Hummus - Core Recipe
Smooth, creamy chickpea and tahini puree with hints of garlic and lemon. Delicious eaten as is but it is also a wonderful base to embellish with a range of delicious traditional (and some not so traditional!) flavours.
Ingredients
- 1 x 400g can chickpeas
- ½ teaspoon bicarbonate of soda/baking soda (only if cooking)
- 48g - 64g/3 - 4 tablespoons tahini (I use 4 tablespoons)
- 3 - 4 tablespoons lemon juice - roughly 1½ - 2 lemons (I use 4 tablespoons)
- 1 tablespoon garlic oil or olive oil (*See Recipe Notes)
- ½ teaspoon Middle Eastern Spice Mix or use ¼ teaspoon cumin powder and ¼ teaspoon coriander powder (*See Recipe Notes)
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder or 1 clove of garlic, peeled and crushed (*See Recipe Notes)
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
- 2 - 3 tablespoons iced water or reserved chickpea liquid
Garnish ideas:
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Olive oil to drizzle
-
Smoked paprika
-
Roasted pine nuts (*See Recipe Notes)
-
Few chick peas, ideally roasted or fried until crispy
- Sesame seeds - black or white
- Chopped fresh herbs
- Grated lemon rind
Instructions
Smooth and Silky Hummus
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Drain the chickpeas, reserving the chickpea liquid, and rinse well. Put them into a saucepan with the bicarbonate of soda and add cold water to cover the chick peas by a few centimetres/couple of inches. Bring to the boil and simmer for 20 minutes. When the chickpeas have cooked and are very soft, drain and run under cold water. Drain well.
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Meanwhile, put the tahini, lemon juice, garlic oil, Middle Eastern spice, garlic and salt into the food processor and blitz until thoroughly mixed.
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Add the chickpeas to the food processor and blend until smooth, light and velvety.
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With the motor running add the iced water or some reserved chick pea liquid until you reach your desired consistency.
Grainy:
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Drain the chickpeas, reserving the chickpea liquid, and rinse well. There is no need to cook them.
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Put the tahini, lemon juice, garlic oil, Middle Eastern spice, garlic and salt into the food processor and blitz until thoroughly mixed.
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Add the chickpeas to the food processor and blend until smooth, light and creamy.
-
With the motor running add the iced water or some reserved chick pea liquid until you reach your desired consistency.
Chunky:
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Drain the chickpeas, reserving the chickpea liquid, and rinse well. There is no need to cook them.
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Meanwhile, measure the tahini, lemon juice, garlic oil, Middle Eastern spice, garlic and salt into a bowl and mix thoroughly mix.
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Mash the chickpeas with a fork until you reach your desired consistency and stir into the lemon juice and tahini mix.
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Add the iced water or reserved chick pea liquid and mix well until you reach your desired consistency.
To serve:
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Spoon into a bowl, top with your choice of garnishes and drizzle with good quality olive oil.
Recipe Notes
Equipment
- Food processor or mixing bowl
- Serving dish
- Saucepan (if cooking)
- Sieve
- Measuring spoons
- Frying pan to roast pine nuts or chick peas
Oil and Garlic
My preferred choice would be garlic oil and powdered garlic. Normally I like a big hit of garlic, but for hummus, I prefer the softer more mellow flavour of using garlic oil and powdered garlic. Totally up to you - both are gorgeous.
Middle Eastern Spice Mix
To see my recipe for this spice mix, please see here.
Roasted Pine Nuts
Heat a frying pan over a moderate heat and add the pine nuts. Cook, stirring from time to time, until the pine nuts are lightly browned. Remove from the heat and tip into another bowl immediately to stop the cooking process. It will only take 2 - 3 minutes. Do not take your eyes off them though as they burn easily
If you need further details, see here.