Hummus or however you spell it, is a staple in our house. It's popular with us because it tastes good, it's healthy and contains only a handful of ingredients.
It's also one of those mixtures that everyone seems to make with their own "special twist". This special twist scares me. Hummus, as far as I'm concerned, shouldn't have funny things in it (roasted red peppers, chilli powder, bludgeoned with garlic, etc.) and the amount of lemon juice is pretty critical too.
From '94 to '98 I did some federal time at the FDA. While there, an Egyptian friend of mine gave me Lebanese Cooking that has, what I consider to be, the authoritative source for the only hummus recipe we use. The recipe hydrates and cooks chickpeas from scratch - I don't. Aside from that, here's our version of this middle eastern classic. We serve it with a plate of fresh veggies, pita, pickles and a salad.
Don't worry Biggles, I'll be posting some meaty kibbeh recipes soon too.
Hummus
chickpeas, 2 cans, 14.5 oz with liquid
tahini, well-mixed, 120 grams (1/2 cup)
lemon juice (of 1 lemon, ca. 1/4 cup)
salt, 1/2 t
olive oil, 30 grams
garlic, 2-4 slivers
Process all ingredients until smooth adding additional water if necessary to achieve your desired consistency. I like it smooth and with the water from the canned chickpeas, it gets nice and smooth. Serve slightly chilled with a drizzle of olive oil and parsely (optional garnish).
I bow to you! Finally someone who doesn't put hummous to shame. I have seen things throughout the internet that can only be called blasphemy. Hummous is as simple as that and the only special effects it can stand is a pinch of sweet paprika on top, roasted pine nuts and warm olive oil, carefully nested in the middle of the plate just before serving. Yum!
ReplyDeleteGreat work on the breads by the way! :D
Thanks so much! Yeah, the simplest is definitely the best.
ReplyDeleteYour Hoummus b'Tahini recipe matches the traditional Syrian version, which is simple and most delicious. We enjoy it with Syrian bread (aka: pita [Latin]) and sometimes sprinkled lightly with paprika or dried parsley flakes.
ReplyDeleteThanks for visiting Frank. The dried parsley is interesting. An Egyptian friend of mine used to use some paprika too.
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