"Sesame!" says-a-me

Most of us are familiar with sesame seeds, often toasted. Some of us are also familiar with sesame oil often used in dressings, and then there is tahini, sesame paste, commonly known as one of the few ingredients used in hummus (or hummos). I also recently learned that there are black sesame seeds; I'm curious to find out how easy they are (or aren't) to find.

So I know about the seeds and the oil and the paste, but when I got to thinking about it, curiosity kicked in and I wondered about the sesame plant. I never before thought about it or heard about it, this poor unknown plant that provides us with such wonderful flavors, but I knew it had to exist (after all, you don't get seeds and oils without a plant).

I also found these interesting facts & tidbits on About.com.

> "Sesame seeds are believed to be one of the first condiments as well as one of the first plants to be used for edible oil."

> "The earliest recorded use of a spice - sesame seed - comes from an Assyrian myth which claims that the gods drank sesame wine the night before they created the earth."

> Sesame "is native to the East Indies. Usage dates back to 3000 B.C. Over 5,000 years ago, the Chinese burned sesame oil not only as a light source but also to make soot for their ink-blocks."

> "African slaves brought sesame seeds, which they called benné seeds, to America, where they became a popular ingredient in Southern dishes."

I love hummus with a lot of lemon. What flavor do you like best?

Picture by Howard F. Schwartz, Colorado State University, United States; posted on Forestry Images.