We got ourselves a boxing match of a comparison today with hazelnut butter in one corner and tahini in the other!
Hazelnut butter is one of my personal favorite nut butters, giving a deliciously dense and smooth spread with a rich taste – it embodies many of the great things about nut butter!
However, we can’t underestimate its opponent, tahini – a nut-free spread that’s famous for being used as a main ingredient in hummus, a delicious and popular dip!
Both these spreads will strap their gloves on, getting ready to throw down head-to-head in order to determine which one is best! We’ll check out their culinary uses, textures, nutritional profiles, dietary versatility, and more!
Let’s jump right in!
Comparing hazelnut butter vs tahini
Hazelnut butter is made from hazelnuts, while tahini is made from sesame seeds. That gives them tree nuts and sesame as allergens, respectively. They share an awesome dietary versatility, being good for vegan, paleo, and keto diets.
They both have low glycemic indexes, making either a great option if you’re worried about your blood sugar levels spiking – talk to your physician if you have any concerns with that!
| Hazelnut butter | Tahini (sesame seed butter) | |
| Taste | Rich, nutty, slightly sweet | Mildly nutty, toasty, slightly bitter |
| Texture | Dense, smooth | Thin, creamy |
| Allergens | Tree nuts | Sesame |
| Vegan? | Yes | Yes |
| Paleo? | Yes | Yes |
| Keto? | Yes | Yes |
| Glycemic index (GI) | Hazelnuts=0 | 40 |
What is hazelnut butter?
Hazelnut butter is made by grinding roasted hazelnuts into a tasty and nutty paste. This smooth and dense spread happens thanks to the natural oils in hazelnuts, which create that velvety texture! You’ll also find that most brands use roasted hazelnuts, which have an enhanced taste compared to raw hazelnuts – but you can use either if you want to make hazelnut butter at home!
There are also many variations of hazelnut butter, with Nutella probably being the most popular one!
What is tahini?
Tahini is a Middle Eastern condiment made by grinding sesame seeds down into a thin and creamy paste. It has a mild, slightly nutty, toasty, and slightly bitter flavor profile, with no nuts in it.
It’s most popular as a main ingredient for making hummus, but you can easily use it as a spread – you can also make your own tahini at home if you’d like!
Differences between hazelnut butter and tahini
The biggest differences between hazelnut butter and tahini are their flavors and textures.
Hazelnut butter boasts a rich, nutty, and slightly sweet flavor that resembles hazelnuts, while tahini has a mild, slightly nutty, toasty, and slightly bitter flavor profile.
Looking at their textures, hazelnut butter has a dense and smooth consistency that just melts off your knife – it’s a joy to spread it! Tahini has a creamy texture that is very thin, which makes it perfect for drizzling!
They have differences in their nutritional profiles as well, which we’ll check out in just a bit!
How to use hazelnut butter vs tahini
These spreads do have some flavor and texture differences, but they can be used in many of the same ways!
Try hazelnut butter or tahini as spreads for your toast, pancakes, waffles, bakes, and more, adding their unique flavors to your dish! You can also use either as actual ingredients in your bakes, or mix them into your smoothies and oatmeal!
Tahini is great drizzled over things like bakes, pastas, and salads, while you can mix hazelnut butter into those things – it just depends on your flavor preferences!
Nutrition: Hazelnut butter vs tahini
Hazelnut butter has an awesome healthy fats content, as well as giving you about 8% of your daily iron value! It also boasts 5 grams of protein per serving, with 3 net grams of carbs per serving along with 3 grams of fiber. That makes hazelnut butter, like tahini, great for keto diets! It also has quite a bit more calories than tahini, and contains 2 grams of sugar per serving vs tahini’s 0 grams.
Tahini also has 3 grams of fiber per serving, matching hazelnut butter with 3 grams of net carbs. It also has 5 grams of protein per serving, and a great amount of healthy fats!
| Serving size: 2 tbsp | Hazelnut butter | Tahini (sesame seed butter) |
| Calories | 210 | 176 |
| Total fat (saturated) | 20 g (2 g) | 16 g (2 g) |
| Total carbs | 6 g | 6 g |
| Net carbs (fiber) | 3 g (3 g) | 3 g (3 g) |
| Total sugars (incl. added) | 2 g (0 g) | 0 g |
| Protein | 5 g | 5 g |
How to store hazelnut butter and tahini
Hazelnut butter doesn’t usually have any added oils or preservatives, so it should be stored in the fridge. Tahini should also be stored in the fridge to lengthen its shelf-life – plus, it’ll thicken up a bit, making it easier to handle!
Check the labels if you’re getting these from the store, as that’ll give you any specific storage instructions and best-before dates!
Hazelnut butter vs tahini: The ultimate verdict
So, who wins this boxing match?
Hazelnut butter has one of the greatest textures in all nut and seed butters, along with an absolutely delicious taste with a solid nutritional profile.
Tahini also has a solid nutritional profile, and offers a texture that’s perfect for drizzling over different things!
Both spreads are awesome, but there can only be one winner here today…
Looking at all the factors, hazelnut butter takes the crown here with its extra iron content, amazing texture, and delicious taste that is more memorable!
FAQs
Tahini is great for keto diets, as it only has 3 grams of net carbs per serving! It also has a solid protein content, low calories, good fiber, and a bunch of healthy fats!
Nutella is essentially a flavored hazelnut butter, using sweetener and flavorings to create a new variation of hazelnut butter.
Both spreads have a solid 5 grams of protein per serving, but hazelnut butter has more iron, healthy fats, and calories, which may be beneficial for bulking up if you’re participating in a strength program.
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