What makes our our sesame oil so special
Pure: 100% pure sesame oil. 0% trans fats, additives, preservatives, or artificial ingredients—we just won’t allow it!
Cold-pressed, extra virgin: We buy the best seeds from farmers and press them in a traditional wooden press (kacchi ghani), keeping nutrients, antioxidants, and flavour intact. We don’t use any heat, steam, or chemicals, such as hexane. Our method gives a lower yield but gives you the highest quality oil.
Unprocessed, unrefined: Our oils do not undergo any of the processing that commercial refined oils go through, such as deodorisation or bleaching. We retain all the natural goodness of the oil.
Traditional heirloom seeds (देसी बीज): Our sesame oil is made from indigenous Indian varieties of sesame and is non-GMO.
Quality you can smell and taste: Our sesame oil is a light golden oil with a delicate aroma and a rich nutty flavour.
Health benefits: Sesame oil is a good source of Vitamin E, the absorption of which is enhanced by the sesamin and sesaminol compounds. Studies show that sesame oil is heart-friendly and helps in the management of cholesterol and blood pressure, as well as in weight reduction*.
How to store: Refrigerate the bottle after opening it; keep the cap shut tight. Unrefined oils are fragile compounds and are best consumed within three to four months of the date of packaging. The oil may appear cloudy when stored in your fridge—this is absolutely normal.
Other uses: Ayurvedic body massage (abhyanga) and head massages. Sesame oil is also recommended for oil pulling (swirling oil in your mouth) for oral hygiene.
*Yale Journal of Biological Medicine, March 2006, (D Sankar et al)
How should you use our sesame oil?
Sesame oil has a smoking point of approximately 350 Fahrenheit (177 Celsius) which makes it ideal for Indian cooking. You can fry, stir-fry, season or temper any dish with it. From any seasonal vegetable to meat, fish and poultry, our cold-pressed, extra-virgin, unrefined groundnut oil is excellent for cooking all of these. It is prized for its delicate flavour and earthy aroma.
Which vegetables taste great with sesame oil?
Ask any Tamilian, Andhraite or Maharashtrian foodie and he will tell you that sesame oil is an absolute must in your kitchen! In all these states and to a lesser degree in Karnataka and Kerala, sesame oil is extensively used throughout the year, and is the preferred cooking medium for many dishes.
From ordinary day-to-day vegetables such as bottle gourd (lauki), kaddu (pumpkin), and potato to bhindi masala, carrots-beans sabzi, gobhi aaloo matar,, bharleley karley (stuffed bitter gourd) and brinjal bharta, all are fabulously complemented by the use of sesame oil.
Cheelas and Dosais taste great when made with sesame oil, whether it’s moong dal cheela, plain rice dosai, Mysore masala dosai or ragi dosai.
Sesame Oil in pickles
Pickles are superb when made in sesame oil. The delicate flavour imparts a rich taste to each pickle without overpowering the taste of the fruits and vegetables used. Almost all the southern states and Maharashtra use only sesame oil for their pickles: From mango, lemon, gongura (roselle), chili, garlic, ginger, turmeric, amla (Indian gooseberry), all taste excellent in sesame oil.
Sesame Oil - the stirfry specialist!
Vegetable stir fries are wonderful when made with sesame oil. Poriyals - vegetable and coconut stir fries - using either green beans, cabbage, carrots, beetroots, okra or bitter gourd, are superb with sesame oil. Any Asian stir fry such as bok choy with garlic, broccoli with dry red chili, water spinach with toasted sesame seeds, carrots with cashew and sesame, go superbly with sesame oil.
Almost any rice pulao, biryani or fried rice is excellent when made in sesame oil: Kalmi saag (water spinach) and rice stir fry, lemon rice (chitranna), vegetable fried rice, masaaley bhaath, tondli bhaath, bisi bele bhaat, spinach rice with almond and sesame seeds are all great in sesame oil.
Sesame oil and non-vegetarian cooking
Poultry and fish go very well with sesame oil, its delicate flavour especially harmonises with white meats to deliver a match made in heaven. Rice and meat dishes such as Biryanis made in sesame oil just sing with flavour. It helps meld together the flavours of rice, spices and meat. Stir fries are especially great with sesame oil: From the 5 minute cashew chili chicken to sesame chili fish, ginger fish, garlic stir-fried fish, chicken 65, chicken fried rice, egg fried rice, and both chicken and fish in garlic chili sauce, all taste excellent. Several curries such as masala chicken curry, chicken with coconut, fish curries called Kalwans and rassas are very tasty when made in sesame oil. Non-vegetarian pickles: Chicken, fish, prawn and mussel are divine in sesame oil, too.
Popular spices that can be used with sesame oil
Jeera, hing (asafoetida) and whole red chili is a popular combination for seasoning dals and vegetables. Any vegetables prepartions using khus-khus seeds, sesame seeds, almonds or cashews will also taste great with sesame oil. Lemon grass is another herb that complements sesame oil beautifully. The evergreen favourite: Mustard, hing (asafoetida), green chilies and curry leaves is yet another combination that works. The popular Maharashtrian ‘goda masala’ or ‘black masala’ is a garam masala mix that goes oh-so-well with sesame oil. All the garam masala spices: Badi Elaichi (Black Cardamom), Tej Patta (Bay leaf), Dalchini (Acacia bark), Laung (Clove) can be used to create unforgettable flavours, along with fresh ginger, fresh garlic and green chili.
Eat Gaon Fresh sesame oil raw and enjoy the flavour!
Its superior flavour and amazing aromatics makes Gaon Fresh groundnut oil taste excellent when eaten. Maharashtrians use sesame in making different kinds of ‘pestos - very similar to the Italian preparation, except that it uses Indian herbs and naturally, Indian oils. Extremely versatile, sesame oil is excellent when eaten raw in ‘Bharits’ or used to temper ‘Pachadis’ and ‘Koshimbirs’ - all different kinds of Indian salads. Podis (dry chutneys) when mixed with sesame oil make for a very tasty and healthy chutney mix for bhajiyas, idlis, dhoklas, vadais and other such foods.