Using toasted black sesame seeds and a small food processor, you can make my homemade Black Sesame Paste recipe in just 10 minutes. Add either honey or sesame oil to create a sweet or savory flavoring to use in many Japanese and Asian dishes.
In Japan and other East Asian and Southeast Asian cuisines, black sesame seeds are used extensively in cooking, baking, and desserts. We use the black sesame seeds in their original form, and in powder and paste forms. It is one of my favorite flavorings for making pastries and sweets. When summer comes around, I would make a jar of homemade black sesame paste and store it in the fridge so I can always whip up black sesame ice cream and other treats.
How Does Black Sesame Paste Taste Like?
To make black sesame paste, the unhulled sesame seeds are first toasted and then ground into a thick puree before being sweetened with honey.
With a glossy, jet-black color and uniquely rich nutty flavor, black sesame paste can change the dynamic of a dessert completely. I would also describe the flavor as slightly earthy with a mildly bitter undertone, which provides a nice counterbalance to any sweets.
You can find many popular Japanese sweets and pastries such as macarons, purin (Japanese pudding), chiffon cake, mochi, bread, ice cream flavored with black sesame.
Black sesame paste (黒練りごま) is typically sold in a small jar at Japanese (or Chinese) grocery stores or on Amazon, but you can easily make it at home.
How to Make Black Sesame Paste – 2 Simple Ingredients!
It’s so easy to make homemade black sesame paste! You’ll need only black sesame seeds and honey (for sweets) or sesame oil (for savory).
Using a food processor makes the process faster than grinding with Suribachi and Surikogi (Japanese mortar and pestle). You need at least 1/4 cup sesame seeds to get it running.
As you grind the sesame seeds will start releasing natural oil, so there’s no need to add any liquid if you use a commercial-grade machine. If you’re using a smaller processor, you may need to add a little honey or sesame oil to get the grinding going to reach the pasty texture. Allow the processor to take breaks in between before you run it again.
Once you make the paste, you can store it in the refrigerator for up to 1 month!
Recipes Ideas
In addition to black sesame ice cream and black sesame dan dan noodles, you can also use black sesame paste to make filling for mochi, or include it in your smoothie, to make creme brulee and pudding or as a dipping sauce for fruits like banana and apples. Black sesame is known to be an excellent source of calcium, magnesium, iron, and healthy fat, so that’s a double win!
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Homemade Black Sesame Paste (Kuro Neri Goma)
Ingredients
For Black Sesame Paste for Sweets
- 1 cup toasted black sesame seeds
- ½–1 tsp honey (optional)
For Black Sesame Paste for Savory Dishes
- 1 cup toasted black sesame seeds
- ½–1 tsp toasted sesame oil (optional)
Instructions
- Gather all the ingredients. Please note: I used ½ cup (60 g) of black sesame seeds in the step-by-step photos; however, I noticed it was much easier to make a paste when I used 1 cup in a 3-cup food processor. If you use less, or use a bigger food processor, the blades will spin without engaging the sesame seeds and you won‘t be able to make a paste. Therefore, I updated the ingredient list with 1 cup of sesame seeds [revised March 2023].
- In a non-greased pan, toast 1 cup toasted black sesame seeds to enhance the aroma.
- Put the toasted sesame seeds in the food processor and start processing. You can also grind the black sesame seeds by mortar and pestle (but it will take some time).
- It will take some time for the sesame seeds to release their oil, so be patient.
- Scrape the sesame seeds from the sides as needed and run again. Depending on the machine, you may need to take a break to avoid overheating the motor.
- [Optional] Add ½–1 tsp honey or ½–1 tsp toasted sesame oil, but only if your food processor is struggling. Sesame seeds themselves contain oil that naturally releases during toasting and grinding, so it’s usually enough to create a thick sesame paste. However, if your food processor is struggling to crush and grind, you can drizzle a little bit of sesame oil onto the seeds to add volume, help bind them, and thin out the paste.
- The sesame seeds will start to look pastier. Continue processing.
- Once the sesame seeds are ground, liquidy, and pasty, transfer to a sterilized mason jar.
To Serve
- You can use the black sesame paste to make sweets like Black Sesame Ice Cream. This Kuro Neri Goma is also a key ingredient in savory dishes like Black Sesame Dan Dan Noodles.
To Store
- You can store the homemade sesame paste in the refrigerator for up to 1 month and in the freezer for half a year. Bring the paste back to room temperature before using it.
Hi Nami,
Thank you for sharing this quick recipe. Would this recipe be suitable to make sesame paste fillings for baked buns or would I need to modify the recipe?
Thank you 🙂
Hi Yap! Filling for baked buns… Hmmm.. how big are they? These are rather “runny” so I’m not sure how you can fill in?
Hi Nami,
The buns are approximately the size of red bean buns, an pan (3inch diameter). I agree that this recipe can be “runny”. Is there any possibility of thickening the paste to make it less “runny”?
When we make black sesame anko filling, we usually mix with red bean paste so we get some substantial amount instead of just sesame seeds. But I’m not sure if that works for your recipe…
could i use sugar instead of honey? also, would black sesame paste taste good in jian dui or is that weird?
Hi Sam! You can use sugar, but may be more grainer. What’s Jian Dui?
Jian dui is a Chinese fried sesame ball with paste inside. usually red bean paste but I was wondering if black sesame paste would be good
Ohhh, I got it! I love them! Hm, I think, the chinese sesame balls have sweeter filling. You might want to check its recipe. But this can be used as base for sure. 🙂
This recipe and the related ice-cream is a dream come true, specially for my husband. Back sesame ice-cream is one of his favourites. He is not Japanese or a descendent by the way – he is Irish :-D.
