Black Sesame Cookies

4.87 from 46 votes

These chewy Black Sesame Cookies are absolutely delicious. They’re rich and dense on the inside with a crunchy outer shell. The black sesame seeds give the cookies an unusual look—a dark, almost black inside and grey on the outside. Their distinctive nutty and fragrant flavor makes them perfectly irresistible. When you pull the cookies out of the oven, they’ll be a bit puffed and rounded on the top. As they cool, they will fall a bit and the tops will crack, which I think makes them look extra scrumptious.

Course Dessert Recipes

Cuisine Chinese

Keyword asian cookies, cookies, sesame cookies

Prep Time 15

Cook Time 12

Total Time 27

Servings cookies

Calories 70kcal

Author Robin Donovan

Ingredients

½ cup black sesame seeds plus additional for garnishing
1 cup granulated sugar divided
5 tablespoons unsalted butter at room temperature
2 tablespoons Chinese sesame paste see note for substitution info
1 large egg at room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon coarse kosher salt or 1/4 teaspoon fine grained salt

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350°F and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
In a spice grinder or food processor, grind the sesame seeds and ¾ cup of the sugar together just until the sesame seeds are finely ground (don’t grind for too long or you’ll make a paste).
In a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, cream together the butter and sugar-sesame seed mixture until well combined and fluffy.
Add the sesame paste, egg, and vanilla, and beat to incorporate.
Add the flour, baking soda, and salt and beat together until just incorporated.
Using a small cookie scoop, scoop the dough into equal portions onto the prepared baking sheet.
Put the remaining ¼ cup of sugar in a small dish. Roll each of the cookie scoops into a ball and then roll each ball in the sugar to coat well.
Arrange the balls on the prepared baking sheet, leaving a couple of inches between the cookies to account for spreading as they bake.
Bake for 10 to 12 minutes until the cookies just begin to brown.
Transfer the cookies to a wire rack and let cool completely.

Notes

1. You can substitute white sesame seeds for black sesame seeds if you like.

2. You can substitute Japanese sesame paste or, in a pinch, tahini for Chinese sesame paste.

3. For a softer cookie, you can substitute some or all of the 3/4 cup sugar in the dough with brown sugar.

4. If you don't have baking soda, you can substitute 1 teaspoon baking powder.

5. These cookies are easy to store. You can keep them at room temperature, in an airtight container, for up to 5 days or freeze them for up to 3 months.

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