I MAKE HUMMUS AT HOME ... and I'll never go back.
Whereas the storebought stuff would just sit and go bad in the fridge, the homemade batches disappear in an instant. There is something magical about fresh, homemade hummus. Some recommend getting rid of the skins - I don't have the luxury of that kind of time - or use baking soda to cook the chickpeas. I find you don't have to do any of that for delicious hummus. Just use the chickpea cooking liquid to magically fluff it up. This way you get the lightness without all the calories of extra olive oil.
RECIPE
1 cup dried white or black chickpeas, cooked *
3 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
4 tablespoons tahini
2 teaspoons salt
½ teaspoon ground black pepper
¾ cup aquafaba (chickpea cooking liquid)
2 lemons, juiced, about 1 cup
3 tablespoons olive oil
Put chickpeas, garlic, tahini, salt, pepper, and aquafaba in a food processor. Blend until smooth. Keep blending.
As the food processor continues, add lemon juice and olive oil. Keep processing until smooth and fluffy.
Dole into plates and top with Indian tarka for a fun twist on traditional hummus. In the photo from left to right, we showcased: 1. Olive oil, whole coriander seed, and fenugreek leaves, 2. Olive oil and paprika, 3. Olive oil, cumin seed, tomato, and shallot, and 4. Olive oil, mustard seeds, and red chile flakes. To make numbers 1, 3, and 4, heat oil in a small pan, add spice until it pops, and add remaining ingredients. The process will take about 30 seconds. Pour this mixture while hot over your hummus. In number 2, I just added the olive oil and paprika over the hummus without heating it. The photo is of white chickpeas. Try black chickpeas as well. They are delicious!
* To cook chickpeas in an Instant Pot (IP) or electric pressure cooker, rinse them well and then soak them in hot, boiling water for 10 minutes. Drain. Put the chickpeas in the IP, add 2 cups water, and pressure cook on high for 15 minutes. Once cooked, drain the chickpeas BUT keep the cooking water, called aquafaba, for use later. It is an amazingly useful tool in your cooking and is typically used as an egg replacer.
I often play with the amount of salt and olive oil. Typically, 1 cup dried white chickpeas cooks into 3 to 4 cups chickpeas. If I have 4 cups cooked, I add 1 more teaspoon of salt and 1 more tablespoon of olive oil.
Invariably, I am asked if you can use canned chickpeas. Sure, but I would not if you don't have to. The texture is usually not as good. The can liners are not great to store food - there is usually extra salt in there. And, dried is so much cheaper. Why not take that extra step? Once you try it at home a few times you likely will never go back to canned beans.
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