Homemade Hummus

This is such a basic in our home that I’m tempted to put it under kitchen basics but I know it ain’t so for many people. Guys, you are missing out. Never mind that this is good for you, it’s got that lovely earthy flavor from the chickpeas and the umami flavor of the techina (tehini/sesame seed) paste which melds together into a meltingly wonderful cream salad which you then scoop up with cut up veggies and of course, pita (or challah, yes, yes, it’s so good, trust me). It is a basic spread on the Shabbat table in Israel or in Sephardi homes as well as most people in Israel eating it all week long, happily.

This is so easy to make with a blender or food processor that it’s been many a long day since DH said, (after eating half a container of homemade hummus), Deb, no more buying this, only your homemade version. Well, my friends, with such a comment how could I do otherwise? The clever man knows the way to my heart.

And yes, I mostly used canned chickpeas for speed of production. You can absolutely cook your chickpeas from scratch if you like but it takes forethought and time. Kudos to Tamar K. for telling me to add baking soda to the cooking water to both speed up the cooking of the chickpeas and totally tenderizing them. A side note. Not that I didn’t believe Tamar, I did, but as an inveterate foodie, I looked it up to see proportions and America’s Test Kitchens says to add a flat teaspoon of baking soda for every cup of dry beans (generally speaking, not just chickpeas) to make them cook softer, faster. But this time, I used a can. C’est la vie.

Take your ingredients and line them up like soldiers to make sure you are not missing anything crucial.

As you see, the parsley is already in the container of the Ninja (or food processor, just as good) and the cumin, salt, chickpeas, sesame seed paste (techina), lemon juice and if you can spy it, a clove’s worth of crushed garlic in with the parsley (I used frozen, so there). If I have fresh lemons, I prefer it but this is fresh squeezed and a reasonable facsimile thereof. Do NOT drain the chickpeas completely, set aside half a cup of the liquid, I use a bit more than a quarter of a cup but you might need to dribble in a bit more so keep aside the half cup to be sure. Okay, we are good to go.

Put the whole lot in together other than the chickpea liquid, and add the chickpea liquid only 1/4 cup (don’t add too much, you can always add more if need be),

and pulse pulse pulse and then whirl till a smooth paste is formed. You can leave a bit chunky if you prefer but DH and I like it smooth not grainy. Be careful not to add too much salt till you taste it since the chickpea liquid is salted.

When you taste test the result for texture and saltiness, you may wish to add another teaspoon or two of liquid or lemon juice but only after you taste it.

Traditionally, you take a flat bottomed plate and you swirl the hummus (as seen in the featured image) leaving a depression in the middle with a spoon so you can drizzle olive oil in the little moat you’ve formed and dust gently with paprika or za’atar for added color and flavor, as you like.

It’s got eye appeal and yum appeal. Make sure to provide scooping items like crackers, cut up veggies, pita and/or challah. Your family and friends will love you even more 🙂 .

Homemade Hummus

1 can chickpeas
2 tablespoons chopped parsley or about 6 stalks unchopped
1 teaspoon crushed garlic, fresh or frozen
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cumin
2-3 tablespoons lemon juice
1/4 cup chickpea liquid
1/4 cup techina/sesame paste

olive oil for drizzling

Directions:

Open the chickpea can and holding the lid down to only let the liquid escape, poor out a half a cup of chickpea liquid. Set aside. You can discard the rest of the liquid (or water your plants if you wish). In a blender or a food processor, place the parsley, garlic, salt, cumin, lemon juice and sesame seed paste. Then put in the drained chickpeas and a quarter cup of the liquid, reserving the other quarter cup if needed for smoother texture.

Pulse the blender/processor a few times and then whirl till a smooth paste is formed. You don’t want it too liquidy, it’s meant to be thick and easily scooped up with your cut up veggies or pita, crackers or challah. If you need a bit more liquid, test taste for both saltiness and consistency and see if you need a bit more lemoniness or saltiness or chickpea liquid. Don’t overdo the salt, the chickpea liquid has some in it. This will firm up a bit more when placed in the fridge. Best served at room temperature.