Easy Hummus Recipe (Plus Flavored Hummus Variations)

Do you love hummus as much as I do? It's such a versatile dip! You can enjoy it plain, or jazz it up with all sorts of fun flavors. In this post, I'm sharing an easy hummus recipe that is perfect for beginners. Plus, I've got a few variations to get you started. So pull out your food processor and let's get cooking!

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Hummus 3 ways- Classic Garbanzo beans Hummus, White Beans Hummus, OR any of the Two plus Avocado. What can be more famous than Hummus among the plant Based community? Avocados? Guacamole?

Here is my quick version of it, quite close to the classic, "the traditional"… if there is such a thing.

As we prepare everything for a great Falafel night, we cannot forget about this Homemade hummus recipe; the Falafels wouldn't be the same, not for me.

Another variation that we love is the pumpkin hummus recipe, the pink beet hummus, and the roasted red pepper hummus; check them out!

Ingredients

• Cooked chickpeas (boiled or canned)
• Tahini (sesame paste)
• Lemon juice
• Garlic
• Extra-virgin olive oil
• Optional: pinch of cumin.

Optional ingredients:

• Smoked paprika
• Ground cumin
• Salt
• Fresh parsley

Garlic: burn the garlic cloves for two minutes in a skillet with a lid to remove the intense flavor.

How to make the best hummus

The good news is that the best hummus is also an incredibly easy hummus recipe. There are a couple of tips that you can adopt or not, which can make a difference in both texture and flavor.

I think it is worth going throw them to know how you can influence the outcome.

Spoiler alert: not everyone loves creamy and silky hummus, some people like the less smooth and more gritty texture on their homemade hummus!

Using dry chickpeas

If you have just a little more time in your hands, cook chickpeas, using dry chickpeas.

Yes, they take more time to boil, but this is my killer tip for you: add one teaspoon of baking soda to the chickpeas boiling water, and it will be ready in less than thirty minutes. It will also deliver super soft and creamy chickpeas.

Even better, I recommend you let them soak overnight with a teaspoon of baking soda and several inches of cold water.

Chickpeas absorb loads of water. Then before making your hummus recipe, bring the chickpeas to boil for about 30 to 45 minutes, until they are very soft.

The difference between canned or bottled chickpeas makes a nice difference.

If you are looking into making the creamiest hummus recipe use some of the remaining chickpea water to adjust the consistency. The chickpea water is what is called aquafaba, the liquid that comes in canned chickpeas, which is high in protein, just like egg whites, and you can even use it to make vegan meringues).

Tahini

Different tahinis have different flavor intensities, so you might find one to use more lemon. Start with the suggested amount and raise the quantity if needed. You don't want acid hummus.

We recommend you choose good quality tahini. In general, I try using Ethiopian tahini or Lebanese tahini in all my hummus recipes and also recipes like our Pumpkin Tahini soup.

I have had bad experiences using the wrong hummus, in general, if I cannot see any Middle Eastern or Ethiopian sesame seeds references in the packaging I pass. These are my favorite two brands (amazon affiliate links): Soom Tahini and Kevala.

Lemon juice

Use freshly squeezed lemons. Don't try limes or store-bought squeezed lemon; you will feel the artificial flavor in your hummus; it's just not worth it. Fresh lemon juice is an essential ingredient to make the best hummus recipe, just as tahini and chickpeas are.

Garlic

I like using pre-cooked garlic cloves, you could call it making roasted garlic hummus, but it is much simpler than the sound of it.

Quickly roasting the garlic in a small skillet or saucepan makes the intensity of the garlic less prominent and delicate. It only takes 2 minutes in a skillet to place the garlic cloves, no oil, just a lid. Turn the fire up, and wait until they start to burn.

Peel them off, and you have mellowed, creamy, and silky garlic.

If you want to skip this simple step, then I recommend you first blend the garlic cloves with lemons and let them rest for five minutes in the food processor before adding the rest of the ingredients. This is a second way to reduce the intensity of the raw garlic.

Note: non of the above garlic tips are required, but I don't like garlic to overpower the delicious and special flavors in this hummus, so I think the extra 2 minutes are worthy.

Olive oil

You can also adjust the flavor to your liking by adding a little extra virgin olive oil as you blend it. Only a drizzle of olive oil is supposed to be added once the hummus is served, but I like adding some directly in the food processor, for the flavor to melt into the garbanzo bean dip.

The quantities I give you in this easy hummus recipe are perfect, as they are, but chickpeas produce and tahini paste out there might vary in flavor profile, so the above tips are the adjusting variables that you can tweak.

I like to save a little extra quantity of every ingredient to adjust the hummus, including keeping some boiled chickpeas.

Although hummus is made from chickpeas, you can use precisely the same recipe with other beans such as butter and white beans.

Or keep reading more interesting facts about hummus.

