Soft, chewy black sesame cookies with white chocolate chunks, topped with flaky sea salt. They’re made with toasty, caramelized brown butter, which really enhances the nuttiness of the black sesame!
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The first time I tried black sesame was around 2015. My friend and I went to Chinatown in New York City and she ordered us black sesame soup to share for dessert. It was sweet, nutty, toasty and unlike any other flavor I’ve had before.
Fast forward to today, I still can’t really compare the flavor of black sesame to anything else. To me, it’s pretty different than tahini (ground sesame seeds) and its taste is truly unique. It’s been a new favorite flavor of mine in my adulthood and something I like to seek out at restaurants and cafés.
You can find black sesame in the form of seeds, powders, and pastes. This recipe uses crunchy black sesame butter (not sponsored!), which is by a brand I actually used to work for in 2023. I love, love, LOVE their product and the owners behind the company, so I always recommend them to other people. But, if you already have black sesame paste on hand, feel free to use that instead!
Whether you use black sesame paste or crunchy black sesame butter, the cookie dough is really simple to make. It requires no special equipment or chilling. You simply brown the butter (which only takes 5 minutes!), mix everything into one bowl, shape, and bake. And what you get are these soft, a bit chewy, super nutty, not-too-sweet, black sesame cookies, which may be your new favorite! Who knows, there’s only one way to find out. 🍪
Why You’ll Love This Recipe 🖤
- There’s ¼ cup of black sesame paste in this recipe, so the cookies are full of black sesame flavor! Plus, the butter is browned, which truly enhances the nutty flavor of the black sesame paste.
- You won’t need any special equipment and the dough easily comes together into one bowl. Since the butter is melted, I didn’t even need a hand whisk, just my silicone spatula.
- No chilling required, AKA no need to let the dough sit in the fridge for 30 minutes-overnight… AKA you can have freshly baked cookies in less than 30 minutes!
Interested in more black sesame recipes? Try out my melt-in-your-mouth black sesame sugar cookies or black sesame chia pudding with Oreos!
Ingredients
To make these black sesame cookies, you’ll need the following ingredients:
- Black sesame paste is the key ingredient of this recipe. Any brand will do, but I’m using my go-to, which is Rooted Fare’s Crunchy Black Sesame Butter. It’s savory, sweet, smoky, and nutty. It contains peanuts and breadcrumbs for added texture, so be mindful if someone has a nut allergy.
- We’ll be browning the unsalted butter, which will make it taste caramelized, nutty, and toasty. This will reaaaaally enhance the flavor of the black sesame. If it’s your first time browning butter, you can check out my easy brown butter recipe!
- I mixed in roughly chopped white chocolate instead of using white chocolate chips. This is because I wanted big chunks of white chocolate throughout the cookie. Before baking, I topped the cookie dough balls with some more pieces, along with some black sesame seeds for a nicer, more aesthetic look.
- Lately, I’ve been loving vanilla paste because of all the specks of vanilla beans in it! But if you don’t have it on hand, you totally can swap it 1:1 for vanilla extract.
- After baking, the cookies are topped with flaky sea salt (not pictured), which brings all the flavors together.
For the full list of ingredients and measurements, see the recipe card below.
How To Make Black Sesame Cookies
Step 1: Brown your butter and let cool. If it’s your first time making it, you can follow my easy brown butter recipe!
Step 2: Mix your cooled brown butter with your granulated and brown sugars until combined.
Step 3: Stir in the black sesame paste, egg, and vanilla paste.
Step 4: Fold in all of your dry ingredients and chopped white chocolate.
Step 5: Place 2-3 tablespoon cookie dough balls on a lined cookie sheet, about 3-4 inches apart. Top with extra white chocolate chunks and sprinkle on black sesame seeds.
Step 6: Bake for 11-13 minutes at 350°F/177°C, or until edges are set. Let cool on pan for about 5 minutes before transferring to wire rack.
For full instructions, see the recipe card below.
💡 Baking Tips
- Weigh your ingredients! One of my favorite kitchen tools is a kitchen scale because it’s more accurate than measuring by volume. If you use cups, spoon the flour in gently, then level it with a knife or spatula.
- For rounder cookies, place a large circular cutter or mug on top of a freshly baked, warm cookie. Move it around in a circular motion until your cookie is perfectly round! This step is totally optional and purely for plating purposes! 🙂
Storage
If you’d like to store the black sesame cookie dough, line a tray or plate with parchment or wax paper. Arrange the raw cookie balls in a single layer, then freeze for about 1 hour. Once frozen, transfer to an airtight container and freeze for up to 3 months. Bake as usual, but add 2-3 extra minutes.
