Reasons You’ll Love Garlic Lemon Tahini Dressing

• • Three ingredients! You only need three ingredients aside from water and salt! And it comes together in ten minutes – fresh and delicious!
  • Super cheap and versatile – It can be expensive when you buy tahini sauce at the grocery store. However, Whole  Foods 365 brand is $8.29 (at the time of this writing) for 16 oz. You can make four entire batches (roughly two cups) for around $2.10 inclusive at that price. When you buy store-bought tahini sauce, it’s more than quadruple that for two cups.
  • You can buy tahini paste or make your own! As I said, you can buy tahini (paste) at a good value, and our favorites are Whole Foods 365 brand and Sesame King (the least expensive.)
  • It stores perfectly for later use as a sauce, dressing, or dip. This tahini sauce recipe stores quickly and lasts up to two weeks, but it rarely lasts that long!

Garlic Lemon Tahini Dressing Ingredients and Equipment

So simple you’ll wish you’d made it sooner.

• • Tahini Paste: Although an entirely separate investigation altogether, there are a wide variety of store-brand tahini paste options to choose from. I usually stick with ole reliable, AKA Sesame King Tahini, AKA the cheapest available. Don’t follow my lead, though, as there is an incredible variety to choose from, and it’s true, they do all have their own flavor! I highly recommend reading Minimalist Baker’s guide to the best tahini paste brands to get a feel for what you might like best!
  • Garlic: I’ve already drug you down the crushing-garlic rabbit hole, so I’ll spare you here, but remember that ‘two’s company and three’s a crowd’ regarding raw garlic. Always pick two if you’re wavering between adding two cloves or three. Raw garlic’s bite can sneak up on you, and I’m guilty of making this mistake more than once.
  • Lemon or Lemon Juice: Fresh squeezed lemon juice rocks, but you might not always have a lemon on hand! No worries, lemon juice and lemon juice from concentrate works just as well… and I won’t tell anybody if you don’t!
  • Salt: The most important ingredient in any and (almost) all recipes. Don’t skimp on the salt, but remember that you can always add more later!
  • Water: The amount of water you decide on comes down to the consistency you’re looking for. I recommend only three or four tablespoons of water if you want a thicker, more creamy sauce or dip… but if you’re going for a killer salad dressing or something to drizzle on top of your rice, I’d lean more toward that half-a-cup mark.
  • Food processor or Blender: Either will do! And in my opinion, blenders are easier to clean.

WATCH ME MAKE THIS RECIPE

How To Make Garlic Lemon Tahini Dressing

With a few easy steps, and in ten minutes, you have fresh tahini!

• • Crush the garlic! I’ve always been told this, always read it, and therefore I’ve always crushed my garlic… but had never known why. I assumed it had to do with… oils being released? Maybe? Well, upon further inspection, and to quote the American Chemical Society, “[…Crushing or chopping garlic releases an enzyme, alliinase, that catalyzes the formation of allicin, which then breaks down to form a variety of healthful organosulfur compounds. The researchers believe that crushing garlic before cooking may allow alliinase to work before cooking inactivates the enzyme.” Apparently, the crushing is good for you! The more you know!
  • Juice your lemon if need be. Or break out that trusty green bottle we all have in a cupboard somewhere! Lemon juice from concentrate, of course, isn’t the freshest option, but hey, we work with what we got! And sometimes life doesn’t give you lemons- it gives you lemon juice concentrate.
  • Combine all ingredients! Add everything to a food processor or blender, and blend until it’s just right for you! Slowly add water to reach your desired thickness. More water will lead to a more dressing consistency, whereas less water will lead you toward a hearty pasta sauce.
  • Transfer to a fridge-safe bottle or container and enjoy at your leisure! Or if you’re anything like me… right now, hehe.

Lemon Garlic Tahini Dressing Tips & Tricks

• • Don’t forget to crush the garlic! Let me re-iterate again… this will make all the difference! Frequently, uncrushed raw garlic has a much less pungent taste and is on the sweeter side. More subtle- which is lovely mixed in a salad or for garlic bread, but not so much tahini! We want our garlic flavor to be distinct, as it’s a staple characteristic of any tahini sauce!
  • Taste along the way! It’s never a good feeling to finish up a dish and realize you have absolutely no idea what it TASTES like… Especially when it comes to undersalting, underseasoning, or undercooking! Regarding tahini, it’s best to taste after pulsing and as you add small amounts of water! You don’t want to water anything down and not realize it!
  • Garlic powder works, too. Hey, no shade to those of us who aren’t buying fresh garlic on the regular and still wanna give this tahini dressing a go! I’ve used garlic powder in place of fresh garlic cloves before myself and can attest: it will still turn out wonderfully! Of course, fresh raw cloves are preferred, but we have to work with what we got. For this recipe in specific, I’d substitute 2 teaspoons of garlic powder for the 2 garlic cloves.
  • Let your tahini paste sit out for a bit. Like peanut butter, tahini separates, making the oil sit on top and the butter sit on the bottom. The colder it is, the harder it will be to mix the oil and butter together, and even harder still will be scooping and measuring it. If you don’t already keep your tahini in a cupboard, I’d recommend taking it out of the fridge for about 30 minutes before using it.

   Frequently Asked Questions:

• • How long before it goes bad? Similar to other dressings, I’d be comfortable storing them in the fridge for up to two months.
  • Can I use lemon juice from concentrate? Yep, you sure can! It isn’t my first recommendation, but it works well, and your dressing won’t suffer.
  • Can I use garlic powder? You can, and I talk a bit more about it in the section above, but it also wouldn’t be my first recommendation. Garlic powder doesn’t have the same bite or fragrance as raw garlic, but it will work just fine in a pinch!
  • Can you heat it on the stove or bake with it? Yes! It’s saucepan safe and will heat up perfectly with some freshly made pasta or bake flawlessly into a seven-layer dip.
  • Can I make variations? Yes! Lemon garlic tahini easily accommodates variations such as:
    • Fresh Parsley and Dill Tahini – This is my personal favorite! I love fresh herbs, and I can’t seem to get enough of this variation! I use it on everything! 
    • Pomegranate – Yes! Pomegranate adds a mild sweetness to your lemon garlic tahini. My daughter Riann especially LOVES this variation.

Serving Suggestions for Lemon Garlic Tahini

• Roasted Acorn Squash
• Basil Fried Rice
• Arugula Salad with Grilled Peaches
• Any pasta you have on hand!

As the years have continued and my sesame seed battle waged on, one product amongst them all managed to slip through the cracks and prevail victoriously. Tahini paste is such a dependable core ingredient of so many excellent cultural dips and sauces, and paying homage to those recipes is very important. I did my best to do just that with this basic and easy garlic lemon tahini sauce to showcase some of the best tips I’ve learned along the way, and admit that maybe- just maybe- sesame seeds aren’t so bad after all.