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This simple hummus recipe packs a lot of flavor

• Scott Daniels: We Ate Well and Cheaply
• June 14, 2021
• 1273

In many grocery stores, you’ll see quite an array of hummus varieties and flavors, and it always feels a bit like seeing packages of heat-n-serve mashed potatoes.

Hummus is very simple to make, and anything you make at home is going to far surpass the pricey tubs of ready-to-dip stuff.

I’ve found a very simple hummus recipe that packs a lot of flavor while not being too heavy and reducing the next morning’s lingering taste of having swallowed a garlic tree.

Hummus is a dip made from chickpeas, a sesame seed paste called tahini, garlic, olive oil, lemon and whatever other flavors you care to add. It is common around the Middle East and is usually served with torn pieces of fresh pita bread.

I urge you to try this simple recipe as a baseline as is before adding anything else. Later, you can add a blob of oil-soaked sun-dried tomato or cilantro. The version I have for you today is the best I’ve ever eaten by far, and it packs the extra punch of an herb mixture called za’atar, something you don’t see every day but is worth the hunt.

I questioned the omission of cumin, but you don’t need any more than that already in the za’atar mixture.

You want to cook the chickpeas even though we’re starting with the canned and already cooked variety. We want to get most of them to slip their skins, and cooking them renders an end product that is much more creamy and less grainy.

I’ve reduced the strong flavor of raw garlic by using roasted garlic instead. Roasting garlic softens it both physically and in flavor while also adding a layer of slight smokiness.

The za’atar is a Middle Eastern spice blend of sumac, thyme or oregano, cumin, turmeric and other delicious things. It tastes quite unlike anything else and makes this hummus sing.

You can get it online or just grab it at World Market next time you’re in the neighborhood. This also is the time to use a good quality, first cold pressing extra virgin olive oil and not the shoddy cooking stuff.

We liked this hummus so much we made it two nights in a row and ended up skipping the actual dinner both nights. I made homemade pita bread to go with, but you also can dip vegetables in it if you prefer. You’ll need a food processor or in a pinch, a blender.

To roast garlic, place a whole bulb in the center of a square of aluminum foil. Drizzle a tablespoon or so of olive oil over it, wrap it up in the foil and bake at 350 F until it’s soft, about 20 minutes. When cool, pull the bulb apart and squeeze the garlic cloves out of the peel.

ISRAELI HUMMUS

1 15-ounce can chickpeas, drained and rinsed

3/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 cup warm water

1/3 cup tahini paste

Juice of 4 or 5 lemons

4-6 cloves roasted garlic

Salt to taste

About 1 tablespoon za’atar

Extra virgin olive oil

In a small saucepan, cover the chickpeas with cold water, add the baking soda and bring to a boil. Reduce to a low simmer and cook for about 10 minutes, until they begin to slip their skins. Transfer the peas to a strainer and rinse in cold water until most of the skins have been released.

Add the cooled, cooked chickpeas to the bowl of a food processor, along with the 1/2 cup water, tahini, juice of 4 lemons, the garlic and salt. Process until quite smooth and taste for lemon juice and salt, adding more if needed. If the hummus seems too thick, add a few drops more water. To serve, spread the hummus in a shallow bowl or platter, drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with the za’atar.

(Recipe is from Loren Brovarnik.)