Hi Sueli! Hahahaha, so happy that your husband likes black sesame ice cream! Definitely a wonderful surprise! Thank you for writing. Hope you try the recipe and he’ll like it! xo
Hello, thank you for the recipe. I just bought a jar of black sesame seeds and I wanted to try making a batch of this paste.
I’d like to ask you, though, how long could this paste last if I keep it in a mason jar stored in my pantry?
Hi Mawichan! I updated my recipe with this information (thanks for asking!). You will need to use it in 2 days. Oil from sesame seeds gets oxidized (just like you can’t keep the deep fry oil for a long time because it’ll be oxidized) and it won’t taste good, so you will need to use it in 2 days. Hope this helps!
Thanks for the quick reply! I have not tried the recipe yet, but I already bought the seeds to make it soon, so it is good to know this. Thanks again~
So to make regular Pure sesame paste do you follow same steps? Don’t want Tahini paste just sesame paste like they sell in Chinese Markets. Thanks!
Hi Clint! If you use it for savory, you don’t have to add honey. If you have a food processor, it should take less than 5 minutes to make paste. 🙂
Could I use black sesame powder instead? Thank you! 🙂
Hi Sin! I have never used black sesame powder… If it’s 100% ground black sesame it seems like it’s a same thing?! Are they super fine? I wish I can tell but I’m not sure if it works as I have never tried it. Let me know if you try and it works. 🙂
Nami, thank you for responding. I tried using the black sesame powder, and it seems to work? haha.. I have never tasted black sesame paste before, so I’m not exactly sure. However, the consistency seems to resemble your homemade paste. So, I guess it works! Thank you.
Hi Sin Ee! Theoretically it should work as black sesame seed powder is ground black sesame seed. 🙂 When we grind by ourselves, though, the sesame seed oil comes out and it gets more moist from the oil. I guess that would be missing from already ground powder form. But it should be okay! Thank you for letting me know! 🙂
Hi Nami, thanks for sharing this recipe! Do you know why store bought black sesame paste has oil in it? How can I replicate it? As I have a recipe which calls for 2 tablespoons of the oil in the black sesame paste.. Thank you! 🙂
Hi Lynn! The oil in black sesame paste is sesame oil. When you grind (or use food processor), the natural oil start to come out from sesame seeds. If you don’t have enough, you can add tiny bit of sesame oil (or olive oil). Hope this helps!
Hi Nami
I’m just wondering what kind of honey you used in this recipe? And also what kind of honey works best? 🙂
In my supermarket there are many different types available, and I’m not sure which one would taste best. Eg. Manuka, honey and clover, creamed honey and clover honey…
Btw I tried your matcha ice cream recipe without an ice cream maker… tastes so creamy and rich! Thank you for sharing it 🙂
Hi Leah! In this recipe/picture, I used the clover honey. 🙂 I’m so happy to hear the matcha ice cream turned out well. Thank you so much for trying the recipe!
Sounds delicious!! But I don’t have a food processor. Can I grind them with vitamix?
Hi Shelly! I don’t have a Vitamix, and I definitely don’t want to say “sure!” and bake your expensive blender. 😀 Does it come with a blade to work like food processor? I am pretty sure you can….but just in case, I recommend you to read the manual… 😉
Do I put honey into the food processor as well??
Hi Ji! Yes, it’s in Step 2. After you add honey, mix well. 🙂
Used a blender. It worked and tastes yummy
Hi Azef! I’m glad you liked it. Thank you so much for letting me know!
For how long do we roast the sesame seeds?
Hi Jan! If your black sesame seeds are not roasted yet, follow the following directions.
Put sesame seeds in a frying pan and roast them on medium heat until 2-3 sesame seeds jump (similar to popcorn). Keep shaking the pan to rotate the sesame seeds so they won’t get burnt. Remove from the heat immediately.
Hope that helps!
Hello! I just tried the recipe, but my sesame paste doesn’t look as liquid as it does in the pictures.(looks more chunky) I already added honey, and processed it very long, so the food processor got hot. Will it be fine for the black sesame ice cream as well? Or how much longer do i have to process it?
Regards,
Selina
Hi Selina!
Thank you for trying this recipe! Yes, you may use it for ice cream as well.
It will take some time for the sesame seeds to release the oil, and it may take 5~8 minutes. Please follow Step 5 and scrape the sesame seeds from the sides as needed and rerun it. Don’t forget to pose a few times to avoid breaking the motor.😉
I was hooked to goma ice cream since I tasted in Asakusa London. Which is strange as I am not a big fan of ice cream. I now have the recipe, made my own paste and felt really proud. I was wondering what kinda savoury dishe we can use the sesame oiled version? I mean in Japanese cuisine?
Hi gulsah! I’m really happy to hear you enjoyed black sesame ice cream! Black sesame paste for savory dishes is not as popular. Some uses for mixing with blanched veggies, some use for tofu and bread, and I’ve seen it’s used for simmered dishes. I prefer white sesame paste for dressing etc. Oh you can use for steamed cake too. They are more like arranged dish and not something that everyone knows about – like black sesame pudding, or chiffon cake, etc.
I’m excited to make black sesame ice cream! Yours looks so good. Just wondering, What can you use instead of honey?
Hi Amy! Hmm.. that’s a difficult question… If it’s for savory dish, I’d recommend to make it syrupy texture with sesame oil. However if it’s for dessert like ice cream, I think honey is the best fit. Maybe maple syrup? Hope this helps. 🙂
If i don’t have food processor how can i do it?thanks
Hi Novi! It’s a bit of work, but you can grind the black sesame seeds by mortar and pestle. That works the same way. 🙂 Hope this helps!