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Black sesame is nostalgic to me. My mom used to make black sesame steamed buns for breakfast and we’d always buy black sesame tangyuan as a special treat. To pay homage to my childhood and my family’s love of black sesame, I developed this black sesame cookie recipe.
These black sesame cookies are chewy, nutty and studded with white chocolate chips. Chocolate and sesame isn’t a traditional flavour combination, but it works really well. White chocolate isn’t as strong as milk or dark chocolate, so it complements the black sesame without overpowering its flavour. Also, these cookies have brown butter. The brown butter brings out of nuttiness and richness of the black sesame to enhance its flavour.
Why you’ll love these cookies
- Black sesame is ground into a paste, not just into pieces, so the cookies don’t have any chunks or odd crunch. They’re just chewy, soft and delicious.
- Enough sweetness to cut out any bitterness from the black sesame seeds, without the cookie being too sweet.
- Beautiful dramatic dark grey colour!
Ingredients
- All-purpose flour: Flour gives the cookies structure.
- Baking soda: Baking soda leavens the cookies.
- Unsalted butter: Butter adds richness to the cookies. If you’re using salted butter, omit the salt.
- Granulated sugar: Sugar adds sweetness and helps give the cookies their chewy texture.
- Egg and egg yolks: This cookie recipe uses lots of egg yolks to ensure a chewy, soft cookie rather than a cakey crumbly one.
- Roasted black sesame seeds: If your black sesame seeds are not pre-roasted, make sure to toast them in a pan or oven before grinding them down. You may be able to substitute the black sesame seeds with black sesame paste, but I have not tested this.
- Tahini: Tahini helps the black sesame grind into a paste easily. Feel free to substitute with any nut or seed butter.
- Table salt: Salt subtly enhances the flavours of the cookie.
- White chocolate: White chocolate adds sweetness, a creamy flavour and a gooey melty texture. Feel free to use white chocolate chips instead of chopped white chocolate if you’d like.
Equipment
Make sure to have a food processor or blender to make the black sesame paste. Even with a strong food processor, grinding the black sesame paste will take at least 5 minutes. Just be patient, it will go from crumbs, to a thick paste to a smooth thinner paste.
Baking sheet colour can affect the cookies. If you use a dark coloured baking sheet, the cookies will bake and brown faster than if using a lighter coloured baking sheet, so keep a close eye on the cookies. These cookies go from chewy and soft to dry quickly, so as soon as they’re done, pull them out of the oven!
Make sure you have a kitchen scale for this recipe since most of the measurements are in grams. Using a kitchen scale ensures you get the same results I have! Learn about why I use a kitchen scale here. If you’d like to use measuring spoons and cups, you can use an online recipe converter to change the units to whatever you’re using.
Storage
The black sesame cookies can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for 2 to 3 days.
If desired, you can freeze the dough in scoops on a parchment lined baking sheet, then put into an airtight container to freeze. Bake at 275 for 10-12 minutes. I find that the flavour is best when these are baked immediately, but they should still taste good if you freeze them.
FAQ
You can buy black sesame seeds in most Asian supermarkets.
White sesame has a different flavour from black sesame. This recipe is designed to bring out the flavour of black sesame, so if you’d like to use white sesame, I’d recommend you find a recipe specifically designed for white sesame seeds or tahini.
The outside of the cookies will become an opaque light grey colour as the cookies bake. As soon as the cookie is mostly light grey, take the cookies out of the oven. These cookies overbake easily, so edge on the side of underbaking if you’re not sure they’re done.
Let’s bake!
These black sesame cookies are truly a delight to eat. If you haven’t had black sesame before, I totally encourage you to try some! It might seem weird if you haven’t had it growing up, but in many cultures, it’s as common as peanut butter and very popular.
When you make them, tag me on Instagram @bakewhenitrains so I can admire your cookies. Also, don’t forget to leave a comment and rating below. I’d love to hear your feedback!
With love,
Your baking friend Sherene ❤️
Black Sesame Cookies
Ingredients
- 120 grams all-purpose flour
- 1/4 tsp baking soda
- 1/8 tsp table salt
- 113 grams unsalted butter
- 120 grams roasted black sesame seeds
- 2 tbsp tahini or any other nut or seed butter
- 100 grams granulated sugar
- 1 large egg
- 2 egg yolks
- 85 grams white chocolate chopped (3 oz)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 300°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
- In a medium saucepan, brown the butter on medium low heat. (This means cooking the butter until brown, stirring occasionally) It's going to sizzle loudly, then go quiet and become foamy and dark in colour. As soon as it's brown, take off the heat and set aside to cool.
- In a food processor, blend the sesame and tahini. It will look chunky at first, but continue blending until it's a smooth paste.
- In a large bowl, combine the brown butter and sugar.
- Whisk in egg and egg yolks.
- Whisk in black sesame paste.
- Fold in the flour mixture until just combined.
- Fold in the chopped white chocolate until just combined.
- Scoop the cookies into 40 gram balls (around 2 tbsp), leaving 2 inches between each cookie.
- Bake for 8-9 minutes, until the outside of the cookie is mostly opaque and grey. Cool.
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