Sesame Seeds

Sesame seeds are the small, oil-rich seeds of the sesame plant, called til in Hindi, ellu in Tamil and thala in Sinhala. They go into til ladoo and gajak in North India, ellu urundai and ellu podi in Tamil Nadu and thala guli in Sri Lanka, and they are scattered over breads, stir fries and Makar Sankranti sweets. The oil pressed from them is gingelly oil.

Hulled white sesame has the husk removed and is soft, pale and sweet, the one for ladoos, chikki and baking. Natural sesame keeps its husk, so it is beige, slightly firmer and more nutty. Black sesame is the boldest in flavour, used in Tamil and Sri Lankan sweets, rice dishes and temple offerings. For cooking with the oil, see gingelly oil.

Toast sesame in a dry pan on a low flame, stirring all the time, and pull it off as soon as it turns golden and starts to jump, as it burns fast. Because the seeds are high in oil, they go stale more quickly than most spices, so keep them in a sealed jar in a cool cupboard, or in the fridge in summer. For sweets you may need jaggery, and more seeds, from poppy seeds to kalonji, are in whole spices.