With the kids being half-Lebanese, hummus is a staple in our household. It serves as a great dip during snack time with some fresh veggies that the kids love getting straight outta the fridge. Hummus, which is the Arabic word for chickpeas is made from, you guessed it, chickpeas blended with tahini, olive oil, garlic, lemon, & salt! With a delicious, nutty taste and smooth texture, chickpeas are a great source of fiber, antioxidants like flavonoids, and manganese. In short, you can’t go wrong making it for the family.
There’s nothing better than homemade hummus. A basic recipe, like the one below makes it easy to customize the hummus and cater it to your family’s tastes – increase/decrease the amount of garlic (we prefer more), add roasted red peppers, or even avocados. Get creative!
Hummus
- 1 cup uncooked chickpeas/garbanzo beans (yields 1½ cup cooked chickpeas)
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 4 tablespoons tahini paste
- Olive oil to taste
- 3/4 cup of fresh lemon juice, more to taste
- salt to taste
- Rinse the dry chickpeas, and soak overnight in water with 1/2 tsp of baking soda. Baking soda is added to help soften the beans, thus decreasing your overall cooking time.
- Drain the pre-soaked chickpeas and give it a good rinse before adding to a pot.
- Add enough water to pot so that chickpeas are covered by about 1/2 inch.
- Bring the pot to a boil on high heat, then cover and let simmer on low heat for about 1 hour.
- You have to check on the chickpeas occasionally – the water gets very frothy while cooking, so I like to scrape it off with a spoon and discard it.
- After an hour, do a taste test – your chickpeas are cooked when they mash easily between your fingers. They’ll be soft enough to eat.
- Drain the cooked chickpeas and keep aside. In a food processor add the minced garlic and tahini paste and pulse it a couple of times till a paste is achieved. Now add in the cooked chickpeas and process until the ingredients are well incorporated and you’re left with a smooth, creamy texture. You might need to add a little bit of water (1/4 cup or less) to achieve creaminess.
- Slowly add in the lemon juice and salt and let the food processor run. I recommend tasting in between additions to adjust according to your liking.
- Serve and drizzle some good quality olive oil over the top of the hummus.
Notes
- While we prefer using dry chickpeas, if you’re pressed for time, it’s perfectly acceptable to use the canned version!
- It’s not always necessary to remove the chickpea skin, but if you can spare 5-10 minutes, it is well worth it. There’s something about removing the skin that makes the hummus that much creamier! Once you’re done boiling the chickpeas, drain and rinse them under cold running water. Fill the pot with cold water and rub the cooked chickpeas between the palms of your hand to get rid of the skin. The skin floats to the top, and can be discarded; repeat till all the chickpea skin has been removed.
- Tahini paste is pureed sesame seeds. It’s available at specialty stores, online or if you have the time, you can make it yourself.