Topic summary
Sesame seed
Extracted from the Wikipedia article Sesame.
Culinary use
Sesame seed is a common ingredient in many cuisines. Sesame seeds were brought into 17th-century colonial America by enslaved West Africans. The whole plant was used in West African cuisine. The seeds thickened soups and puddings, or were roasted and infused to produce a coffee-like drink. Oil from the seeds substituted for butter, and served as a shortening for cakes. The leaves on mature plants, which are rich in mucilage, can be used as a laxative as well as a treatment for dysentery and cholera. After arriving in North America, the plant was grown by slaves as a subsistence staple to supplement their weekly rations. In Caribbean cuisine, sugar and white sesame seeds are combined into a bar resembling peanut brittle and sold in stores and street corners, like Bahamian Benny cakes.