I live in the city where we have lots of good hummus available. People here often make it from scratch. I made my version a little more newbie-friendly though, since most people I know don’t have the time to soak the chickpeas and do all those things that I do. It’s sure to knock the socks off that grocery store hummus. Seriously, don’t buy that stuff. This is so easy and quick that you won’t need to.
Hummus should be light beige in color and creamier and less grainy than what you'd find at the grocery store.
2 15 oz cans organic chickpeas
6 tbsp tahini paste
1/3 cup fresh lemon juice
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp garlic powder (you can use fresh if you prefer, but I’ve had better success with garlic powder)
1/2 cup warm water
Drain and rinse your chickpeas.
Place the chickpeas in your food processor or high-powered blender. When I say high-powered, I mean a Vitamix or a Blendtec. Don’t try using a blender if you have any other blender, no matter how great you think it is. Hummus is just really thick and sometimes even my Vitamix has a hard time with it. You can easily burn out the motor.
Add all the other ingredients to the mixture. Make sure that the liquids are well distributed – give it a quick stir before you start to combine it if you need to. Tahini paste (ground sesame seeds) is pretty easy to find at a big store. It’s usually in the international aisle. Or you can always get it at a Mediterranean grocery.
Making sure to use the tamper with a blender, turn on the blender or food processor and run the mixture until smooth. With a good quality blender or food processor, this should take about 2 minutes. There should not be any lumps when you have finished. The water and lemon juice should give enough liquid to the mixture to allow movement and let the chickpeas fully combine and get ground up, but if you find you’re having difficulty, you can add another 1/8 cup water to help the mixture run smooth.
Your hummus should be a pale and creamy looking beige color when done. If you scoop some on to a spoon, you should be able to easily dollop it back off again. Real hummus is not as thick and pasty as what you find at the grocery store, and it’s usually a little lighter in color as well.
Spoon hummus into your favorite serving dish. You can garnish it with a little olive oil, some whole chickpeas, sprinkled paprika, or even chopped cilantro if you like. You can add in chopped jalapeño for a fun and different spicy kick.
Enjoy it as a dressing for salads like fattoush, on warm bread like pita or nan, or toasted pita chips, or even as a spread for wraps and sandwiches. Yum!
Happy eating!
