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Home » Recipes » Healthy Sauce and Spread Recipes

Basic + Awesome Tahini Sauce

Modified: Jan 16, 2024 · Published: May 11, 2022 by Tera Gigot · This post may contain affiliate links · Leave a Comment

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Just a basic + awesome, easy tahini sauce! With just a couple ingredients, you have an all-purpose sauce for drizzling on anything.

Tahini sauce in small glass jar with spoon and lemons on the side. this recipe

If you like hummus and creamy, healthy sauce recipes, you're in the right place my friend! At my house, we are all sauce people because sauce can magically tie any combination of ingredients together in texture and flavor. We also make a lot of grain bowls, so having an all-purpose creamy sauce makes grain bowl night so easy.

Lately, this tahini sauce has been my go-to for roasted veggie side dishes. I'm obsessed with these Moroccan-spiced roasted carrots and these harissa roasted sweet potatoes, which have a tahini sauce variation drizzled over the top to serve. Once you learn how to make this all-purpose sauce, you can level up whatever dish your heart desires!

Jump to:
  • Ingredients
  • Substitutions & Variations
  • Let's Make This Yummy Tahini Sauce
  • Tahini Sauce FAQs
  • How to Use Tahini Sauce
  • Pairing
  • 📖 Recipe

Ingredients

Water, tahini, lemon, garlic, and salt.

Probably the best thing about this sauce (besides the wonderful flavor) is that it's made with a handful of simple, pantry/fridge staple ingredients. Tahini is the key ingredient here, which I typically keep stocked because we make homemade hummus almost weekly. If you don't usually keep tahini on hand, hummus and sauces are two very good reasons to start!

Substitutions & Variations

Because this recipe is made from just a few essential ingredients, I don't recommend any substitutions. However, you can vary the flavors and consistency by adding spices or adjusting the ingredient ratio. Here are some of my recommendations:

  • Maple syrup - Tahini + maple = DELICIOUS. Drizzle in about one tablespoon of pure maple syrup and whisk it in with the other ingredients.
  • Spicy - Whisk in some harissa paste, red chili paste, or ¼ teaspoon of cayenne pepper to bring some heat.
  • Cumin + coriander - Add in some additional flavorings to mix it up a bit. I love the combination of cumin and coriander.
  • Adjust the consistency - use less water for a thicker consistency, or more water for a thinner consistency. You might want it slightly thinner for use as a salad dressing, but thicker to smother on a sandwich or burger. Totally up to you!

Let's Make This Yummy Tahini Sauce

Tahini, lemon juice, and garlic in small clear glass bowl with mini whisk.

Step 1: First, you'll combine tahini, minced fresh garlic, lemon juice, and salt in a small mixing bowl. Use a fork or mini whisk to combine.

Whisking tahini, lemon juice, garlic, and water together in a small clear glass bowl.

Step 2: Add some cool or room temperature water (not warm), and whisk it together. It will look chunky and awkward at first, but just keep whisking.

Tahini sauce being whisked together in clear glass bowl.

Step 3: Almost there... keep whisking! It should take about 30 seconds total.

Tahini sauce completely whisked until smooth.

Step 4: THERE it is. Once the tahini sauce becomes smooth, taste and add salt to your liking, and more lemon if desired.

At this point it usually takes all my will power not to just keep eating this stuff by the spoonful!

Tahini sauce dripping off of spoon into small glass jar.

Tahini Sauce FAQs

Does tahini sauce have dairy or nuts?

Nope! Basic tahini sauce sauce is free from dairy and nuts. It does contain seeds (tahini is made of ground up sesame seeds).

Does tahini sauce need to be refrigerated?

Yes; since we make tahini sauce with a bit of fresh garlic and lemon juice, it does need to be refrigerated.

How do I store homemade tahini sauce?

I recommend storing the leftover tahini sauce in an airtight glass jar or container in the fridge for up to two weeks.

How to Use Tahini Sauce

Because this sauce is a basic, no-frills sauce (that's also delicious), it can go with almost anything! Here are some ideas:

  • Spread onto wraps and pita sandwiches
  • Spoon over hummus before serving (have you tried my lemon dill hummus??)
  • Drizzle over chickpea shawarma
  • Serve as a salad dressing
  • Roasted veggies - either drizzle on top or dip (think honey roasted parsnips, air fryer parsnips, or simple roasted sweet potatoes)
  • Use as a special sauce on burgers, like these smoky turkey burgers
  • Pour onto grilled proteins as a sauce
  • Use as a sauce for grain bowls

Pairing

Tahini sauce is amazing drizzled into other salads, as well as a dip for roasted veggies! Below are some recipes you may want to try with .

  • Simple detox quinoa salad on small white plate with fork
    Simple Quinoa Salad with Cucumber
  • Easy and Delicious Air Fryer Butternut Squash
  • Air fryer parsnips on small wooden plate with fork topped with chili crunch and flaky salt, and other air fryer parsnips in beige serving bowl on the side
    Air Fryer Parsnips
  • Modern three bean salad in clear glass bowl with spoon, on light blue and white surface.
    Modern Three Bean Salad (Easy & Wholesome Side Dish!)

Did you make this Tahini Sauce? Don't forget to leave a star rating 🌟 and comment below, and tag me on Instagram and Pinterest so I can see what you made!

Print

📖 Recipe

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Tahini sauce in small glass jar with spoon and lemons on the side, on gray and white surface

Basic + Awesome Tahini Sauce


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  • Author: Tera
  • Total Time: 2 minutes
  • Yield: ~1 cup
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Description

An easy and delicious all-purpose tahini sauce. Drizzle over roasted veggies, your favorite grilled protein, burgers, wraps, shawarma, grain bowls... whatever your heart desires!


Ingredients

Units Scale
  • ½ cup tahini
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice (plus more to taste)
  • ¼ teaspoon fine salt (plus more to taste)
  • ½ cup water


Instructions

  1. Combine tahini, garlic, lemon, and salt. Add tahini, garlic, lemon juice, and salt to a bowl. Use a small whisk or fork to whisk the ingredients a few times.
  2. Add water. Add the water to the tahini mixture and begin whisking everything together.
  3. Whisk! It will look a little lumpy at first, but keep whisking until it becomes smooth.
  4. Taste and adjust. Taste, and add more salt or lemon if desired.

Notes

  1. Storage. Store leftover tahini sauce in an airtight glass jar or container in the fridge.
  2. Serving. Tahini sauce is so versatile! I love it as a sauce for grain bowls and salads, drizzled onto roasted veggies, as a sauce for falafel sandwiches, even drizzled onto hummus.
  • Prep Time: 2 minutes
  • Cook Time: 0 minutes
  • Category: Sauce
  • Method: Stir
  • Cuisine: Mediterranean

Nutrition

  • Serving Size: 2 tablespoons
  • Calories: 90
  • Sugar: 0.1 g
  • Sodium: 78.6 mg
  • Fat: 8 g
  • Saturated Fat: 1.1 g
  • Carbohydrates: 3.5 g
  • Fiber: 0.7 g
  • Protein: 2.6 g
  • Cholesterol: 0 mg

Did you make this recipe?

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Tera Gigot, the author, photographer, and recipe developer of Roots and Radishes.

Hey, I'm Tera! And I'm so glad to meet you. I've been using seasonal produce to create recipes in my Wisconsin kitchen for 12 years. Here you'll find nourishing whole foods recipes that are approachable and delicious.

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Tahini sauce in small glass jar with spoon and lemons on the side, on gray and white surface
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