Lebanon Recipes – Hummus
by Anissa Helou
Ingredients: (serves 4)
- 1 x 660 g jar chickpeas (425 g net weight)
- 5 tablespoons tahini
- Juice of 1 1/2 lemons, or to taste
- 1 clove garlic, crushed
- Fine sea salt
For the garnish:
- Paprika
- 1 tablespoon chopped flat-leaf parsley
- Extra virgin olive oil for garnish
I used to make hummus the old fashioned-way, using dried chickpeas, which I soaked overnight before cooking and mashing. I didn’t mind the time spent as I really didn’t like the taste of tinned chickpeas. However, there are now excellent ready-cooked chickpeas that are preserved in glass jars in only water and salt with no added artificial preservatives. The best come from France, Italy and Spain. All are good but be sure to rinse the chickpeas well before using to get rid of the salty taste.
- Drain and rinse the chickpeas. Put in the food processor. Add the tahini and lemon juice and process until very smooth.
- Transfer to a mixing bowl. Add the garlic and salt to taste. Mix well.
- If the hummus is too thick, thin it by adding a little water or a little more lemon juice if it is not too tart.
- Taste and adjust the seasoning.
- Spoon the hummus into a shallow serving platter and with the back of a spoon, spread it across the dish, raising it slightly at the edges and in the centre, so that you have a shallow groove in between.
- Sprinkle a little paprika to garnish.
