How To Make Hummus from Scratch

Wildly popular in the Mediterranean and the Middle East, consisting of mainly beans or chickpeas, ‘hummus’ is the perfect Levantine dip for your evening snacks. Due to its popularity in the Middle Eastern Cuisine, it is now known worldwide for its great blend of flavors and can be made from scratch in your everyday kitchen.

Those of you who love this as a side dip along with your regular sauce, this recipe is just perfect for you since it only takes a couple of minutes to make it at home. Most culinary chefs tend to avoid the ones bought from the stores mainly because they are tired of the same bland flavor and the expensive price tag which it makes it impossible to add this item on the grocery list for some people.

You only need a couple of simple ingredients to make the perfect hummus at home.

Ingredients:

• 1 canned chickpeas (15 ounces)
• Tahini (3 tablespoons)
• Salt (1 teaspoon)
• Extra-Virgin Olive Oil (3 tablespoons)
• Black pepper (½ teaspoon)
• Fresh Lemon juice (11/2 tablespoons but you can always add more if you want)
• 1 Chopped Clove Garlic

Equipment:

• Mesh Strainer
• Blender/Food Processor
• Measuring Cups and Spoons
• Rubber Spatula
• Can Opener
• Citrus Reamer (Optional)

Directions:

• Rinsing and draining

The first step is to open the can of chickpeas using a can opener and pouring down all the components of the can into a fine mesh strainer. Drain off all the liquid in a bowl and keep it aside for later use. If you are up for some extra hard work and have time in your hand, you can peel away the flesh of the chickpeas. This will give it a smooth and flat texture.

• Blending out the elements

Take a blender and pour in the garlic, chickpeas, olive oil, salt, lemon juice, pepper, and tahini. Start blending after all the components have been added.

• Blending to perfection

Keep on blending the hummus until you achieve the fine texture that you are looking for. This will take about 5 minutes at max. If there are chunks of the ingredients stuck to the sides of the blender, use a spoon or a knife to take it out down and give it another blend.

• Proper Seasoning

After you have blended in all the items, taste the hummus and add in more of the ingredients if you feel like it’s still missing a bit of flavor. However, if your hummus still misses that perfectly smooth texture even after blending it, try adding a bit of that canned chickpea liquid that you had drained in a bowl earlier. Add 2 or 3 tablespoons of it to give it a creamy and smooth consistency.

• Serving

The last step is to take out all the hummus from the blender and serving it in a bowl. You can serve it with vegetables, pita chips or any other item that you prefer to dip in the hummus.

Tips and Tricks:

• Though time-consuming, removing the flesh of the chickpeas will give the dish a smooth consistency.
• The use of tahini can bring about a real change in your homemade However, it is possible that you may not have this item in your kitchen. In this case, you can use other substitutes like a butter made from your preferred nut. But no other alternative will give you that missing flavor in your hummus other than the tahini which is made from fresh sesame seeds.
• You can use this item to flaunt your culinary skills while making other dishes too. For example, it can be a great sauce for grilled stuff, can be used as a dressing in salads. Not to mention, you can also use it in your sandwiches. Another great advantage of buying this product is that it has a long lasting refrigerator life. You can store it in your fridge for a really long time without it going bad.
• While using the dried chickpeas cooked at home can add a more genuine flavor to the dish, it is still somewhat time-consuming. Hence experts prefer to use canned chickpeas which are already skinned from their flesh and are ready to be cooked instantly. Also, it is better to use the chickpea liquid from the can to thin out the texture rather than using olive oil and lemon juice as a substitute.

Bringing in Variations to the Dip:

It is important to bring in new variations to the hummus so that you don’t get bored of it over time. This means you get to make a whole new variety of hummus with lots of interesting flavors. Some of them have been listed down below for you.

• Sprinkling a dash of sumac or a bit of pomegranate molasses on top before serving it.
• Olive hummus can also bring about a new flavor to it. All you need to do is add green or black chopped olives (3/4 cups) and add it in the blender after you have blended the chickpeas perfectly.
• If you like nuts, you can also try adding your preferred nuts (Almonds, peanut, walnuts etc.) to the blender after the chickpeas have been properly blended. This will give a new texture along with the nutty flavor.
• Adding different spices can also be a good option if you are looking for a slight change in the dip. In this case, you can add harissa, sumac, smoked paprika and cumin while blending the items. However, stay in the range of adding 1-3 teaspoons of the spices.
• Roasted vegetable hummus can be made using roasted zucchini, garlic, eggplant or bell peppers. This will also make the dip very healthy.

Try out these recipes to make your own homemade hummus to bring in a change to your dip made from the scratch. You can also try adding more flavors to experiment from time to time to see which tastes the best.

Note: In order to make the hummus with more genuine texture and flavor, you can make dried chickpeas on your own at home instead of using the canned product which is costly.

Source:

1. How to make hummus from scratch + Tips for the perfect hummus recipe! – Gourmandelle
2. Quick hummus – BBC