Houmous

[Fane]

I tried making my own houmous last night, and it was garbage, to say the least. Chickpeas, garlic, olive oil, lemon, tiny bit of cumin. No tahnini though - but would sesame oil do the trick?

Any other suggestions or tips?

[Mobile Chicane]

You really need the tahini. Also take the green shoot out of the garlic (if there is one).

[PugwasHDJ80]

what was wrong with it?

i find that Humous needs 2-3 hours at least in the fridge to develope both texture and flavour- that's from making it in a liquidiser rather than a food processro. Also benefits from a really good squeeze of lemon and lots of seasoning.

[Fane]

PugwasHDJ80 said:

what was wrong with it?

It didn't taste of houmous

The garlic tasted too raw, and I perhaps put a bit too much in. Having said that, I didn't let it sit for any length of time. I must invest in some tahini too.

[Noger]

It isn't called Hummous Bi Tahini for nothing

The garlic is tricky, I tend to use Garlic Oil as you have more control. But that is because I am a Nigella slut at heart

[anonymous-user]

A tiny amount of water also helps to make the consistency right, but the others are right, tahini is essential.

[petemurphy]

i make my own tahini for hummous - just bake some seasame seeds dont let them go brown and liquidise with olive oil and salt. good hummous requires good olive oil imho

http://mideastfood.about.com/od/appetizerssnacks/r...

http://mideastfood.about.com/od/dipsandsauces/r/ta...

[Bill Carr]

This'll probably be frowned upon, but try using garlic powder instead. I'd also echo the "good olive oil" and "plenty of citrus" comments.

[Chim Girl]

IMHO tahini isn't absolutely necessary, I would suggest plenty of good olive oil and salt may remedy what you have already. Also, if you used tinned chickpeas, did you warm/cook them first? If not the texture probably won't be soft enough and therefore my first suggestion is redundant!

[Rooster]

for real authenticity add a little ground cumin and the tahini is must, also lots of fresh lemon juice.

[Fane]

Thanks for the tips, folks. The chickpeas were of the dried / soaked variety. It looks like I need to make my own tahini, or purchase some, add some cumin, and get the quantities right. I shall report back!

On the chickpea thang, Anjum Anand recommends cooking them with a teabag, cinnamon stick, blade of mace and a brown cardamom. I tried this on Saturday night - it gave them an extra dimension in the curry, but it may be a bit too much for houmous.

Finally, thanks mods for sorting out the thread title.

[madbadger]

With dried chickpeas I soak for 24 hours, then drain and boil them for about 1.5 to 2 hours before blending them. But I also save the water from the boiling when I drain them.

Add the other bits as others have said but then trickle in some of the boiled water you have saved until you get the right consistency.

[petemurphy]

Chim Girl said:

IMHO tahini isn't absolutely necessary, I would suggest plenty of good olive oil and salt may remedy what you have already. Also, if you used tinned chickpeas, did you warm/cook them first? If not the texture probably won't be soft enough and therefore my first suggestion is redundant!

interesting i use tinned ones but never cook them - might try it next time. i do add some of the chickpea water to the mix though

[anonymous-user]

Fane said:

Thanks for the tips, folks. The chickpeas were of the dried / soaked variety. It looks like I need to make my own tahini, or purchase some, add some cumin, and get the quantities right. I shall report back!

On the chickpea thang, Anjum Anand recommends cooking them with a teabag, cinnamon stick, blade of mace and a brown cardamom. I tried this on Saturday night - it gave them an extra dimension in the curry, but it may be a bit too much for houmous.

Finally, thanks mods for sorting out the thread title.

I tried making tahini last time because it was fricking 8.9CHF/jar... taking the piss.

So anyway, it was surprisingly hard to get the sesame seeds to cream after I had roasted them. I don't think I have the right blender. If anyone has any tips, then I would appreciate it because I would like to give it another go.

Plus, my tahini ended up ruining the houmous because I slightly burnt the seeds. Pissed me off because my normal houmous made with bought tahini is great. Maybe, next time I won't be such a tight arse and just buy the stuff.

[petemurphy]

bulldong said:

I tried making tahini last time because it was fricking 8.9CHF/jar... taking the piss.

So anyway, it was surprisingly hard to get the sesame seeds to cream after I had roasted them. I don't think I have the right blender. If anyone has any tips, then I would appreciate it because I would like to give it another go.

Plus, my tahini ended up ruining the houmous because I slightly burnt the seeds. Pissed me off because my normal houmous made with bought tahini is great. Maybe, next time I won't be such a tight arse and just buy the stuff.

try again just dont burn them!

[H_Kan]

If you are using canned chick peas, ensure that they are in salted water.

Also, tahini is important. Finish with a drizzle of olive oil, some paprika/ chilli powder and ground cumin on top.

Absolutely love hummous.

[uncinqsix]

For a really smooth, creamy hummus, peel the chickpeas. It's just a matter of tipping them into a big bowl of water and rubbing them between your hands to remove that clear skin - the skins all float to the top and the peas sink. You can then just tip the skins off. Don't have to be too thorough, just enough to remove the majority. Bit of a faff, but worth it...

[GingerWizard]

the best stuff is harvested from a big sweaty man that has been in a wet suit for about 1 week. Peel him then spatula it from his creases.

[Tinod]

Slightly O/T though I was enjoying a meal the other day in A Bar Bistro in Portsmouth and just waiting for a few others to arrive had the flat bread and humous dip there was also another bowl of humous like substance that was incredibly tasty: http://uktv.co.uk/food/recipe/aid/630744 it looks very easy to make too!

[HereBeMonsters]

Once you've bought all the ingredients, it's cheaper to buy the ready-made stuff, and it usually turns out better as well.