Hummus was one of the very first recipes I ever blogged about, and it continues to be a favorite recipe on my site. Making your own hummus is easy and affordable, and the resulting flavor is far superior to those tubs of store-bought dip. When you peel the chickpeas before blending, a light, silky texture emerges that is simply irresistible.
Hummus is an absolute staple in our home cuisine. Rarely a family gathering goes by without a dish of hummus at the table. This simple food is tasty, filling, heart-healthy, vegetarian, dairy free and gluten free. What could be better?
Since first posting this recipe, I have refined my hummus-making technique quite a bit. Peeling the chickpeas is a must, but I always found it to be a very tedious process. The owner of a local falafel joint shared his secret for peeling lots of garbanzo beans at once, and I’ve been using it ever since. This simple trick using baking soda works like a charm! I decided to update my recipe with this new technique, and I even added a video to help walk you through the steps- check it out down below the ingredient list.
Hummus has been a mainstay of the Middle Eastern diet for centuries. It is eaten as both an appetizer and a main course, usually served with hot baked pita bread and a bowl of olives. Hummus is often paired with fresh fried falafel and sometimes shared alongisde ful mudammas in a dish known as hummus ful. In Western countries, it tends to be served as an appetizer or snack dip alongside vegetable crudités, pita bread or chips.
A decade ago hummus was relegated to the health food stores, an oft-overlooked dip with a niche audience. The dip has gained massive popularity in the past few years, and now can be found at most major grocery stores in varying flavors. From roasted pepper to spicy jalapeño to white bean basil, you can find a variety of hummus choices on market shelves. Venture into making it yourself, and you’ll discover even more possibilities– like creamy avocado cilantro or exotic peanut hummus. Once you master the technique, you can come up with your own delicious ideas!
Hummus is very nutritious… and if you make it yourself, it’s affordable too. You can make about three times the amount of hummus for the price of one store-bought tub, and it tastes so much better made fresh. As long as you have a food processor, nothing could be easier. Of course, you could mash it the old fashioned way with a mortar and pestle, but it will take some serious elbow grease. I highly recommend the processor if you have access to one.
I sometimes add roasted garlic to my hummus instead of plain garlic. The roasting adds depth to the garlic’s flavor, and just a hint of sweet smokiness that I find delicious. It’s also easier on the digestive system than raw garlic. I have provided instructions for roasting garlic in a previous blog. Use raw garlic if you prefer a stronger, sharper garlic flavor.
Keep in mind that all ingredients are “to taste.” The key to great hummus is tasting often and adjusting the flavors as desired.
Hummus tastes best when made with cooked chickpeas instead of canned. To learn how to prepare the chickpeas, check out this post: How to Soak and Cook Chickpeas.
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Video by Entice Films
Classic Hummus
Ingredients
- 3 1/2 cups canned OR soaked and cooked chickpeas/garbanzo beans
- 1 tablespoon baking soda (optional - to help skin the chickpeas, then rinsed away - see instructions below)
- 1/3 cup tahini paste
- 8 roasted garlic cloves , or more to taste (you may substitute 1-3 fresh garlic cloves if you prefer a stronger sharper flavor)
- 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice , or more to taste
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil , plus more for garnish
- 3/4 teaspoon cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon salt , or more to taste
- Pinch cayenne pepper
- Paprika and fresh minced parsley for garnish optional
NOTES
Instructions
- If using canned chickpeas, drain and rinse them first. If cooking the beans, follow my soaking and cooking instructions here. Drain the beans after cooking and let them return to room temperature.To make this hummus ultra creamy, you should peel the cooked chickpeas. While this step is optional, I do recommend it for creamy results. To peel and remove the chickpea skins easily, place them in a skillet with 1 tbsp baking soda and stir, coating all the beans thoroughly with baking soda. Heat up the skillet over medium, stirring the beans constantly, for 2-3 minutes until the beans are completely heated throughout and the skins begin to separate from the beans.
- Pour the hot beans into a large mixing bowl, then immerse them in 3-4 changes of cold water, agitating the beans with your hands to release the skins. Loose skins should float to the surface where they can easily be discarded with each batch of cold water. When most of the skins are gone, proceed with the recipe.
