Over the last 3 years and for quite a few numbers before that, we have been experimenting with hummus. And then we started Ta’am and wanted everyone to make their own hummus at home, we aren’t the only ones, there are something like 45 million recipes online. But with so many methods to choose from. We learned something new from each recipe played with and adapted one of Savta Zahava’s goto kitchen techniques.
Here are our top tips for perfect homemade ultra-creamy light as a feather hummus every time:
*Use dried chickpeas, the canned ones are inconsistent in size and flavor and how well they are cooked.
*Overcook your chickpeas, they should be mushy.
*Peel your cooked chickpeas, the little bitts you find in hummus are actually chickpea skins, they add an extra and totally unnecessary texture and no flavor to the finished hummus.
*Savta Zahava always had prepared tahini at home, she simply mixed raw tahini with garlic, lemon juice, and ice water and she used it on food the way American kids use ketchup. Below we have adapted the Zahav cookbook method for preparing tahini spread. Using prepared tahini spread takes so much of the guesswork out of the flavoring of the hummus and any leftovers are yet another perfect hummus topper.
- 300g (1 ½ cups) dried chickpeas
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 2.5 liters water
- 150g (⅔ cup) homemade tahini
- Salt to taste
- Fresh lemon juice, to taste
- Good quality olive oil, to serve (optional)
- The night before, put the chickpeas in a large bowl and cover them with cold water at least twice their volume. Leave to soak overnight.
- The next day, drain the chickpeas. Place a medium saucepan over high heat and add the drained chickpeas and baking soda. Cook for about three minutes, stirring constantly.
- Add the water and bring to a boil. Cook, skimming off any foam and any skins that float to the surface. The chickpeas will need to cook for about 40 minutes (up to 3 hours!), depending on the type and freshness.
- Once done, they should be very tender, breaking up easily when pressed between your thumb and finger, almost but not quite mushy.
- To remove chickpea skins: Drain chickpeas in a colander and return to the saucepan. Fill the saucepan with cold water and gently swish chickpeas with your fingers to release skins. Pour off most of the water into a colander to collect skins, leaving chickpeas behind in the saucepan. Repeat filling, swishing, and draining 3 or 4 times until most skins have been removed, discard skins. Transfer chickpeas to a colander to drain.
- Place the chickpeas in a food processor add the prepared tahini, get a very very very smooth and creamy paste, now start tasting, and adding a bit of salt and lemon juice until you have the right amount of zing from the salt and the lemon juice should brighten but not overpower the hummus.
- Transfer the hummus to a bowl, cover the surface with plastic wrap, and let it rest for at least 30 minutes. If not using straightaway, refrigerate until needed. Make sure to take it out of the fridge at least 30 minutes before serving. Optionally, to serve, top with a layer of good quality olive oil. This hummus will keep in the refrigerator for up to three days.
