Dukkah is one of those Middle Eastern food treasures that has become beloved internationally in recent years. Along with ras el hanout, za’atar and others, dukkah has become universally adopted for good reason – it is an incredible Egyptian nut, seed and spice mix that with absolutely minimal effort will elevate your dishes to extreme heights.
While dukkah has become readily available in small packets at the supermarket for some time here in Australia, you may not know that it is incredibly easy, simple and quick to make homemade dukkah (not to mention much more cost effective). Also, by toasting and grinding the spices yourself, the flavours will be more intense as they are intended to be. Never fear, all you will need to make this walnut and black sesame homemade dukkah is your oven to toast the nuts, your cooktop to toast the spices and a spice grinder/strong blender to grind it together – 10 minutes start to finish!
The beauty of making homemade dukkah, means you can use your favourite nuts and spices. The traditional elements of a dukkah are nuts (usually hazelnuts), sesame seeds, coriander and cumin with the option to add a little flair with other dried herbs, dried lemon zest, chilli, pepper etc. So why not try my walnut and black sesame dukkah and then experiment at home with your own favourite flavours.
WAYS TO USE DUKKAH
- Simply dip fresh crusty bread into olive oil then dukkah and enjoy
- Toss it with a little olive oil on your favourite roasting vegetables and bake
- Scatter it on hard boiled, poached, fried eggs – seriously amazing
- Sprinkle it over salads for flavour and crunch
- Use it as a crust on baked lamb, fish, chicken etc
- Mix it with natural greek yoghurt as a dip or marinade
- Spray fresh popcorn with a little olive oil then toss in some dukkah
What other way do you use dukkah? I’d love to hear your interesting uses for it. Check back in soon though, as I’ve been using it in a lot of dishes which will be shortly headed your way. Stay tuned also for the ultimate in dukkah goodness as I’ll soon be sharing with you my new favourite addiction – sweet dukkah!
Walnut and Black Sesame Homemade Dukkah
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup walnuts
- 3 tablespoons black sesame seeds
- 1 tablespoon nigella seeds
- 1/4 cup coriander seeds
- 1/4 cup cumin seeds
Directions
Preheat oven to 190° Celsius (375° Fahrenheit).
Place walnuts on a baking tray and bake for 5 minutes until fragrant and toasted.
Meanwhile, heat a frypan over medium heat then add coriander seeds and cumin seeds and toast, stirring, for 2-3 minutes until the coriander and cumin seeds start to colour and become aromatic. Remove from pan and add sesame and nigella seeds and toast until they become aromatic (about 1-2 minutes).
Place walnuts in a spice grinder (or food processor) and pulse until they are roughly the size of sesame seeds, remove and place in a bowl with the sesame seeds and nigella seeds. Place the toasted cumin and coriander seeds in the spice grinder and pulse until they become a coarse powder then add to the bowl with the walnuts and mix until well combined.
Store in a sealed glass container until ready to use.
Ooh! This sounds like it would be good on eggs!! I love walnuts and black sesame so I know I would like this too!
I’ve never heard of dukkah before but it sounds great! I’d sprinkle it on everything!
Looks so delicious. I love duke, and you are right, making it yourself is so much better than the store bought variety. So much more fragrant. Love the use of black sesame seeds too, yumm!
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Dukkah looks so flavorful! I love the idea of dipping it with olive oil and bread. Lovely appetizer for guests!
Wonderful I love making stuff like this at home it always tastes better than packet ‘stuff’ as the unground spices always last longer than ground spices.
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Dukkah on scrambled eggs or avo on toast is one of my absolute faves. Or if I’m lazy, I lick my finger and dip it into the jar! It still reminds me about when we were staying in NYC on our last trip and I need a small amount of dukkah for a salad I made for the blog. Nobody knew what dukkah was, and the food shops in Little Egypt in Queens didn’t even know what it was. I’m still astounded.
I love this!!! Homemade Dukkah is something I’ve been looking for for ages. Thanks for this helpful recipe!
Dukkah is good stuff, isn’t it? I need to make a batch again. Luckily I have almost everything I need on hand (think I’m out of the black sesame seeds, however). I’ve been using my microwave to roast seeds — just put them in a small container (I use corning ware) and nuke them until they develop a roasted aroma (just make sure not to burn them). Anyway, good post — thanks.
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Love dukkah and make it myself, too. This version sounds lovely as toasted walnuts are simply the best. I find sprinkling it on mashed avocado toast is scrumptious as is on top of cheese that gets melted on flatbreads. I knew I could count on you to know what ras el hanout is too. I make it as well and I swear, it doubles as a fab potpourri. 🙂
I love black sesame seeds so I’m pleased you’ve incorporated it into dukkah here. There’s such a greater intensity of flavour compared to white sesame seeds.