Garnishing

These are completely optional ingredients. Pour the hummus into a serving plate and make some swirls and pockets with the back of a spoon. This will make the hummus will look even more beautiful when you add the garnishing of choice.

Fresh parsley

Add just a little finely chopped fresh parsley on top of the hummus.

Smoked paprika

After you pour a drizzle of olive oil on top of the hummus, sprinkle some smoked paprika.

Garbanzo beans

I always leave a couple of beans to top the hummus, you could also use toasted pine nuts or Ethiopian sesame seeds.

Instructions

To make hummus, get your ingredients measured and get in front of the food processor.

1. Drain the canned chickpeas and reserve the chickpea water.
2. Quickly roast the garlic cloves with a drizzle of oil, in a skillet with a lid. When the skin looks charred, remove it from heat and peel.
3. In a food processor, add the lemon juice, garlic, cooked and drained chickpeas, salt, tahini paste, and olive oil. Optional: a pinch of ground cumin.
4. Blend for about 3 minutes and then scrape the edges of the food processor with a silicone spatula. Continue blending.
5. Taste and adjust for salt, lemon, and tahini if needed. If you want to make it creamier, add some chickpea water, one tablespoon at a time.
6. Plate your creamy hummus in a serving bowl with pita bread, olive oil, andsmoked paprika. See above the recommended garnishin options.

Equipment

Depending on your decision, to either go with canned or dried chickpeas, you may need a large saucepan.

A lemon squeezer is a plus but not needed.

If you want to make your quick 2-minutes roasted garlic, you will need a small skillet with a lid.

The only, really important equipment you need is a good Food Processor. For small portions, a Nutribulletor a powerful blender also works.

Keep in mind that the keyword here is powerful. If you don't mind or you like your hummus gritty, then maybe you don't need more than 1000 watts, but if you are expecting to make the creamiest hummus in town, you need to follow the tips above and have a good food processor, nothing to fancy but 1500 watts are needed.

Why make this easy hummus recipe?

Convinience

Nowadays, this Middle Eastern legacy is as famous as pizza, so no need to explain much other than it is maybe one of the easiest, cheapest, and yummiest things to make at home, so I can't understand why people don't make their own.

Perhaps, seeing it readily packed at the supermarket makes it look as some strong science is needed to make it right, or maybe it isn't expensive.

I'll tell you two things; supermarket hummus doesn't find a match with a homemade one.

Second, if you make your own, you can make about Ten times more volume and have it in your fridge for a couple of days and use it not only as a snack but in salads and as a sandwich spread.

Hummus is probably one of the most nutritious and versatile snacks on earth. It is packed with protein, healthy oils, no gluten, naturally vegan, and makes the perfect snack, either with bread, a sandwich spread, or celery and carrots sticks.

Hummus is a healthy protein-packed snack

May Help Keep Your Appetite Under Control, due to their high protein and fiber profile, so they are an excellent choice for individuals who avoid animal products.

Garbanzo Beans have a low glycemic index helping to support healthy blood sugar control.

Want to keep reading about the Health Benefits of Garbanzo Beans?

They have many characteristics that may help prevent some chronic illnesses, including heart disease, cancer, and diabetes.

If you want to make keep the calories low, instead of eating your hummus with pita bread or pita chips, get some carrot sticks, celery sticks, and fresh veggies to serve your delicious hummus.

Customizable: flavored hummus recipes

I am sure you have seen thousands of hummus recipe variations in the supermarket, such as pesto hummus, curry hummus, and the list keeps growing. If you want to experiment with this base recipe, make avocado hummus.

Just add a whole avocado to the food processor; you may have to adjust lightly with an extra tablespoon of tahini, lemon juice, and salt.

If you are out of canned garbanzo beans but have cannellini white beans, you can use those, in replacement.

Another favorite hummus recipe is the Roasted Red Pepper Hummus Recipe, made with homemade roasted peppers, or store-bought. You can find the red pepper recipe also in this site.

Another favorite fall season favorite is the Roasted Pumpkin Hummus Recipe, made with briefly oven-roasted pumpkin.

Last but not least, a new favorite, which we have perfectioned over time, the pretty and purple Lemon Beets Hummus, you are sure to get some applauses with it!

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Wine Pairing

It is in the Wine Culture where you will genuinely find quality wines and support sustainability. For this reason, in this blog, when we recommend wines, we do not want you to go to a supermarket shelf to buy wines for the usual varietals resulting from monoculture. Instead, we recommend wines taking you to the places where they come from. Thus, we advocate for living wines, with Culture, with Terroir.

Hummus is probably the most popular Mediterranean dish today. It is a snack, or the starter of a meal, and always a delicious dish to share. And do you know what else is delicious to share? A bottle of wine.

The flavors of harmony

The Perfect Hummus tastes like chickpeas, but it also has many flavor textures, in which cumin, tahini, lemon, and extra virgin olive oil stand out - this dish always deserves the best olive oil you can get.

