ingredients

Sesame seeds add a nutty taste and a delicate, almost invisible, crunch to many Asian dishes. They are also the main ingredients in tahini (sesame seed paste) and the wonderful Middle Eastern sweet call halvah. They are available throughout the year.

Sesame seeds may be the oldest condiment known to man. They are highly valued for their oil which is exceptionally resistant to rancidity. "Open sesame"—the famous phrase from the Arabian Nights—reflects the distinguishing feature of the sesame seed pod, which bursts open when it reaches maturity. The scientific name for sesame seeds is Sesamun indicum. 

Mentha (also known as mint, from Greek míntha,^[2] Linear B mi-ta)^[3] is a genus of plants in the family Lamiaceae (mint family).^[4] It is estimated that 13 to 18 species exist, and the exact distinction between species is still unclear.^[5] Hybridization between some of the species occurs naturally. Many other hybrids, as well as numerous cultivars, are known.

The genus has a subcosmopolitan distribution across Europe, Africa, Asia, Australia, and North America.^[6]

Mints are aromatic, almost exclusively perennial herbs. They have wide-spreading underground and overground stolons^[7] and erect, square,^[8] branched stems. The leaves are arranged in opposite pairs, from oblong to lanceolate, often downy, and with a serrated margin. Leaf colors range from dark green and gray-green to purple, blue, and sometimes pale yellow.^[6] The flowers are white to purple and produced in false whorls called verticillasters. The corolla is two-lipped with four subequal lobes, the upper lobe usually the largest. The fruitis a nutlet, containing one to four seeds.

While the species that makes up the genus Mentha is widely distributed and can be found in many environments, most grow best in wet environments and moist soils. Mints will grow 10–120 cm tall and can spread over an indeterminate area. Due to their tendency to spread unchecked, some mints are considered invasive.^[9]