Perfect Hummus Recipe (2024)

FAQs

How do you make hummus even better? ›

You can roast a whole head of garlic and drop a few whole-roasted garlic cloves over the top of the finished hummus, or even sauté rinsed canned chickpeas in olive oil, seasonings, and parsley to place over the top for a more jazzy display.

Another cause might be that your lemon is a bit old, causing it to taste more bitter than sour. Lastly, if you've added too much garlic or just happened to used a particularly strong clove, it'll leave the hummus with a very pungent, raw taste.

Dried chickpeas provide better flavor than canned. Overcooking the chickpeas in water with baking soda makes them easier to blend. Puréeing the chickpeas while they're still hot lets you use a blender instead of a food processor for smoother texture.

Hummus Made with Tahini

You bet! In fact, tahini is one of hummus' main ingredients, along with chickpeas and olive oil. That's why our favorite dip can be so rich and delicious—in hummus, tahini adds smoothness to the texture, as well as a wide variety of vitamins and minerals.

Baking soda: Adding baking soda to the chickpeas helps make the legume easier to digest, softer, and makes them easy to peel. Don't skip this ingredient! Lemon juice: I never suggest using pre-bottled lemon juice, but I especially urge you not to in homemade hummus.

You might need more tahini, garlic, lemon and/or salt and very likely more chickpea water. Add a bit of each as you need, the recipe explains. "Blitz the hummus until very smooth, a few minutes at least. Don't worry about the hummus being too loose; it will thicken as it sits."

Add Some Nice Spice

Spices like paprika, cayenne pepper and sumac all lend a marvelous layer of nuance to a classic hummus dip. Seasoning your hummus with spices is perfect when you want to supercharge your hummus dishes with flavor. This trick also works with making canned soup taste better.

Hummus can be a good source of healthy fat because most are made with both olive oil and tahini. My recipe omits the tahini and just uses olive oil for a more neutral taste. The base of the hummus is made from chickpeas, also known as garbanzo beans or Bengal gram.

How long does homemade hummus last? It will stay fresh and creamy for up to 1 week in the fridge (but it's best within 4 days). You can prevent it from drying out by storing it in an airtight container with a light layer of extra virgin olive oil on top.

Why do you have to remove chickpea skins from hummus? ›

When we were developing our recipe for Restaurant-Style Hummus (see related content), we discovered that removing the tough skins from the garbanzo beans resulted in a far creamier end product.

However, many stores offer them in dried form—and in that case, you do need to soak or cook chickpeas for hummus, in order to soften them enough for blending into hummus' signature creamy texture. Soaking is a common alternative to boiling chickpeas for hummus.

The difference is that roasted eggplant forms the base for baba ganoush while chick peas are the backbone of hummus. The roasted eggplant lends this eggplant dip a slightly sweeter, smokier flavor, and a lower fat and calorie count than hummus. Plus it can be easier on the tummy than hard-to-digest chickpeas.

Best Overall Tahini: Al Arz Tahini

It has a deep, nutty, full flavor and isn't gooey or sticky. This is one I have on hand in my home kitchen for hummus, baba ghanouj (also spelled baba ganoush), tahini sauce for my falafel, and more.

Hummus is a great source of fiber, which may promote weight loss. Surveys have shown that people who consume chickpeas or hummus regularly are less likely to have obesity and may have a lower BMI and smaller waist circumference.

By using freshly cooked chickpeas, freshly squeezed lemon juice, and top-notch tahini, you're guaranteed a hummus that bursts with flavor. On the other hand, store-bought hummus, while convenient, often lacks the same level of freshness.

If the chickpeas are not processed immediately, the resulting liquid thickens. (This liquid is known as aquafaba, a thickening agent that can be used as a vegan alternative to egg in other products). The chickpea puree is blended with tahini, olive oil and other ingredients.

How do you revive frozen hummus? To liven up frozen hummus, let it thaw in the fridge. Stir well to give it a good texture. You can add more olive oil, lemon juice, or seasoning to enhance the taste.

Hummus can cause food poisoning if it is kept too long and at too high an ambient temperature.