Hummus

Welcome back to my blog this week. Last blog was about the most popular salads in the Middle East. There are many salads that are made in the Middle East, but Tabouleh and Fattoush are the most two popular salads that are known. Appetizers are a very special part of every meal. In the Middle East, there is a very healthy and popular appetizer, which is known as Hummus. Every Middle Eastern restaurant has Hummus as one of the main appetizers. Hummus can also be served at home for dinner or lunch or even parties.

Hummus is a very popular Middle Eastern food dip that is made from many different types of ingredients. These ingredients are cooked and are mashed chickpeas, blended with tahini, lemon juice, salt, garlic and olive oil.

Hummus can be made in many different flavors. These flavors could be strong lemon flavor garlic flavor and some hummus even has a spicy flavor  When you are making your own hummus you must be tasting it to make sure you got the flavor you want. For example, if the hummus you want to make requires a lot of “Tahini sauce” and you may not like this particular, so you should scale down the amount of Tahini sauce. The amazing thing about Middle Eastern cooking is that the ingredients amounts don’t have to be the exact same amounts, you can add a little bit of a particular ingredient or take away a bit of another ingredient and you will still have a masterpiece. 

Hummus can be served with fresh or toasted pita bread. It is one of the more popular dips or appetizers in the Middle East. There is a particular sauce that is important in the Hummus recipe and cannot be substituted which is the Tahini sauce. 

Hummus

Ingredients:

• 1/ 16 oz can of chickpeas or garbanzo beans
• 1/4 cup liquid from can of chickpeas
• 3-5 tablespoons lemon juice (depending on taste)
• 1 1/2 tablespoons tahini
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons olive oil

Preparation:

• Drain chickpeas and set aside liquid from can. Combine remaining ingredients in blender or food processor.  
• Add 1/4 cup of liquid from chickpeas. Blend for 3-5 minutes on low until thoroughly mixed and smooth. 
• Place in serving bowl, and create a shallow well in the center of the hummus.
• Add a small amount (1-2 tablespoons) of olive oil in the well. 
• Garnish with parsley (optional). Serve immediately with fresh, warm or toasted pita. 

The fun thing about making Hummus is that you can add it on different types of food such as beef shawarma or you can have it with Tabouleh. Hummus is a very delicious dish and you cannot stop eating it once you try it! You can also eat Hummus as a plain dish or with red pepper as Middle Eastern people do it! Hummus is not a difficult dish to do in fact, you will love it once you make it and try it especially when you come with amazing results.

Hummus with Beef