Jar material: Plastic
Quality of ingredients (i.e. organic, non-GMO, etc.): N/A
Overall score: 16.25/20
Would we repurchase? No
#8: Haddar by Baracke Tahini
Stir-ability:2 – Visible layer of oil on top. Tahini underneath is stiff. It requires a lot of effort to stir and is equally clumpy and oily. Would take a lot of stirring to get it hom*ogenous.
Taste: 4.25 – Flavor is really good — nutty, not too bitter, very smooth.
Texture: 3 – It takes so much work to stir that it ends up being clumpy and oily.
Overall thoughts: 3 – Really good flavor, really bad texture.
Approximate cost per ounce: $0.53
Hulled or unhulled: Hulled
Jar material: Plastic
Quality of ingredients (i.e. organic, non-GMO, etc.): N/A
Overall score: 12.25/20
Would we repurchase? No
#9: Joyva Sesame Tahini
Stir-ability: 1.5 – Thick layer of oil on top and the nut butter separates to the bottom. Stirring is work and it would take a lot of stirring to get it to fully combine.
Taste: 2 – Bitter and tastes like there is salt added.
Texture: 2 – Because you can’t get it to stir, there will be some oily and chunky bits and it doesn’t feel good on the palate.
Overall thoughts: 2 – So difficult to stir and the texture and flavor are off.
Approximate cost per ounce: $0.85
Hulled or unhulled: Hulled
Jar material: Metal
Quality of ingredients (i.e. organic, non-GMO, etc.): N/A
Overall score:7.5/20
Would we repurchase? No
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