My Favorite Classic Hummus Recipe - Private Chef in Rhode Island Chef Chelc

Hi!

Let’s talk hummus. I overdosed a bit on hummus in college so we had to take a break from each other for a bit..but now we’re back on good terms! This is also me realizing that I graduated college 6 years ago…WHAT THAA

I’ve realized that the key to making really delicious hummus at home is starting with dried chickpeas. This may sound a little foreign and scary but I’m here to tell you it is actually so simple!

Dried chickpeas are sold at the majority of supermarkets. The only thing that you have to do is soak the chickpeas overnight in water. So it just requires a little planning ahead, but nothing we can’t handle!

Excuse the light reflection in the water. You want to make sure the chickpeas are covered by at least 2 inches of water because overnight they will soak up a lot of the liquid!

The next day, drain the chickpeas, place them in a large soup pot, and fill it with water, salt, and baking soda. The baking soda helps the chickpeas soften and cook faster. It only takes the chickpeas about 25 minutes to cook at a steady simmer.

The best way to tell if the chickpeas are cooked is to simply taste one! If they are nice and soft they are ready to be drained.

I like to pick through the chickpeas and discard all the skins that have already come off the chickpeas. This is slightly unnecessary but I think it helps to make the overall texture of the hummus even that more smooth.

Classic hummus is simply chickpeas, tahini, salt, garlic, and maybe some lemon juice

In my “classic” hummus I like to add

Chickpeas
Tahini
Roasted garlic cloves
Cumin
Cayenne
Lemon juice
Olive oil
Salt and pepper

Using roasted garlic as opposed to raw garlic adds a more savory mellow garlic flavor. You can buy pre-roasted garlic cloves in the olive bar section of the grocery store, or you can make your own. The key with making your own (which I’ve learned the hard way mind you..) is to buy pre-peeled garlic cloves. This will save you a lot of time and save your fingers from smelling like garlic for days..not that I would know..

Here’s how I make my roasted garlic: In a shallow baking dish, add about 30 cloves of peeled garlic. To that add enough olive oil to cover the garlic cloves by 1 inch (this will take about 3 cups of olive oil, but the bonus is that afterwards you have garlic infused oil to use in salad dressings and cooking!) and for bonus add 1 bay leaf, 4 springs of thyme, and 6 whole black peppercorns. Roast at 325 degrees for 1 hour. These cloves will keep in an air tight container in the oil for about 1 month at room temperature and even longer in the fridge. I use roasted garlic in sauces, mixed with butter and smeared on bread, in salad dressings, etc

Once all the ingredients are in the food processor, turn it on and while its running add in 1 cup of ice water. I like my hummus to be nice and smooth so I usually let it run for about 2-3 minutes. ALWAYS season to taste. I also end up adding more salt than I think I originally need.

I should note that this recipe makes a LOT of hummus, about 6 cups worth. It will last in the refrigerator for about 2 weeks. Also a great gift to drop off to someone, just saying 🙂 If you’re ever wondering what to get me as a gift, food is always the answer! And maybe wine..

I shared this picture in yesterday’s post, so now the trifecta of dip recipes are all on the blog. Roasted eggplant dip, charred scallion whipped feta, and classic hummus! I like to top mine with a drizzle of olive oil, smoked paprika, and some crispy chickpeas.

So delicious! I would share how I made the crispy chickpeas but I wasn’t fully happy with the result so I will report back on those 🙂

My Favorite Classic Hummus

Makes Apx 6 cups

Ingredients:

1 ¾ cup dried chickpeas (yields about 4 cups cooked chickpeas)
1 tsp baking soda
¾ cup tahini
4 tbsp lemon juice
8 cloves roasted garlic (or 3 cloves raw garlic, crushed)
4 tbsp olive oil
3 tbsp kosher salt
1 tbsp ground black pepper
2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp cayenne
Apx 1 cup of ice cold water
For garnish: more olive oil, dash of smoked paprika, chickpeas, parsley

Instructions:

Soak chickpeas overnight in enough water to cover the chickpeas by at least 2 inches.
The next day, drain the chickpeas and place in a large soup pot. Cover the chickpeas with enough water to cover them by about 4 inches. Add 1 tsp baking soda and a large pinch of salt. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Cook for about 25 minutes until the chickpeas are nice and tender. Drain and let cool. Bonus, once drained and cooled, remove some of the excess chickpea skins.
In the food processor, add the chickpeas and remaining ingredients. While the food processor is running, add in the ice water until the mixture looks very smooth. Keep the food processor running for an additional 2 minutes. Season to taste and serve with whatever garnish you prefer!