Hoummous
Today I made Hoummous, or more correctly Hummuṣ bi-ṭ-ṭaḥīna (حمص بالطحينة), which is Arabic for “Chickpeas With Tahini”.
Hoummous is a middle eastern dip consisting of chickpeas blended with Tahini and a few other ingredients.
I like to keep a tub in the fridge ready for whenever I feel peckish and want a quick snack.
I buy dried chickpeas (known locally as “Kacang Kuda”) as they’re easier to keep.
I usually make a cupful at a time … this will last me 2-3 days (it expands when cooked) . If you’re making this for more people you will probably want to double up or triple the recipe.
Typically you would need to soak your chickpeas overnight in water. They also take very long to cook (about 3 hours). This is very tedious.
I’ve now started using my pressure cooker to prepare them, so the entire process takes about 1.5 hours and no overnight soaking is needed.
https://shopee.com.my/search?keyword=chickpeas
I start by washing a cup of dried chickpeas, and placing them into my pressure cooker with some water.
I set the pressure cooker for 30 minutes and leave it to do it’s thing.
Once it is done, take out the pot and strain the chickpeas.
They should still be hard but now the skin has loosened. We have to remove the skin.
This is tedious no matter how you do it. The fastest method I’ve found is to place them back in the pot and fill it with lots of water. Reach into the pot with your hands and rub the skin off the chickpeas. They should separate. Keep doing this for a good five minutes, until you feel you’ve peeled every chickpea.
The chickpea skins, being lighter should float the top, especially if the water is agitated.
I run lots of water and stir the pot a bit, then using a “frying strainer ladle” I scoop up the skins as they float to the top.
You can also spin the water, then tip the pot over, being careful to let only the skins fall out.
That was the hardest part. You should end up with most of the chickpeas not having any skins.
If you miss a few, it’s forgiveable.
fill up the pot with water again, and load it back into the pressure cooker.
This time run it for 45 minutes (You may need more time depending on your pressure cooker).
When you’re done, the chick peas should be soft and cooked. it’s okay if they’ve broken up a bit.
Now place the following ingredients into a food processor:
1) the cooked chickpeas
2) a few cloves of garlic. NOTE: avoid putting them whole as in the picture, as the food processor will have a tough time with them. Instead either slice them or better still run them through a garlic press.
3) Squeeze in the juice of half a lemon.
4) 1 teaspoon of salt
5) 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil (to start with)
6) 4 tablespoons of tahini (to start with)
The magic ingredient here is Tahini, which is a paste made from sesame seeds.
You can make your own (I used to) but it’s tedious and now i find it easier to just buy it ready made.
I found this imported brand on Shopee where you get 900g for RM23, which is quite a lot for the price.
The magic ingredient here is Tahini, which is a paste made from sesame seeds.
You can make your own (I used to) but it’s tedious and now i find it easier to just buy it ready made.
I found this imported brand on Shopee where you get 900g for RM23, which is quite a lot for the price.
Blend the ingredients in the food processor.
You need to blend it for about 4-5 minutes to get the ingredients very smooth.
It’s been said that tossing in a few ice cubes in the middle of the process helps keep the temperature down and also makes for a smoother result.
If your food processor’s motor gets hot, try adding a bit of olive oil (into the jug, not the motor!) to make it’s job easier. At the worst, stop it and let the motor cool down for a while, and the resume.
I didn’t have any problems with my Kenwood food processor.
Have a taste, and add salt, tahini and olive oil and continue blending until it is perfect.
We’re done! If you want to impress people, lay the Hoummous into a decorative bowl like this. Rotate the bowl while smoothing it with a spatula, then turn the spatula on its side to create the grooves. Drizzle more olive oil over it.
Sprinkle with sumac or paprika powder.
You can also sprinkle some fresh parsley (I didn’t have any).
https://shopee.com.my/MAHNAZ-FOOD-BAHAR-SPICE-SUMAC-POWDER-140G-120G-i.28619373.7939644220
