Our Creamy Tahini Pasta Recipe is the perfect addition to your easy pasta dishes to make during busy weeknights. This lovely pasta meal can be made in less than 30 minutes and it's absolutely delicious. Whether you love tahini, still aren't sure about it, or have never tried cooking with this sesame paste, you will equally enjoy this simple recipe!
What is Tahini?
Tahini is a paste made with ground sesame seeds. It has a similar consistency to nut butters such as Cashew Butter or Peanut Butter and a bitter taste. Combined with lemon juice, tahini is such a delicious addition to your recipes.
This rich-in-protein paste is one of the main ingredients when making Hummus or Baba Ganoush, and a great ingredient to use as a salad dressing, as a sauce for grilled vegetables, or to make creamy pasta sauces!
Our Tahini Pasta is:
- Creamy
- Vegan
- Healthy
- Quick to make
- Family-friendly
- Nutritious
- Easy to cook
How to make Creamy Tahini Pasta
Ingredients
Tahini paste. This is of course the key ingredient for this recipe. When we buy Tahini Paste, we have our favorite brand that makes organic Tahini. You cannot compare this product to regular tahini paste that you can find in the supermarket. The taste is just much much better. You can find tahini paste in most grocery stores or health food shops.
Pasta. For this creamy tahini pasta recipe, we use Fettuccine. We like this type of pasta for creamy sauces but you can use another type of pasta shape. For healthier options, you can make this recipe using chickpea pasta, red lentil pasta, quinoa pasta or whole wheat pasta.
Lemon Juice. When we add tahini to our dishes, we always add lemon juice. These two ingredients combine beautifully and this sesame paste shines when paired with fresh lemon juice.
Onion and garlic. We use sautée onion and garlic to add some more flavor to the dish but you can leave these ingredients out, or add raw garlic when making the sauce if you want to cook this pasta meal even faster.
Green olives. We cut pitted green olives into slices to add to this meal. They add a lovely touch. You can alternatively use black olives.
Yeast Flakes. To give our creamy tahini pasta sauce a light cheesy flavor, we use yeast flakes. We love adding yeast flakes when making pasta sauces as it is a good source of vitamin B12 and gives your sauces a delicious cheesy flavor. If you need to substitute this ingredient, we have some vegan alternatives for nutritional yeast that can help you.
Fresh herbs. This dish pairs beautifully with different types of fresh herbs so use what's seasonal or available. We have sage growing in our garden all year round so this is what we use. You can use fresh basil, thyme, parsley, or oregano.
Preserved lemons (optional). You can buy or make your own preserved lemons. We have a lemon tree at home so every year we make two big jars of preserved lemons that we use for making Vegetable Tagine, salads, or pasta dishes such as this tahini pasta. If you want to make your own preserved lemons, we recommend checking Rainbow Plant Life's recipe. If you don't have preserved lemons, you can leave this ingredient out or add some lemon zest on top.
Black pepper and salt. We season the dish with black pepper and salt before serving. Optionally, you can add some garlic powder or soy sauce to add an umami flavor.
Step-by-Step Method
Before making the creamy sauce, cook the pasta al dente following the package instructions and reserve some pasta water (around 1 cup) right before draining the pasta to make sure the water is starchy.
- Heat some olive oil in a frying pan over medium heat and sautée finely chopped onion. Cook until it starts to soften and add finely chopped or pressed garlic and finely chopped fresh herbs. Cook until fragrant and set aside.
- Add into a small blender jug the tahini paste, lemon juice, yeast flakes, and some of the reserved pasta water. Blend until well combined and adjust with more pasta water if needed. You want a smooth and creamy texture.
- Pour the tahini sauce into the pan with the garlic, onion, and herbs. If you want to serve this dish warm, you can set the heat to low.
- Add the cooked pasta, green olives, preserved lemons, salt, and pepper, and mix well. Adjust with salt and pepper to taste and serve.
Serving Suggestion
Our Creamy Tahini Pasta is a simple pasta dish that will be a great option for a busy weekday meal or pasta night. This recipe is nutritious and filling with a rich texture, so you can serve this as a main dish with some crusty bread or vegan garlic bread and leafy salad on the side.
Garnish the pasta with some fresh herbs, sesame seeds, red pepper flakes, lemon zest, or a drizzle of olive oil.
Optionally, you can add vegetables to this recipe. Some great options are roasted broccoli or cherry tomatoes, steamed cauliflower or green peas, or grilled zucchini or aubergine.
Store and Reheat Tahini Pasta
If you have leftovers, you can store them in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days.
To reheat this creamy vegan tahini pasta, we recommend adding a little water to get that creamy texture again. The tahini paste will harden when stored in the fridge and water is a great way to get that smooth texture back.
FAQ & Tips
How can I add more protein to this meal?
If you want to add more protein to this plant-based meal (tahini paste is a high-protein ingredient), you can add some baked tofu or serve the meal with chickpea or lentil pasta instead of wheat pasta.
Is Tahini healthy?
Yes. Tahini is rich in protein, calcium, and healthy fats. If you are still not using tahini regularly, you should definitely start!
How can I make this creamy tahini pasta gluten-free?
Tahini is gluten-free so the only ingredient you need to change to make this meal gluten-free is the pasta. Use chickpea, red lentil, or gluten-free pasta instead.
What else can I cook with Tahini?
You can use Tahini to make Hummus, Baba Ganoush, salad dressings, and sauces to serve with grilled veggies or your favorite dishes. As well, we love the combination of avocado and tahini for our morning toast, you should give it a try too.
Creamy Tahini Pasta
Ingredients
- 250 g fettuccine pasta dried
- 1 yellow onion
- 2 garlic cloves
- A handful of fresh sage
- ½ cup tahini
- Lemon juice from 1 lemon
- ¾ cup starchy water (pasta water)
- 2 tablespoon yeast flakes nutritional yeast
- ¼ cup green olives
- ½ preserved lemon
- Salt and pepper
Instructions
- Cook the pasta following the package instructions and reserve some pasta water (around 1 cup) right before draining the pasta to make sure the water is starchy.
- Finely chop the onion, fresh sage and garlic.
- Heat some olive oil in a frying pan over medium heat and sautée the onion. Cook until it starts to soften and add the sage and garlic. Cook until fragrant and set aside.
- Add into a small blender jug tahini paste, lemon juice, yeast flakes, and some of the reserved pasta water. Blend until well combined and adjust with more pasta water if needed. You want a smooth and creamy texture.
- Pour the tahini sauce into the pan with the garlic, onion, and herbs. If you want to serve this dish warm, you can set the heat to low.
- Add the pasta, green olives, preserved lemons, salt, and pepper, and mix well.
- Adjust with salt and pepper to taste and serve.
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If you tried our recipe, please leave a comment or tag us on Instagram @Sixhungryfeet. We are always happy to see your creations!
Sherry says
This was so yummy and filling! I made a couple of modifications to comply with my way of eating and taste:
1. I went easy on the sage because I wasn't sure how much flavor it would add and I am not a fan of a lot of sage. I would, however, definitely use more next time.
2. I doubled the olives
Laura says
Thank you Sherry!
Madeleine says
This recipe was absolutely delicious. Like it could be in a restaurant. It’s hard to stop eating it. I think I would double the garlic is the only thing, but I can see this recipe being a staple. So so good.
Laura Arteaga says
Thank you Madeleine!