Thick and Creamy Hummus

When I travelled through Israel I was amazed to discover whole restaurants dedicated to serving hummus and only hummus — some of the best I’ve ever tasted. Once you’ve made your own, you’ll never buy store-bought hummus again. It’s so simple, and much richer. One of the most authentic recipes I’ve come across is from Yotam Ottolenghi and Sami Tamimi’s Jerusalem; the hummus is super-smooth and thick. I like to add some garlic, a little cumin and a hearty squeeze of lemon juice.

Makes: 2 cups
Takes: 10 minutes to prep

Vegetarian | Vegan | Paleo | Dairy-free | Gluten-free 

Ingredients: 
1 x 400g can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
2 cloves garlic, crushed

150g tahini

4 tablespoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon salt

120ml ice-cold water

extra virgin olive oil to drizzle

Method: Place the chickpeas and garlic in a food processor and pulse until you have a thick paste. Then, with the machine running, add the tahini, lemon juice, cumin and salt. Add the ice-cold water in a slow, steady stream and continue to blend for 5 minutes, until you have a very smooth, very creamy paste. Taste and add more salt or lemon juice if necessary. Refrigerate for 30 minutes, then drizzle with some extra virgin olive oil just before serving.

Tip: Make the hummus slightly runnier than you want it, as it’ll thicken up once chilled.

Variation: To make it paleo — chickpeas are legumes and not part of the paleo diet, but you could use steamed cauliflower instead to create a similar texture.