Iraqi Christians preserve secrets of Tahini making

(1 Feb 2022) LEAD IN: For generations, Christians in the Iraqi town of Bashiqa have been making sesame paste known as tahini.   Tahini is very popular in Iraq and demand for the paste goes up in the winter. STORY-LINE: When it comes to making Tahini, there are a few trade secrets that have been kept for generations by Christians in the Iraqi town of Bashiqa. At al-Nour factory, the savory, slightly bitter tahini paste is made using Iraqi sesame from nearby farms in the Nineveh Plains. Ayeed Abu Anmar, the owner of the factory, says roasting the sesame seeds requires a lot of caution. "The roasting needs to be done at certain degrees and if you go higher than that, the tahini is burned," he says. After it is roasted, the sesame is crushed in a grinding mill before the smooth paste is packaged in half and one kilogram jars (1-2 pounds). Al-Nour factory produces about 5 tons of tahini per day, supplying the local market in Nineveh and other areas of Iraq. Because of its richness, Tahini is used in a variety of savory and sweet dishes across the Middle East. In Bashiqa, locals take pride in the quality of the locally-produced tahini. "You can see how it (tahini) is made in front of you. Is it known that for generations, the Bashiqa people have been working on making tahini," one man from Bashiqa says.   A kilogram of Bashiqa tahini sells for 6,000 Iraqi dinars ($4). Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork Twitter:   / ap_archive   Facebook:   / aparchives   ​​ Instagram:   / apnews   You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/you...