If you’re not into cooking or a foodist, and you’re like most of us living in the US, you’ve probably wouldn’t know what tahini is. So for those who don’t know, it’s a pretty thick, nut butter made from toasted ground hulled sesame seeds and is served as a dip on its own or as a major ingredient in hummus, baba ghanoush, and halva.
This sauce has been traditionally used in cuisines of the Eastern Mediterranean, the Caucasus, and the Middle East, as well as parts of North Africa since the 13th century. It’s a great alternative if you want to replace oils, mayonnaise, or store-bought dressings which are filled with unhealthy ingredients and other unwanted things such as sugar, GMOs and the likes.
The great news about tahini is that its flavor is slightly nutty but pretty bland allowing you to personalize the flavor of your dressings in any way you want! So for that reason and for its creamy texture, it’s the perfect ingredient preferred by so many foodists, chefs and cook enthusiasts who want to make their own salad dressings exactly to their desired tastes.
Tahini has a world of health benefits, for example, it’s full of minerals such as phosphorus, lecithin, magnesium, potassium, and iron. Tahini also contains plenty of vitamins and is one of the best sources of calcium! Adding essential oils to this amazing sauce will take the health benefits up a notch.
Thyme essential oil is known to help with circulation and can even decontaminate previously contaminated foods. This oil is often used as a tonic and a carminative and it contains a high level of antioxidants as well!
Oregano essential oil is known to keep the cholesterol in balance. The compounds in Oregano can support the actions of the liver, which is responsible for detoxifying the body; this oil also contains vital minerals and calcium, which are necessary to maintain strong bones.
These health benefits are reason enough alone to make the switch from dry herbs to essential oils. And here’s a secret that nobody knows: in the process of drying herbs, many molecules of oils found in plants evaporate, which means dry herbs have less therapeutic benefits than oils, which are the concentrated essence of the plant.
That means you get numerous health benefits from using 1-2 drops of essential oils but not from the fresh or dry herbs unless you consume 5-10 times more the quantity you normally use in recipes. And this is why we prefer to use essential oils instead of dry or even fresh herbs! Oh, and did we mentioned that the flavors and the aroma of any recipes using essential oils vs herbs are so much more intense?! Oh, yes!
Because the essential oils are so concentrated, their flavors will give you a much greater taste sensation from 1-2 drops of oil than you would experience with 2 tbs of the dry herb or fresh. Don’t believe us? Try it our Tahini Dressing Recipe below for yourself and let us know.
Tahini dressing with Thyme and Oregano Oils
Time: 5 minutes
Makes: 1 serving
Ingredients:
2 TBS of tahini
3 TBS of extra virgin olive oil
3 TBS of water
1 drop of Thyme USDA Certified Organic oil
1 drop of Oregano USDA Certified Organic oil
1 pinch of sea salt (adjust to your preference)
1 pinch of cayenne pepper (could be replaced with paprika if you don’t have cayenne; please adjust to your preference).
Mix all ingredients together and store in the fridge in a closed glass container (mason jars are awesome for that!) up to one-two weeks. This dressing is great with any salad, meat or fish, boiled or cooked potatoes, green or dry cooked beans, raw or cooked carrots, mushrooms, broccoli, corn, just to name a few. To offer it as a savory dip to your guests add one extra tablespoon of tahini to increase its thickness, and pair with crusty bread, raw carrots or cucumbers. We promise - your family and guests will be delighted.
Thyme oil and Oregano oil have been recognized by the FDA as safe for consumption, but this is only the case if you purchase a pure, unadulterated oil. We can only recommend ingesting oils that are USDA Certified Organic. Having the USDA Certified Organic label on the bottle itself is the only sure way to know the oil is pure, which is truly safe and edible as the plants are grown in organic soil within an organic farm, hence it doesn't contain any pesticides or artificial fertilizers and GMO's like the plants grown on conventional farms.
Our Oils infused Tahini dressing is super easy to make and guaranteed a hundred times healthier than any store-bought dressing. Your family and friends will love the beautiful herbal flavor and appreciate what it does for their bodies while enjoying it with their favorite foods! For more recipes with Thyme and Oregano, check out our blog. You can purchase these 2 oils and many others from our USDA Organic Essential Oils Collection on our website.