How to Make Hummus from Scratch

Ingredients:

• Chickpeas, 1½ cup
• Tahini, ¼ cup
• Bay Leaves, 2
• Garlic, 4 cloves
• Lemon Juice, 2 tbsp
• Olive Oil, 2 tbsp
• Salt, as per taste

Procedure:

1. Soak the chickpeas overnight in warm water. Ensure that the pot in which you soak the chickpeas is covered. Drain the water and wash the chickpeas with cold water. Put them in the pot again along with water.

2. Add the bay leaf along with salt and cook the chickpeas thoroughly. This should take about an hour. Test whether the chickpeas have cooked by taking one in your hand and pressing it between your fingers. If the pea crushes easily, they are cooked well. Turn off the gas and drain the water; retaining a cup for further use. The bay leaf can be thrown away.

3. Let the chickpeas cool a little. The trick here is to cool them by allowing the steam to pass; do not make them cold. Add them to a big food processor bowl and mash them thoroughly. Add the garlic and the tahini and process the mixture. Pour in the lemon juice, ½ cup of the water extracted from cooking the chickpeas and olive oil to form a smooth paste.

4. Your hummus is ready to be devoured. For garnishing, you could add some cayenne pepper and some chopped cilantro on the top, before serving.

Ingredients:

• Chickpeas, 2 cups
• Bay Leaf, 1
• Tahini, ⅓ cup
• Garlic, 3 cloves
• Lemon Juice, 2 tbsp
• Canola Oil, 2 tbsp
• Cumin Seeds, 1 tsp
• Red Peppers, as per taste
• Salt, as per taste
• Cilantro or Parsley, for garnishing

Procedure:

1. Soak the chickpeas overnight in a covered pot. Discard the water and clean the chickpeas. Add water, bay leaf and salt, and cook the chickpeas till they are soft. As mentioned earlier, this process could take about an hour. Drain the water, but save about a cupful for further cooking. Roast the garlic and crush it.

2. Roast the cumin seeds and crush them into powder. Roast the red peppers too, and pound them into paste. In the food processor, put the chickpeas, after they cool a bit, and mash them. Add canola oil, the water from cooking and the lemon juice till it turns into a smooth paste.

3. Add cumin powder, the garlic and the red peppers. Blend all these ingredients thoroughly. Garnish with chopped cilantro or parsley, before serving. You could use canned chickpeas in place of dried chickpeas. In that case, you don't have to soak them overnight.

Ingredients:

• Chickpeas, 2 cups
• Lemon Juice, 2 tbsp
• Bay Leaf, 1
• Garlic, 3 cloves
• Olive Oil, 2 tbsp
• Almond Butter, ½ cup
• Salt, as per taste
• Red Peppers, as per taste
• Parsley or Cilantro, for garnishing

Procedure:

1. Soak the chickpeas overnight in a covered pot and drain the water in the morning. Wash the peas and return them to the pot with the bay leaf and salt. Allow the chickpeas to cook till they become soft; roughly for an hour.

2. Roast the garlic cloves and the red peppers and pound them to paste. Drain the water but save about ½ cup for making the hummus. Combine chickpeas, olive oil and water into the food processor. Blend the mixture well, and pour in lemon juice and almond butter.

3. When it has blended well, add red peppers and garlic paste. Make a smooth mixture, and add more water if needed. You can substitute almond butter with peanut butter.

4. Serve with sprinkled with chopped cilantro, and enjoy fresh with pita bread.

You can add some other herbs in the recipes too, based on your likes and dislikes. Always remember to store the hummus in an air-tight container and keep it in the refrigerator, otherwise it will get spoiled. Also ensure that you use it within 3 days.