The Middle Eastern sauce based on chickpeas and sesame paste is increasingly loved and widespread also in Italy: here's how to prepare it in a workmanlike manner and which dishes to combine it with
Hummus comes from Lebanon, but it is now very widespread in our country and is one of the workhorses of vegans around the world: it is a sauce based on chickpeas and sesame paste to eat alone or as a condiment for other foods. For those who have not yet tried it, here are the tips on how to make hummus, how to eat it and which dishes in our kitchen to combine it with.
How to make hummus
To prepare the hummus, heat in a pan 400 g of chickpeas with a spoonful of oil, cumin and paprika. frullateli then with 60 ml of lemon juice, 60 g of tahina (a cream obtained from toasted sesame seeds, which is easily found in organic shops and ethnic shops), a clove of garlic, a spoonful of oil, a pinch of salt and 2-3 tablespoons of water if necessary. Serve then with a drizzle of oil and parsley. Hummus can be enriched with cooked vegetables (carrots, spinach or beets), from spices you prefer (curry, saffron, cardamom, mustard seeds, chilli pepper) or from fresh herbs. He is also very well with i dried cherry tomatoes, with feta or Greek yogurt, with olives.
How to make hummus: mistakes to avoid
This thick sauce is prepared quickly and with simple ingredients, but to eat a perfect hummus you need follow some small tricks. For example, never use sesame oil in place of tahina: taste and texture will be affected too much. Chickpeas have a delicate flavor, do not "cut them" with too much tahina and too much garlic (remove the inner shoot, which makes it strong and indigestible). Hummus lends itself to being enriched with many spices, but never forget those of tradition: cumin and paprika. It will seem an unnecessary step, but heating chickpeas with spices before blending them is essential: it is used to release the perfumes and the chickpeas blended with lukewarm will give your hummus a much softer and creamier consistency.
Chickpeas peeled: yes or no?
One of the biggest diatribes related to hummus concerns chickpeas: should they be skinned or not? Peeling them is a fairly simple, but repetitive process: you have to rub the well-cooked chickpeas with a clean cloth to detach the thin skin that covers them and eliminate it. This step seems to make the hummus more like a mousse, giving it a less dense consistency. The choice of whether or not to peel cooked chickpeas depends on the consistency with which you prefer your hummus.
How to eat hummus: tradition
After seeing how to make hummus you just have to understand how to eat it. Unleavened bread, injera bread, pita or lafa they are the types of traditional bread that hummus originally accompanied in the Middle East. In these areas it is typical to consume hummus also with falafel, fried chickpea balls. In Mediterranean basin, as in Greece, the chickpea cream is used as the pinzimonio to accompany raw vegetables. But for those with imagination at the table there are really many ways to eat hummus: instead of spreadable cheese in toast and sandwiches; as a substitute for mayonnaise in chicken salad; as a filling for stuff the eggs, tomatoes or rolls. Hummus is also very good for Salted muffins or pasta dressing: not bad for a chickpea sauce that comes from the Middle East and is conquering Italy.
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