My hummus recipe...
...or indiscriminately offending both arabs and israelis.
Disclaimer
I love hummus, and even though I'm cutting some corners when cooking it, I've got mostly positive feedback so far (including an israeli!). Pretty often, I get asked how I do it. So here it is.
Before I start, I want to point to the original recipe mine is based upon. Check it out! And please note that I'm cheating here and there. No offense, but for me hummus is also something practical.
The tools
Unless you want to spend a whole day making hummus, you'll want to use a pressure cooker. I own a ELO Praktika XS. It's well built, TÜV and GS and it's not that expensive (50 Euro).
To mash the chickpeas you'll need a food processor or hand blender. A powerful food processor would be best, but if you cook the chickpeas just right, a hand blender will work as fine. I use a 600W Bosch ErgoMixx and it does a good job.
The ingredients
Chickpeas
By far the most important factor for the creaminess is the type of chickpeas you're using. You want to use the smallest chickpeas you can find. In my experience, the rounder they are in shape, the better, but don't take my word for that. In any case, big chickpeas don't work, the hummus won't be creamy.
Oh, and if it's not clear I'm talking about dry chickpeas. You'll have to boil them yourself. Canned chickpeas won't taste as well, the texture will be rough, and it may upset your digestion. However, I suspect that the lack of creaminess comes from the wrong type of chickpeas (large ones), so there might be some cans out there suitable for hummus.
Here's a quick list of decent chickpeas you can easily find in Germany. A detailed review post will follow soon.
- Spielberger Mühle, Kichererbsen aus Deutschland - unvaccinated, german chickpeas. Available in Bio-Markets. Usually very good, but recently I got a batch with about a third malformed chickpeas (polio probably) and the results weren't great.
- Müllers Mühle - not great, not terrible. You can find them in any big supermarket.
- Rewe Bio Kichererbsen - decent, better than Müller's Mühle. The problem with supermarket-owned brands is that they aren't consistent over time. We'll see.
For this recipe, you'll need 300g dry chickpeas.
Tahini
Don't use lightly-roasted or wholeseed tahini because it's bitter and you're going to use A LOT. You want it to be as light-colored and sweet as possible. I currently don't know any suitable tahini from regular supermarkets, but in Turkish supermarkets there's one called Sera and it's 75% there. I currently order Pipkin tahini on Amazon, which is in the same ballpark. Har Bracha is the real deal (thanks, Dor!), but it's not that easy to find.
180g tahini is what I like, you can use more or less, but you should stay between 150g - 220g.
Baking soda
Baking soda (sodium bicarbonate) is necessary in both soaking and cooking phases to break down something in the chickpeas (don't ask what) so that they get soft.
For soaking I add about a tablespoon of baking soda. In the cooking water, exactly 2,5g.
Aromatics
I add bay leaves, crushed garlic and carrots (big slices) to the cooking pot and I discard them at the end. I also tried other roots and beets with mixed results, feel free to experiment. I NEVER add onions, they leave a metallic, sulfurous aftertaste once the hummus cools down to room temperature. And it makes sense: cold, boiled onions are horrible (think about cold soups!). But some like it that way.
Quantities are here a matter of preference. I add about 60g garlic, 200g carrots and two big bay leaves.
At the end, you'll have to add salt, cumin and lemon juice. There's really no good or wrong here. A big lemon, a teaspoon of cumin and a teaspoon of salt will get you started.
Anti-ingredients
The horror zone, the desecration. Please JUST DON'T ADD THE FOLLOWING:
- curry powder
- sugar
- vinegar
The process
Soaking
Start by washing the chickpeas well. Put them in a large container and wash vigorously, changing the water multiple times until clear (about 2-3x). Then cover them with water (at least 4x the volume of the chickpeas), mix in about a tablespoon of baking soda and leave it overnight (8-12 hours). In about 3 hours, they will start to make cracking sounds, so don't freak out.
Once the time is over, drain and wash them well one more time. Then cover them once again with the same amount of water as before, this time though without any baking soda. Then leave it for another 6-12 hours. Try to aim for a total of 24 hours, but less should work too. Anything above a total of 8 hours will do, but the longer you let them, the better for the digestion. Because there is no baking soda in the water, the chickpeas will start to ferment in the second round (especially in summer). This is fine, and from my non-scientific observations even better for digestion.
Once the second soaking round is over too, give the chickpeas another good wash. They're now ready to be cooked.
Cooking
Cover the chickpeas with water (around 1/3 above the chickpeas level), add EXACTLY the amount of baking soda specified previously (2,5g for 300g raw chickpeas) and bring them to a boil for a few minutes WITHOUT CLOSING THE LID.
SAFETY PRECAUTION
Pressure cookers are quite safe, but you need to respect them. They won't explode or burst violently, but can still hurt you and cause damage if not properly used. Therefore it's very important to make sure that the safety features can do their job.
The first safety concern is the pressure regulation valve. Chickpeas, especially when cooked in baking soda, are very foamy. This foam can raise and clog that valve. But if you cook them on at least medium-high for a few minutes without the lid, that foam will form a thick scum that can be scooped up. Keep clearing the scum away until you can only see light foam forming - a little bit will always be there and that's OK.
Once you're done with the scum, add the aromatics (garlic, bay leaves, carrots), close the lid, set the valve on highest pressure and crank up the heat until the pressure is reached (starts hissing). Then set a timer for exactly 50 minutes and lower the heat. Don't add salt yet! That will prevent the chickpeas from getting soft.
Once the timer goes off, remove from heat and do a natural release. Don't quick-release, otherwise the chickpeas will burst open and release all the carbs and other yummy stuff in the water.
Inspection time
When you open the pot, you want the chickpeas to be soft, but not mushy, i.e. at that point where some of them are cracked open but the most are still holding together. The water must be clear enough so that you can see through. If the water is cloudy and the chickpeas mushy, then you will have to lower the amount of baking soda next time. Conversely, if you squeeze a chickpea between fingers and it tends to split in two instead of squishing, then you'll need more baking soda. Experiment with at most ±0,5g increments.
Pureeeing
This step is less scientific. You'll need a bit of practice to get it right, but about three attempts are enough to develop a gut feeling.
The chickpeas are best pureed when they're hot, especially if you're using a hand blender. The hotter the chickpeas are, the easier to blend and the creamier they will get. So start with the pureeing ASAP. As you go, keep adding from the aquafaba I hope you saved earlier. You're aiming for the thickness of apple sauce, maybe even thinner.
Once you're happy with both the thickness and creaminess, add the tahini, salt and cumin. Keep blending until they mix in well. The hummus will get considerably thicker. Finally, add the lemon juice. The thickness you're aiming for now is that of toothpaste (sorry for the analogy, but I can think of worse). If it's too thick, add more aquafaba. Don't worry, the thickness will increase once the hummus cools down.