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Let’s be real, hummus makes everything great, and what’s even better is homemade hummus. Growing up with hummus constantly in the fridge has made it near and dear to my hear. It pains me to see the stuff from the supermarket not doing it justice. I’m here to upgrade your hummus game to the max. You’ll be making the stuff you get from your local Lebanese restaurant at home. There are a few tips and tricks and rules to follow but I’m here to share those with you. Even though it’s an easy recipe I’ve made my fair share of not so great hummus.

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Recipe

Ingredients

Tahini- 4 tbsp (60g)

Lemon juice – 3 1/2 tbsp (50g)

Garbanzo beans – 1 can (204g)

Garlic – 2 cloves (9g)

Water – 2 tbsp. (30)

Olive oil – 3 tbsp. (40)

Salt – 3/4 tsp(5g)

Procedure

Rinse the beans in a strainer until prior liquid is all rinsed off
In a food processor blend the tahini and lemon juice until incorporated and light/fluffy
Add the garbanzo beans and garlic to the food processor and blend until all ingredients are well combined (will still be a bit chunky at this point)
Slowly add the water to the food processor and blend until fully combined then blend in the salt.
Slowly pour in the olive oil while the food processor is running and blend until completely incorporated. Make sure not to over blend the hummus.
Taste for seasoning then transfer the hummus to a food safe container and enjoy on EVERYTHING

Tahini

Going to the store and looking at tahini prices is literally insane. Seven to ten bucks for a little bottle that you’re only going to use less than a quarter of. It does have a good shelf life but going out and getting a bottle of tahini just to make hummus can definitely seem like a waste. That’s why you can just make it yourself. Tahini is simply sesame seed butter. You can go out and get a bag of sesame seeds relatively cheaply. I was able to get a 1 pound bag of brown sesame seeds at my local organic store for about three bucks. You don’t even need that much to make a decent amount of tahini. I took about a quarter of my bag and tossed it in the food processor then blended until smooth. You’ll probably need to toss in a splash of water just to help it blend and there you go. If you’re using brown sesame seeds (un hulled) your tahini is going to be a bit chunky so don’t stress. Your tahini won’t be as flavorful but will have some retained nutrition. You can make this ahead of time and whenever you want to make hummus you have it handy. Refrigerating your tahini isn’t necessary either since it literally just blended sesame seeds.

Smooth secrets

A great tip but time consuming secret for smooth hummus is to de skin your chickpeas. Rinse them off with water then squeeze the outer skin off one at a time with your finger tips. This can definitely be time consuming but lends a great result. It definitely makes the difference between ok hummus and the crazy good stuff you get from your local Lebanese restaurant. Doing this can be a great way to incorporate the family into a fun project for a great dish. It’s a bit of work but will get you a nice smooth and flavorful hummus if you’re into the extra work. Using dried chickpeas and soaking them a day ahead is also great too. the soaked chickpeas help you get a nicer flavor and texture but isn’t detrimental. I use canned chickpeas all the time since convenient and I never know when Ill throw together a quick batch of the stuff. water also helps to get a smoother hummus or any liquid for the matter. A little extra water will help loosen the beans so they’re easier to blend and without changing the flavor to much. Lemon juice works the same but adding more and more lemon juice can definitely become a bad thing. We don’t want sour patch hummus. Lastly oil works too but adding oil can be tricky. You’ll notice that we add the oil in the recipe last and that’s for a reason. Once you add the oil you’re essentially creating an emulsion which is the homogeneous mixture of fats/oils with other ingredients. If we add the oil in first after a while you’ll get a weird oily hummus with a sheen on the surface and that’s not what we want. The heat created from the food processor will eventually cause the oil to separate. Over mixing will do the same things so be careful. You should already almost be at the desired texture right before you add the oil. If you still aren’t there Just add a few splashes of water and blend pulsing on and off.

Additions

You may find some hummus recipes that are simple and others that toss in various herbs and spices. Upping your hummus flavor can definitely be awesome. I love adding a little bit of cumin or paprika to my usual spur of the moment hummus. A bit of mint, parsley, or cilantro would also be great. Once you start adding herbs you’re basically making falafel in puree form. You don’t have to just stop with herbs and spices though. Throwing lime juice inside of hummus instead of lemon juice is awesome. You can even toss in some chili powder and now you have a Mexican fusion hummus. Scrolling through social media you’ve probably seen the vibrant beet powder hummus too. I’ve actually never had this but it’s definitely insta worthy. Your home made creation will probably be way better than the random hummus flavors you find at the supermarket. I always get so sad when I eat the grocery store bought stuff. They just get even worse the crazier the flavor but your home creation can definitely be outstanding. Fair warning, If you’re adding herbs to this recipe add them at the same time you add the chickpeas to the food processor. Avoid any stems as well. those aren’t going to blend as well into the hummus and you may bet some unwanted stem chunks in your smooth hummus, unless you like the texture.

If you didn’t know, hummus makes everything better. I literally put this stuff on everything. Ok I may be exaggerating but we cant underplay hummus, and definitely not homemade hummus. This stuff is insanely versatile. There’s more than just making hummus toast, and using it as a dip. One of my favorite hummus creations is a flatbread pizza. Spread some hummus on flatbread topped with a few veggies and into a 450°F oven for about 7 minutes. It’s tasty, healthy, and easy. Beats, red onion, broccoli, brussels sprouts, really anything you can get your hands on will be great. You don’t have to just dip veggies in this either. Kettle jalapeno chips topped with hummus is a game changer, I promise.

That’s my two cents on the matter of hummus for the day, I could probably talk for hours about the stuff but actually making it and eating it is what matters. Once you give this recipes a shot you’ll never go back to the supermarket for hummus. The home made stuff is just too good. You’ll be looking for stuff to put it on, or you can eat it by the spoonful. No shame in that I do it all the time. On that note, thanks for taking you time to read through this post and I hope you can go out and grab a can of chickpeas for some homemade hummus.

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