Tahini cuneiform document written 4000 years ago that describes the custom of serving the gods sesame wine. The historian Herodotus writes about the cultivation of sesame 3500 years ago in the region of the Tigris and Euphrates in Mesopotamia. It was mainly used as a source of oil. Tahini is mentioned as an ingredient of "hummus kasa", a recipe transcribed in an anonymous 13th-century Arabic cookbook, "Kitab Wasf al-Atima al-Mutada". Sesame paste is an ingredient in some Chinese and Japanese dishes; Sichuan cuisine uses it in some recipes for dandan noodles. Sesame paste is also used in Indian cuisine. In the
Tahini and ship and store it in refrigerated cases to maximize quality and shelf life. Tahini-based sauces are common in Middle Eastern restaurants as a side dish or as a garnish, usually including lemon juice, salt and garlic, and thinned with water. Hummus is made of cooked, mashed chickpeas typically blended with tahini, olive oil, lemon juice, salt and garlic. Tahini sauce is also a popular topping for meat and vegetables in Middle Eastern cuisine. In Armenia, tahini can be used as a sauce to put in a lahmajoun. In Turkey, tahini () is mixed with pekmez to form a dish