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Does Tahini Go Bad? How Long Does It Stay Good?

Tahini is a great addition and key ingredient in many recipes. Now you want to make a great dressing with it for your guests tonight but you’re unsure whether you should use it or not because it’s past the printed date. Does tahini go bad?

You’re unsure about this and don’t want to give your guests a bad experience.

We will cover this subject for you, all you need to know about tahini, shelf-life, how to store it, and spoilage.

Enjoy the read!

How Long Can Tahini Last

We will start with a nice table for you with the indicative periods for the shelf-life of tahini:

TahiniPantryRefrigerator
UnopenedBest-by date + up to 6 monthsBest-by date + up to 6 months
OpenedUp to 6 monthsBest-by date + up to 6 months
Indicative timetable of tahini. Always do the check!

Tahini exists of oils (sesame seed) and has a fairly long shelf-life if unopened: best-by date + up to 6 months. From the moment you open it, it will be good for a maximum of 5 to 6 months after this. Always check this with the best-by date. Opening it later doesn’t prolong its shelf life!

Tahini has a lot of similarities with the kinds of butter.

General advice, as with most foods and drinks, is to store it without a second thought in the fridge. This can be a great habit, of course, your fridge will get full fairly quickly if you do that. Just know that when you open it, it always needs to be stored in the fridge.

Tahini jars always come with a best-by date on them, indicating the period when quality or freshness should be gone, while it still will be good. Some tahinis will go bad sooner, others will stay good for a longer period after 6 months. This depends on different factors like storage.

Not all storebought tahinis are the same. Some tahinis will have some additives that prolong their shelf-life and protect them better from external threats out there. The quality degrades a lot slower.

As we’ve said before, from the moment you open the box, the quality and freshness will start to go down faster. Try to finish it within a few months if you’re able. With a bit of creativity, you can do this easily.

We can slow down the process of going bad by storing it in the right way.

How To Store Tahini

As we’ve said in the previous chapter, there are unrefrigerated, shelf-stable tahini and refrigerated tahini.

It is obvious that you must store them in the same way as you’ve bought them in the store.

It can be a good habit to store it directly in your fridge if you have the place.

Unrefrigerated Tahini

When you’ve bought unrefrigerated Tahini, you need to store it in a place similar to where you’ve bought it. That should be in a dark and cool place, safely away from direct sunlight and heat sources.

It is a good habit to store it directly in the fridge, as it can retain its quality for a longer period in there, but it is not necessary if you consume all of it in a few months. Then you shouldn’t worry

about tahini going bad.

You can always check what the producer says about storing in the fridge or not. If they say you should, do it for your own good.

Refrigerated Tahini

Tahini doesn’t need to be refrigerated if bought in the unrefrigerated section but can be stored in the fridge to increase its shelf-life.

When you store your tahini in the fridge, it will be more consistent and harder to use. You can mix it with a teaspoon of water or sesame oil.

Tahini And Separation

Please note that when you’ve stored tahini for a long time in the fridge, you’ll see that the oils get separated from the rest of the tahini. You can solve this by blending or mixing them with a blender, this should solve the problem and the tahini should be still okay to eat.

Are you unsure after mixing it together? Try to check the following tips to check whether your tahini has gone bad or not.

Can You Freeze Tahini

Another way of storing your tahini is freezing it in your freezer.

Most tahinis come in a jar, that you can freeze easily. Only make sure to leave some room in the jar for it so the tahini can expand. Freezing means expanding.

It can make more sense to divide the jar into smaller portions because you’ll have to freeze everything and thus thaw everything. You might have the same problem as before. Sounds like a delay of execution to me?

You can store the tahini within a freezer bag, wrap them in 2 plastic bags (double-bag them), or put the jar into a plastic bag or wrap them. This is important because you don’t want freezer burn to occur and let other odors from other frozen foods and drinks in the freezer affect your tahini.

Always label your frozen products with the correct date and time!

When you want to use the tahini, let it thaw in the fridge for one night and stir it up so you’ll have the same consistency as before.

Freezing in single portions might be the ideal solution here. It could last for a very long time but try to manage the contents of your freezer. I’d say not to let things longer in there than 6 months if possible.

Now, we need to check after thawing and stirring it up, if it’s still good for consumption.

How Can You Tell If Tahini Has Gone Bad

Tahini is a lot similar to kinds of butter like peanut butter. It consists mostly of oils derived from sesame seeds.

Use the following tips when deciding if you’re tahini has gone bad or not.

Guidelines for checking on tahini:

  1. Does the tahini have another color? If you see any of these, just discard it.
  2. Are there any black spots on/in the container? This can be a sign of mold. Mold should be rarely seen when it comes to tahini, but it is possible when not stored properly.
  3. Does the tahini have a sharp smell? If you smell something funny or unpleasant, discard it right away.
  4. How is the taste? Does it taste odd and unpleasant? Please get rid of it.

You’ll often see those oil-based products (like tahini) turn rancid. Rancidity is not good for the taste and smell of your oil and must surely not be used in other dishes as it won’t contribute to them. It might even downgrade them also by affecting the taste.

Enjoy your Tahini!