HeySolids
Choking risk
Sesame is a moderate choking risk - the hazard is thick, sticky tahini, which can be hard to clear, the same way a spoonful of peanut butter can.
Thin tahini with water or stir it into other food before serving, and offer sesame seeds ground or baked into soft foods rather than by the dry spoonful. See how to serve for age-by-age prep.
Allergens
Sesame is a common food allergen - one of the nine major allergens in the US - and there's no reason to delay it.[1]
Offer it from around 6 months, once solids are going well. Start with about ¼ teaspoon of thinned tahini on its own, earlier in the day, and watch for a reaction over the next couple of hours.[2]
Build up gradually over the next few sittings, and once your baby is comfortable with sesame, keep it in their diet a few times a week.
If baby refuses
Sesame has a nutty, slightly bitter edge that surprises some babies. Offer it as homemade hummus, where the chickpeas and lemon mellow the flavor, or stir a little tahini through mashed banana or a sweet fruit mash to balance the bitterness. Keep offering it - tastes build over time.
How to serve
6+ months old
Thinned tahini or ground sesame
A small amount mixed into soft food
Thin a little smooth tahini with water or baby's usual milk and stir it into porridge or mashed vegetables, or mix finely ground sesame seeds into soft food. Skip spoonfuls of loose dry seeds, and never serve tahini thick from the jar.
The first time: offer sesame earlier in the day, not near bedtime.
Dab a little thinned tahini on your clean fingertip or the tip of a spoon and let baby taste it - about ¼ teaspoon in total is plenty. Wait 10 minutes, and if all looks well, carry on with the meal.
Keep an eye out over the next couple of hours and watch for a reaction. Build up gradually from there, and keep sesame in the diet a few times a week.
How to prepare
Stir the tahini jar well, then whisk a small spoonful with water until smooth and pourable - it stiffens at first, then loosens. Mix it into food rather than serving it from the spoon, and grind seeds finely before stirring them in.
9+ months old
Thin tahini spread or hummus on soft strips
A thin layer on finger-width strips
Spread a thin layer of thinned tahini on lightly toasted fingers or soft flatbread strips, or offer homemade hummus for dipping. Sesame baked into soft bread works well now too. Keep the layer thin - a thick, sticky spread is the hazard here.
How to prepare
Whisk tahini with a little water, and a squeeze of lemon if you like, until smooth and mild. Spread it thinly on strips about the width of an adult finger, and keep stirring ground sesame into foods and baking as before.
12+ months old
Tahini, ground, or sprinkled sesame
A thin layer, or 1 to 2 teaspoons stirred in
Use sesame freely in family food - whisk tahini into dressings and dips, bake seeds into bread, and a light sprinkle of seeds over soft dishes is fine now too. What to keep avoiding: thick spoonfuls of tahini and dry seeds by the pile.[3] Family dressings and dips can carry a lot of salt, so keep baby's share on the plainer side.
How to prepare
Whisk tahini into dressings, sauces, and dips, keeping it loose and pourable. Grind seeds for stirring into food, or use them whole for baking and sprinkling.