All these flavors scream Mediterranean, which is also the origin of many fresh and aromatic wines ideal for pairing your homemade hummus.

Let's go to the pairing

When choosing wines, if you live in a producing area, always choose local, find out about your producers, the history of your location, and the winemaking practices, and explore all the styles available in your area.

If you do not live in a producing area (or close to one of them), support the specialized stores near you, just as you would support your local farmers' market. Talk to the specialists, and ask them about their wine's selection, the wine's origins, their production practices, and the reasons that led to their inclusion in their selection.

With wine, as with any food on our table, it is always good to think about the path it went through before reaching us. It is also essential to consider the kilometers and the means of transportation used. Be aware of the carbon footprint of the food and wine you consume, and you will make your small contribution to sustainability.

I propose three pairings, all of them complimentary, and two that will surely surprise you.

First, for the most direct pairing, look for a fresh, light wine with citrus aromas, which will highlight the citrus notes of your homemade hummus. A perfect example is a sauvignon blanc from Pouilly-Fumé.

As I already explained in the Pairing for Vegan Empanadas, the Pouilly-Fumé region in the Haute-Loire gives a unique sauvignon blanc gunpowder smoke aroma, in addition to the citrus and herbaceous profile that characterizes this variety.

With this choice of wine, in addition to enhancing the freshness of the hummus, you complement the herbaceous flavors of that incredible extra virgin olive oil that you incorporate into the dish.

My second recommendation is a barrel-aged white wine; the oxidation of these wines brings out flavors of nuts and bitter spices - such as fenugreek - that will perfectly complement the tahini's taste.

With this harmony, you will feel that your hummus transports you to North Africa.

I will give you a very Mediterranean example born in Andalucía, a region with marked Arab roots in its gastronomy: an Oloroso de Jerez wine. These oxidative aging wines - which give this white wine an amber color - are made from the Palomino grape.

The last recommendation will surprise you: a carbonic maceration red wine.

Do you know what carbonic maceration is?

Carbonic maceration is a type of elaboration that consists of fermenting the whole bunch of grapes without pressing.

The grapes ferment in the clusters and are then immersed in a grape must. If the wine is to be made solely of carbonic maceration, the must be discarded or isolated from oxygen, adding carbon dioxide to a closed tank.

After a week or two, the alcohol concentration in the grapes is checked, and that is when they are pressed to obtain a fermented wine.

This maceration enhances the aroma and flavors of fruit in the wine, also achieving an extraction of color without incorporating the tannins' astringency that abounds in the grape skins.

If you like cinnamon, you probably know that, in general, it harmonizes very well with red fruits and that harmony also stands out with carbonic maceration wines. And cinnamon and cumin have an almost perfect aromatic balance.

An example of this style is the world's most famous carbonic maceration wine, Beaujolais Nouveau. This wine made with the Gamay grape is seasonal, the first to be made of each vintage in Beaujolais, and, therefore, is consumed rapidly in the three months following its launch in November. But do not worry, it is customary in Beaujolais to incorporate whole clusters in all their wines' fermentations, so any young Beaujolais has that marked red fruit flavor that you are looking for in your hummus.

Carbonic maceration is a widely used production method in all producing regions of the world, so you can always ask about these wines in the producing area near you.

Wine Pairing Recap

• Dry White Wine, Citrus Aromas - Example: Pouilly-Fumé (Sauvignon Blanc), Haute-Loire, France.
• White Wine Aged in Barrels, Flavors of Nuts and Spices (Fenugreek) - Example: Generoso (Sherry), Oloroso type (Jerez), Spain.
• Carbonic Maceration Red Wine, Red Fruit Flavors - Example: Beaujolais Nouveau (Gamay), France.

Food pairing

Have Hummus as part of a middle eastern meze paired with:

• Crispy Falafels
• Lebanese Tabbouled Salad
• Eggplant Babaganoush

All are available on this site.

More Healthy Vegan Snacks Options?

• Crispy Kale Snack
• Perfect Mexican Guacamole

If you try this recipe, let us know! Leave a comment, rate it, and don't forget to tag a photo #ourplantbasedworld on Instagram. Cheers!

Recipe

Food safety

We sometimes take for granted that we have years (or decades) of cooking experience that the average visitor may not. Add to, or remove from, the list below with health and safety tips.

• Cook to a minimum temperature of 165 °F (74 °C)
• Do not use the same utensils on cooked food that previously touched raw meat
• Wash hands after touching raw meat
• Don't leave food sitting out at room temperature for extended periods
• Never leave cooking food unattended
• Use oils with high smoking points to avoid harmful compounds
• Always have good ventilation when using a gas stove

See more guidelines at USDA.gov.

The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist's advice. See our full Nutritional Disclosure here.

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