- Another way of skinning the chickpeas (which takes a lot longer) is to take each chickpea and gently squeeze to remove the skin, then discard the skins before processing. While this step is not completely necessary, it will ensure that your hummus turns out very smooth and creamy.
- Reserve about 15-20 whole chickpeas for garnish. Outfit your food processor with a blade attachment. Place chickpeas, tahini paste, roasted garlic, lemon juice, 1 tbsp olive oil, salt, cumin, and cayenne pepper into the processor. Process the mixture until it becomes a smooth, creamy hummus.
- Taste the mixture and add more salt, lemon juice, or garlic to taste. Process again to blend any additional ingredients. If the texture seems too thick, add lukewarm water and continue to process until desired consistency is reached.
- Transfer hummus to a shallow bowl and create a well in the center with a spoon. Garnish with reserved chickpeas, a drizzle of olive oil, and a sprinkle of paprika and minced fresh parsley. Serve with pita, crackers, or fresh vegetables for dipping.
Nutrition
Hi Tori,
I have been a subscriber to your blog for a while and am finally writing to tell you “THANK YOU !!!”
We are Greek Orthodox Christians and I find that all of your recipes are delicious and many are very good for our fasting periods. I especially like the idea of Jewish recipes because of the connection to our early Christian communities in that part of the world.
Thank you so much for the tip for an easy way to peel ceci/garbanzo beans! I will try this when i make my garbanzo bean tabbouleh for our Wednesday night service and community meal.
Thank you again,
Karen Aamodt in Cincinnati
You’re welcome Karen! Thank you for your lovely note, I really appreciate it.
Really great tip with the baking soda! I always was too lazy or in a rush to peel the chickpeas but this time I was making a very small batch and decided to try (not being afraid if it comes out not perfect). The skin came off really nicely from the most of the chickpeas. The rest I fished out and squeezed out one by one with my fingers. Since the color of unpeeled chickpeas is different from the peeled ones, it is easy to identify them. However, I believe that it won’t be such a big deal if some skins stay when there is no time for perfection. The taste of hummus made of peeled chickpeas is really something else! Never tasted anything close to it anywhere in my life! The proportion of other ingredients is on the safe side too for those who are sensitive to salt and spices. I ended up adding a little bit more of everything but I like more intense flavor.
Thank you Tori for another great update!
So glad this tip was helpful Nicole! I’m thinking of doing a post just on the chickpea tip, because easy peeling eluded me for so long. This has really sped up my process!
You mention you adjusted the recipe. Are the quantities the improved version or do I have to adjust myself according to your adjusting clarification?
Hi Mamata, Tori’s assistant Ashley here. The recipe is correct as written. It has been updated to reflect any changes Tori has made.
I am wildly allergic to sesame seeds and oil. What can I substitute for tahini???
Some people substitute peanut butter, believe it or not. You can omit it completely if you prefer, you may need a bit more water to bring it to a creamier texture.
I substitute with almond butter. It works perfectly and the advantage is that you can keep almond butter in the cupboard whereas tahini needs to be kept in the fridge and used up fairly quickly.
Love this recipe! It’s the only one my 13-year-old daughter will eat. None of that store bought hummus anymore!
Just a couple of questions:
1) How long can I store the hummus in the refrigerator for?
2) Can the hummus be frozen?
Yes you can freeze hummus in airtight containers or plastic sandwich bags too.
Amazing recipe! We added extra roasted garlic(plus some raw cloves for extra garlicky zing!), used extra virgin lemon infused olive oil and added enough cayenne to really heat it up… so yummy with toasted turkish bread!
Oooh I think I’ll add the saute red capsicum suggested below to this next batch! ?
I’ve now tried variations with an added roasted tomato and olives, substituting the olive water for salt. All amazing. Tastes even better with egyptian dukkah as a garnish or second dip! ?
