Chinese essentials: sesame oil

I'm very brand-specific and brand-loyal.  It's part of my Chinese, snake (read more about Chinese horoscopes), and Scorpio nature apparently. Childhood-learned Chinese home recipes tie to taste memories so I stick to the brands and flavors that I grew up with.  This is the second in a four-post series about brand-critical essentials for my Chinese pantry.  

I've been using the same sesame oil at home my entire life.  It's a Japanese brand: Kadoya.  It doesn't matter to me that it's Japanese, but if you buy your Asian staples at a grocery store that separates by country, as they do at Buford Highway Farmers Market where I shop, you'll have to head over to the Japanese aisle.  I actually buy it in bulk now in a sizable metal box.  Korean marination can call for a lot of it, but in the Chinese pantry, mine lasts a long time.

Sesame oil is slightly viscous and has a rich, deep sesame flavor.  It can go rancid, so I store it in a dark cupboard, far away from the heat.  It's a sign of how I use sesame oil that it lives with hot sauces and other condiments instead of with the cooking oils and soy sauces.

I've overheard aisle talk that sesame oil is expensive.  I encourage you to buy Kadoya because its rich flavor will make a difference in your food.  This isn't one of those products where you pick up an organic brand at Whole Foods.  It's worth the trek to an Asian grocery.