Black Sesame Latte

A black sesame latte is a latte sweetened and flavoured with toasted black sesame paste. It tastes deeply nutty and roasted, close to tahini but darker and more bitter, and the paste turns the milk a soft speckled grey. With espresso the roast flavours of the seed and the coffee run together.

Origin & Story

Black sesame in East Asian sweets

Black sesame is a long-standing dessert flavour across East Asia. In China, sweet black sesame paste fills tangyuan, the glutinous rice balls eaten at festivals, and a sweet black sesame soup is eaten for breakfast or after a meal. In Japan, black sesame (kurogoma) is ground to a paste called neri goma and goes into puddings, mochi fillings and a well-known black sesame ice cream. In Korea, black sesame is heugimja, and black sesame lattes are a common café drink.

The black sesame latte as a coffee drink belongs to modern cafés in those countries and in Asian-style cafés elsewhere. In many places it is made without coffee at all, as a black sesame milk; adding espresso makes it the "latte" Western menus expect. Both are covered here.

Why toast the seeds

Raw sesame tastes mild and a little green. Toasting in a dry pan until the seeds start to pop and smell nutty develops roasted flavours, the same kind of browning that roasts coffee, and those are what make the drink. Bought black sesame paste is already made from toasted seeds; if you grind your own, toast them first.

Paste, not seeds

Whole seeds float and stick in the teeth, so the drink is made with paste. Black sesame is oily enough that a spice grinder or small blender turns toasted seeds into a paste in a minute or two, especially with a little sugar or honey to help it along. Sesame paste is also what gives the drink its body: it thickens milk slightly, like a nut butter.

Black sesame and tahini

Tahini is usually made from hulled white sesame and tastes mild and creamy. Black sesame paste is usually made from whole, unhulled seeds, so it is darker, more bitter and more aromatic. Tahini makes a pleasant latte, but it is a different, milder drink.

Making it at home

Whisk the paste and sweetener into hot espresso first, so the paste disperses, then pour in steamed milk. Expect fine dark specks: they are the seed coats. Iced, make the sesame espresso first, then add cold milk and pour over ice.

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