Baby Ledger AISesame is the allergen that East Asian labels are least likely to flag for you, and at the same time one of the most common ingredients in all three cuisines - as seeds, as paste, and above all as oil. This page collects the sesame terms actually printed on Chinese, Korean, and Japanese packaging, including the oil names that do not look like sesame at all.
It is a single-allergen companion to our three label guides: the foreign food labels hub, the Japanese labels guide, and the Chinese and Korean labels guide.
The words for sesame, language by language
| Language | Core word (native script) | Read as | Derivatives and packaging aliases |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chinese (simplified / traditional) | 芝麻 | zhīma | 芝麻酱 / trad. 芝麻醬 (sesame paste), 麻酱 / trad. 麻醬 (sesame paste, short form), 香油 (sesame oil), 麻油 (sesame oil), 芝麻油 (sesame oil), 黑芝麻 (black sesame), 白芝麻 (white sesame) |
| Korean | 참깨 | chamkkae | 참기름 (sesame oil), 깨 (sesame / seeds), 깨소금 (sesame salt), 검은깨 (black sesame), 흑임자 (black sesame, common in desserts) |
| Japanese | ごま / 胡麻 / ゴマ | goma | ごま油 / 胡麻油 (sesame oil), すりごま (ground sesame), いりごま (roasted sesame), 練りごま (sesame paste), 黒ごま (black sesame), 白ごま (white sesame) |
A few notes that matter at the shelf:
- The most common sesame word on mainland labels does not contain the sesame character. 香油 ("fragrant oil") is the standard mainland Chinese term for sesame oil; 麻油 is the other short form. Only 芝麻油 spells sesame out in full.
- Soy and sesame hide in condiments. On Chinese labels, 酱油 (trad. 醬油, soy sauce) means soy, and 香油 or 麻油 (sesame oil) means sesame. On Korean labels, 간장 (soy sauce) means soy, and 참기름 means sesame. One trap in reverse: 들기름 is perilla oil, a different plant from sesame despite the similar role in the kitchen.
- Japanese has the same perilla trap. えごま (perilla) and えごま油 (perilla oil) are not sesame, even though the name ends in goma. 들깨 on a Korean label is perilla seed, not sesame seed.
- Black sesame wears two Korean names. 검은깨 is the plain word; 흑임자 is the Sino-Korean form you will see on dessert and porridge packaging.
Where to look on the package
First, find the ingredient list. On mainland Chinese labels the header is 配料 or 配料表 (pèiliào / pèiliàobiǎo). Products from Taiwan or Hong Kong usually print traditional characters and often head the list with 成分 or 成份 (chéngfèn) instead. On Korean labels the header is 원재료명 (wonjaeryomyeong, "raw material names"), with the allergen box nearby.
Japanese packaged foods usually carry the allergen information in one of two places, and often both:
- Inside the ingredient list (原材料名, "genzairyō-mei"). Allergens appear as part of the ingredients, sometimes with the allergen name in parentheses right after an ingredient, for example "マヨネーズ（卵を含む）" meaning "mayonnaise (contains egg)."
- In a separate allergen summary line, often introduced by a phrase like "アレルギー物質" (allergy substances) or "特定原材料" (specified raw materials). This is the closest thing to the US "Contains:" line.
Look for the heading 原材料名 to find the ingredient list, and scan both the list itself and any nearby summary line.
Is sesame a mandatory callout in each market?
- Japan: sesame sits on the "recommended" list, not the mandatory list, so a product can legally contain it without a separate allergen callout. Read the full ingredient list, not just any allergen summary box.
- Korea: sesame is not among Korea's designated allergen items, so it appears in the ingredient list rather than the boxed callout.
- Mainland China: allergen labeling is voluntary under the current standard (GB 7718-2011), and sesame is not among the eight categories that become mandatory under GB 7718-2025 on March 16, 2027.
- Taiwan: sesame is on Taiwan's mandatory allergen-labeling list, so Taiwan-made products declare it.
Our Chinese and Korean labels guide puts the China-and-Korea situation plainly: "Neither country requires sesame to be called out - and sesame oil, sesame paste, and sesame seeds are everywhere in both cuisines. If sesame is on your child's list, the ingredient list is your only defense."
Frequently asked questions
Is sesame labeled on Chinese and Korean products?
Not reliably. Sesame is not on China's eight mandatory categories or Korea's 19-item list, even though it became the 9th US major allergen on January 1, 2023 under the FASTER Act. Look for 芝麻 (Chinese) and 참깨 or 참기름 (Korean) in the ingredient list yourself.
What is sesame oil called on Chinese, Korean, and Japanese labels?
On Chinese labels sesame oil is 香油, 麻油, or 芝麻油 - and 香油 ("fragrant oil"), the most common mainland term, does not contain the sesame character at all. On Korean labels it is 참기름. On Japanese labels it is ごま油 or 胡麻油.
Is 들기름 or えごま油 a kind of sesame oil?
No. Both name perilla oil, pressed from the seeds of the perilla plant. 들기름 is perilla oil, a different plant from sesame despite the similar role in the kitchen, and the Japanese words えごま and えごま油 are perilla as well, even though they end in goma.