Hummus

This is a per-can recipe for hummus, not unlike the Spruce’s classic hummus, and also surprisingly similar to my baba ghanoush recipe.

Hummus can be frozen.

Makes about the quantity you’d get in the store.

Ingredients

• 1 can chickpeas, a.k.a. garbanzo beans (15–16 oz.)
• 1–4 cloves garlic, crushed
• 2–4 T. tahini
• 2–4 T. lemon or lime juice
• ¾ tsp salt
• about 1 tsp. cumin (optional)
• dash cayenne (optional)
• dash smoked paprika (optional spice or garnish)
• 1 T. olive oil (garnish)

Directions

1. Drain chickpeas, optionally retaining the liquid.
2. Puree together all ingredients but the garnish(es) and retained liquid, adding some water or retained liquid to get the desired consistency.
3. Garnish.

Variants

Garnish with za'atar instead of the other spices. (Omit the salt, too, if your za'atar has a lot of it.)

You can make any of the familiar store varieties by adding the appropriate ingredient. In particular you can grind in a few tablespoons of toasted pine nuts. Reduce the water if the extra ingredient is soggy.

You can puree in part or all of the oil.

You can use a real lemon or lime.

You can garnish with parsley, a few whole chickpeas, olives, and/or toasted pine nuts.

If you don’t like the raw garlic flavor, roast it first or soak it in the lemon juice before blending.

Some people dislike the can juices, or canned chickpeas altogether. If you want the real deal and/or a smoother blend, cook about 1 ¼ c. dried chickpeas (optionally soaked overnight first) for two hours, optionally with 1 tsp. baking soda. Be sure to rinse them well if you used the baking soda.