Illinois’ only tahini maker, Albaik Tahini, wants to help you make better hummus

Ayub Julany grew up confident he didn't want to go into his family's tahini business based in Abu Ghosh, Israel.

Born in the United States and raised in Jerusalem, he decided to attend the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign so he could get a degree in molecular and cellular biology.

"I thought I wanted to be a food technologist," Julany said. After graduating, he quickly got a job in that field and even enjoyed it at first. But as he settled in, a nagging feeling crept in that he couldn't shake. "After a couple of months, it got really boring," he said. "I was doing the same thing every day."

On a trip back to visit his family, he realized what he wanted to do. "That's where it all clicked," Julany said. "I knew I wanted to start my own tahini brand here in Chicago."

Jars of tahini on display at Albaik Tahini on May 25, 2022, in Arlington Heights. (Erin Hooley / Chicago Tribune)

That idea eventually became Albaik Tahini, which Julany is proud to point out is the only freshly ground tahini produced in Illinois. He explains that most tahini on the shelves is imported from overseas and is often many months old, which explains why you’ll see the oil separate from the sesame paste in the jar.

"It's the main ingredient in all of these Middle Eastern dishes like hummus, baba ghanoush," he said. "I’m making the same quality of freshly made tahini you can find in Jerusalem."

Thanks to his family's business, he knew exactly the kind of tahini he wanted to make, but it still took him years to save up enough money and track down the right equipment. "I had to travel to Turkey to get the right machine," he said. Julany prefers for the sesame seeds to be ground by stone, not metal. "A lot of tahini is made using steel machines that grind the sesame seeds at high temperature," he said. "But the sesame oil will lose its quality at high temperatures. It’ll also change the taste and the color."

Julany is also very picky about the kinds of sesame seeds he uses. "We actually use a mix of two kinds, one from Ethiopia and one from Sudan. The oil content is high, the taste isn't bitter, and the color white. I could get seeds for half the price, but I like the ones from Africa."

When he first opened a little over two years ago, he spent a lot of time selling tahini directly to restaurants, a process he admits took some time. "They had been using other tahini for a number of years," he said. "They worried that the taste would be different and their customers wouldn't like it." But thanks to his passionate pitch, and lots of samples, he was able to make some progress. "It was going really well in 2020 for the first two months," Julany said. "Then it all disappeared with the pandemic."

Forced to make adjustments, he learned how to bottle the tahini to sell at grocery stores. Currently, you can find Albaik Tahini at a number of Chicago stores, including Sanabel Bakery (4213 N. Kedzie Ave.), Middle East Bakery & Grocery (1512 W. Foster Ave.) and Nohadra Grocery (2959 W. Devon Ave.). He's hoping to get his product into some larger stores soon. You can also order the tahini online.

He has also found a lot of success at farmers markets. "I am able to connect to people on a personal level," he said. "It was the best thing I could ever do. I’m telling my story, while you’re sampling." He has recently made appearances at the Logan Square Farmers Market, Lincoln Park Farmers Market, Arlington Heights Farmers Market and Elgin Farmers Market.

[ 57 Chicago-area farmers markets, mapped ]

Albaik Tahini is still mostly a one-man business, though Julany did hire his uncle part time to help him run the stone grinder. "I also have a friend helping me with the farmers markets," he said. "But other than that, it's only me. It's growing, and it won't stop anytime soon. I guarantee that."

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