If you’d like to store freshly baked cookies, wait until they are fully cool. Then, transfer the cookies to an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.
Did you try this recipe?
Please leave a review & share it with me on Instagram, Facebook, Tiktok, or Pinterest!
Thank you so much! -Bianca ❤️
🍪 More Cookie Recipes
📖 Recipe
White Chocolate Black Sesame Cookies
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Equipment
- stainless steel or light-colored pan for browning the butter
- heatproof bowl to cool brown butter
- medium mixing bowl for dry ingredients
- large mixing bowl for cookie dough
- Medium cookie scoop 2-3 tablespoon capacity
- Parchment Paper
- Wire rack
Ingredients
Dry Ingredients:
- 1 ½ cup (187.5 g) all-purpose flour
- ½ tsp (2 g) baking powder
- ½ tsp (2 g) baking soda
- ½ tsp (3 g) table salt
Wet Ingredients:
- ½ cup (113.5 g) unsalted butter
- ½ cup (110 g) light or dark brown sugar packed
- ¼ cup (50 g) granulated sugar
- ¼ cup (56 g) crunchy black sesame butter can sub 1:1 black sesame paste
- 1 tbsp (13 g) vanilla paste can sub 1:1 vanilla extract
- 1 (1) egg room temperature
Mix-ins:
- 1 bar (1 bar) white chocolate roughly chopped, keep some aside for topping cookie dough
Toppings (optional):
- black sesame seeds
- flaky sea salt
Instructions
Brown the butter:
- In a light-colored pan over medium heat, add ½ cup unsalted butter. Continuously stir with a silicone spatula. After the butter melts, it will begin to foam. Then, the foaming will subside and brown specks will start to form at the bottom of the pan. Keep stirring. The color change will be fairly quick, so keep an eye on the butter. Remove the pan from heat once you smell a nutty aroma and the butter becomes golden brown. Transfer to a heat-safe bowl and let cool for about 5 minutes.You can also check out my more in-depth post about brown butter here.
For the black sesame cookie dough:
- Preheat the oven to 350°F/177°C. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
- In a medium bowl, stir together all of the dry ingredients: 1 ½ cup all-purpose flour, ½ tsp baking powder, ½ tsp baking soda, and ½ tsp table salt.
- In a large bowl, stir the cooled, melted brown butter with ½ cup light or dark brown sugar and ¼ cup granulated sugar sugar until combined.
- Mix in ¼ cup crunchy black sesame butter, 1 tbsp vanilla paste, and 1 egg until smooth.
- Dump in all of the dry ingredients and roughly chopped white chocolate, keeping a few pieces aside for topping the cookies later. Fold together using silicone spatula until no dry spots remains.
Bake cookies:
- Use a medium cookie dough scoop to gather dough (about 2-3 tablespoons each). Place onto lined cookie sheet, about 3-4 inches apart. Top cookie dough balls with extra white chocolate chunks and sprinkle on a few black sesame seeds.
- Bake for 11-13 minutes, or until edges are set. Immediately sprinkle with flaky sea salt. Optional: For rounder, more aesthetic cookies, take a something circular and larger than your cookies (cookie cutter, mug, cup), and place it on top of a warm, freshly baked cookie. Move the circular object around to shape the edges of the cookie until it becomes rounder.
- Let cookies rest on baking sheet for about 5 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to fully cool and enjoy! 🙂
Notes
- Storage: Keep cookies at room temp in airtight container for up to 5 days.
- Tip for measuring ingredients: I weigh my ingredients with a kitchen scale, rather than using measuring cups because it is more accurate. If using measuring cups, I recommend spooning flour into the cup and overfilling it, then leveling it off with a knife.
Highly recommend making this recipe if you like black sesame or want to give it a try – this recipe is a great way to introduce the flavor to you. It was my first time browning butter and it turned out very well. I like that the steps were easy to follow, the dough came together nicely, and the end results are not too sweet! This has easily become one of my favorite cookie recipes and I can’t wait to share it with others. 🙂
Hi Venus! Thank you soooo so much for your review, I appreciate it :’). I’m so happy that you enjoyed the recipe!!!! <3 <3 Happy baking~
I made these last night and they came out perfect, thanks so much!
Hi Jackie!! So glad to hear, I’m glad you enjoyed them! 🙂