Sesame into a bar resembling peanut brittle and sold in stores and street corners. Sesame is a popular and essential ingredient in many Middle Eastern cuisines. Sesame seeds are made into a paste called "tahini" (used in various ways, including "hummus bi tahini") and the Middle Eastern confection "halvah". Ground and processed, the seed is also used in sweet confections. Sesame is also a common component of the Levantine spice mixture "za'atar", popular all throughout the Middle East. In South Asian, Middle Eastern, and East Asian cuisines, popular confectionery are made from sesame mixed with honey or syrup and roasted into
Babao seal paste Babao seal paste Babao seal paste () is a traditional handicraft made in Zhangzhou, Fujian, China. It dates to the Qing Dynasty and is honoured as one of Zhangzhou's "Three Precious Treasures". In 1983, its recipe was guarded as "top secret" by the Chinese Ministry of Light Industry. Babao seal paste was added to the National Intangible Cultural Heritage List in 2008 and the China Time-honored Brand list by the Chinese Ministry of Commerce in 2011. Babao seal paste is made from eight precious materials: musk, pearl, rhesus macaque bezoar, agate, coral, gold, borneolum and amber. These ingredients are ground