I like hummus. This is not a mere passing infatuation that you brush away a little like the fresh dust on the surface of that table by your bedside. This is a long-lasting, sincere, loyal attachment that refuses to go away.
Hummus has become a staple spread at my house and we eat it almost once in a fortnight. It is healthy, filling and tasty and with lots of proteins and fibre. What more can a vegetarian want? I put less oil than the recipes suggest, add a lot of garlic, and a lot of lime. So now it's become my kind of hummus.
A couple of years ago, we were in Greece and it was our first time on the Mediterranean coast and we had to have hummus. We ordered a plate at a nice restaurant and it looked delicious but I didn’t like it. In fact, I even felt that it wasn’t ‘right’ and something was off.
A part of me found the situation ridiculous. I had never eaten a Greek hummus in Mumbai and I had a take on it. But what can I say, I did. Over the years, after tasting many different kinds of hummus, I have now fine-tuned a recipe that ticks all the boxes for me and am sharing it with you. image credit: inspiredtaste.net
Garlicky hummus
Ingredients:
Method:
Step 1:
Ensure the channa / chickpeas are covered with water, add a little salt and then cook them in the pressure-cooker till soft.
Step 2:
Cut the garlic into small pieces and put in the mixer / food processor. Add all the cooked channa (chickpea) with around a cup of the cooking water. Blend till the consistency is fine. Add the tahini, lime juice, and a little salt to taste. Blend some more according to how fine or coarse you like your hummus. I like it smooth and almost creamy.
Step 3:
Remove from the mixer and put into a dish you plan to store it in. Pour a little olive oil and blend it in.
This stays in the fridge for several days, maybe more than a week.
Recipe for tahini:
Dry roast sesame seeds in a pan. Around 2 tablespoons. Then grind in the mixer.
If you add some olive oil to this mix, it becomes a tahini.
You can use this as a starting point for many other things, including a spread on a sandwich, and a dressing for salad.
Serving and eating:
Spoon it into a plate, sprinkle some olives, put a dash of olive oil to make the hummus glisten and to make you drool. Dip some warm pita bread into this and watch the hummus vanish. Or use it like a spread on rotis topped with freshly chopped veggies.
Bhavani blogs at http://merrytogoaround.com
Trivia about Hummus
What is Hummus?
Hummus is a Levantine and Egyptian food dip or spread made from cooked, mashed chickpeas blended with tahini, olive oil, lemon juice, salt and garlic.
Historical roots:
Many regions around the world claim to have birthed hummus but the fact is, it is tough to trace its exact origin. The legend goes, that hummus was first prepared in the 12th century by Saladin. However this claim is highly contested.
The earliest known recipes for a dish similar to hummus bi tahina are recorded in cookbooks published in Cairo in the 13th century.
Eaten as:
As an appetizer and dip, hummus is scooped with flatbread, such as pita. It is also served as part of a meze or as an accompaniment to falafel, grilled chicken, fish or eggplant.
Garnishes include chopped tomato, cucumber, coriander, parsley, caramelized onions, sautéed mushrooms, whole chickpeas, olive oil, hard-boiled eggs, paprika, pickles and pine nuts.
Outside the Middle East, it is sometimes served with tortilla chips or crackers.
Hummus Day: This is an annual event celebrated on the third Thursday in May.
Source: Wikipedia