Silky Lebanese Hummus
Photo: Christopher Alvarenga / Unsplash
Ultra-smooth, creamy hummus whipped from chickpeas, plenty of tahini, lemon, garlic and ice-cold water, swirled onto a plate and finished with olive oil, paprika, whole chickpeas and parsley. Perfect with warm pitta and crunchy vegetables.
Servings
Ingredients
Nutrition
Per serving
Steps
Soften the chickpeas
Set aside a small handful of drained chickpeas for topping later. Put the rest in a pot with the baking soda and the water, bring to a gentle simmer over medium-low heat, and cook about 20 minutes until very soft and the skins slip off and float. Drain and rinse well.
- 2 × 400g tins chickpeas
- ½ tsp
- 1.5 liters / 6 cups water
✅ Done when: chickpeas are very soft, skins loose and floating
Whip the tahini
In a food processor, blend the , lemon juice, garlic, salt and cumin for about 1 minute until thick and stiff. Keep the motor running, add 2 tablespoons of ice-cold water, and blend 1–2 minutes more until pale and creamy.
- 120g
- 1½ lemons, juiced lemon juice
- 1 clove garlic
- ¾ tsp salt
- ½ tsp ground cumin
- 2 tbsp ice-cold water
✅ Done when: mixture is pale, smooth and creamy
Blend the chickpeas
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Adjust the texture
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Put it on a plate
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Top and serve
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Soften the chickpeas
Set aside a small handful of drained chickpeas for topping later. Put the rest in a pot with the baking soda and the water, bring to a gentle simmer over medium-low heat, and cook about 20 minutes until very soft and the skins slip off and float. Drain and rinse well.
- 2 × 400g tins chickpeas
- ½ tsp
- 1.5 liters / 6 cups water
✅ Done when: chickpeas are very soft, skins loose and floating
Whip the tahini
In a food processor, blend the , lemon juice, garlic, salt and cumin for about 1 minute until thick and stiff. Keep the motor running, add 2 tablespoons of ice-cold water, and blend 1–2 minutes more until pale and creamy.
- 120g
- 1½ lemons, juiced lemon juice
- 1 clove garlic
- ¾ tsp salt
- ½ tsp ground cumin
- 2 tbsp ice-cold water
✅ Done when: mixture is pale, smooth and creamy
Blend the chickpeas
This step is part of Foodie Premium. Subscribe to unlock the full method, cooking mode and every recipe in the library.
Adjust the texture
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Put it on a plate
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Top and serve
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The Story Behind the Dish
Chickpeas have been grown in the Middle East for around 10,000 years. Cookbooks from 13th-century Cairo already describe a purée of chickpeas with tahini, vinegar and spices, though the hummus bi tahini we know — with lemon and garlic — took its modern shape later in the cities of the Levant.
Today it sits at the heart of the meze table from Beirut to Damascus and Jerusalem, and it has become one of the world's best-known plant-based foods.
⭐ Why It's Famous
It's naturally vegan, high in protein and endlessly shareable — a dip, a spread and a meal all at once.
💡 Fun Fact
In 2010 a Lebanese team set a Guinness World Record with a plate of hummus weighing more than 10 tonnes.
The Levant (Lebanon, Syria, Palestine)
33.89°N, 35.50°E
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