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Sesamum indicum
Also called Beniseed, Benneseed, Benniseed, Benne, Benue Oil, Cultivated Sesame, Gingelly Oil Plant
Sesame (Sesamum indicum) is an annual crop grown for its oil-rich seeds, which form in pods; it is drought tolerant and prefers warm, dry conditions. Sesame is the species in the genus Sesamum, family Pedaliaceae.
Sesame (; Sesamum indicum) is a plant in the genus Sesamum, also called benne. Numerous wild relatives occur in Africa and a smaller number in India. It is widely naturalized in tropical regions around the world and is cultivated for its edible seeds, which grow in pods. World production in 2024 was 6.7 million tonnes (7.4 million short tons), with India, Myanmar, and Sudan as the largest producers.
Sesame seed is one of the oldest oilseed crops known, domesticated well over 3,000 years ago. Sesamum has many other species, most being wild and native to sub-Saharan Africa. S. indicum, the cultivated type, originated in India. It tolerates drought conditions well, growing where other crops fail. Sesame has one of the highest oil contents of any seed. With a rich, nutty flavor, it is a common ingredient in cuisines around the world. Sesame allergies are common relative to other foods.
Sesame seed is a common ingredient in many cuisines. Sesame seeds were brought into 17th-century colonial America by enslaved West Africans. The whole plant was used in West African cuisine. The seeds thickened soups and puddings, or were roasted and infused to produce a coffee-like drink. Oil from the seeds substituted for butter, and served as a shortening for cakes. The leaves on mature plants, which are rich in mucilage, can be used as a laxative as well as a treatment for dysentery and cholera. After arriving in North America, the plant was grown by slaves as a subsistence staple to supplement their weekly rations. In Caribbean cuisine, sugar and white sesame seeds are combined into a bar resembling peanut brittle and sold in stores and street corners, like Bahamian Benny cakes.
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Sesame by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.
The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