If you like it spiced and flavorful, try cooking the beans with a whole habanero pepper in the water. The amazing habanero flavor get a little into the bean but also infuses the water. One pepper is not that hot. Removing the skins from the beans definitely is worth it for that ultra smooth consistency – time consuming but worth it.
made hummus numerous times….to add flavor and color i saute in evvo mushrooms red peppers and garlic cloves till soft add in all of Tori’s ingredients…will try not to be lazy and cook fresh G BEANS ….moms organic a great economical place too plus my daughter got me a soom sesame premiun tahini single-sourced origin
TORI..
love your hamantaschen recipe…..
HAPPY PURIM TO ALL & GOOD BAKING TOO
Thanks Shelly! Chag Sameach!
This is probably the best hummus recipe I’ve had. I have made many recipes with the same ingredients, but the measurements of this one, made it spot on. I do omit the tahini when I make hummus b/c I am not fond of it, and it was just great. I do recommend making this fresh right before serving. After refrigerating, it still tastes good, but the very fresh taste puts it on a different level. I forgot to add the smoked paprika at the end, but I’m sure it would be great with that as well. Highly recommend this recipe!
Hi Tori,
I love your blog! I made your delicious falafel last week and I’ve been browsing through tonight to see what I will try next. I wanted to tell you that my Lebanese mother taught me to make hummus in a blender on liquify. It eliminates the need of hulling the chick peas. It really works!
That’s what I do. Blend on liquify and keep the skin on the chick peas. I never use tahini but sometimes add greek yoghurt and vinegar.
I guess it’s time for me to prepare some homemade hummus! I’ve never done it before, so keep your fingers crossed!
Your plate is beautiful, where did you get it at?
Hi Sunny, Tori’s assistant Ashley here. I believe these dishes are from Anthropologie.
I bought these dishes from World Market, but they don’t have them any more.
Just made it with raw sesame seeds, everything in one go -> Orange from the paprika 🙂 but Delicious!
Thank you for sharing this recipe.
Thank you very much for this recipe! I just made it for the first time and it is outstanding! It truly rivals some of the hummus I’ve eaten in Israel. I will be making it again for sure! Thanks again.
Is it best to use raw or roasted tahini?
Ric, both will work. Roasted will taste slightly nuttier and a bit toasty.
Hallelujah!!! Finally a hummus recipe that turned out as good as the going to a restaurant. I believe roasting the garlic changed the flavor from sharply raw-garlicky to rich/deep garlic flavors. I love garlic!!! but it is difficult to stomach a lot of raw garlic. I added lime juice and a bit more cumin/cayenne. It turned out wonderfully. Also, I realized I wasn’t processing the mix for long enough. The texture turned out much better after letting it process for several minutes. Thank you!!!
Roasted garlic really does make a big difference! 🙂 So glad you liked it Monica.
I’ve made this twice. The first time I didn’t cook the garbanzos long enough and I forgot to reserve the water. I also used roasted garlic. I didn’t like it much. The second time I was more careful and followed the instructions. It was perfect. Lick the bowl perfect. I used raw garlic the second time because the first time we couldn’t taste the garlic at all. Thanks for the recipe!!
Wow! The best hummus recipe I’ve tried and so smooth. I followed your recipe except I made my own tahini, used bottled lemon juice and microwaved the garlic for 30 seconds instead of roasting. Plus, I cooked and skinned my chickpeas; skinning them does make for a much smoother product but time consuming, which is worth it. Thanks for your diligent work to perfect the recipe.
To help remove the skins from the beans (post cooking) try soaking them in a pot of water, run water into the pot at a slow-medium trickle. The beans will sink and it seems the skins will sort of float around and up to the surface with the running water allowing you to skim them off rather then taking off the skin bean by bean. Theoretically saving bunches of time…thoughts? Creamier hummus always better!
I really love your recipes! You have a talent for explaining the best way to do things, while still offering your readers an easier option if they are lacking certain tools or time.
That being said, the hummus is delicious! I love the roasted garlic. I’ve eaten hummus all over Israel, and this recipe tasted very authentic.
Thank you Miriamo! I appreciate you taking the time to comment.
Tori, thank you for the first hummus of my life. It was perfect! I discovered your site a week ago and I have spent half of the week on it. Greetings from Belgium and congratulations for the great job!
Thank you Isabela! So happy you enjoyed the hummus! 🙂