Very lemony hummus
You might like to try this hummus in a sandwich with sliced tomatoes and a smear of harissa paste, or with grated carrot and a few torn mint leaves. If you are short of time, instead of cooking dried chickpeas, you can use a tin, well drained and rinsed; add a little water to them for the initial puréeing.
Prep 12hrs Cook 3hrs Servs 4
Method
Rinse the chickpeas thoroughly, then place them in a large bowl with enough water to cover them well. Leave to soak for at least 12 hours, or overnight.
Drain the chickpeas and put them in a saucepan with the bay leaf and enough cold water to cover generously. Bring to the boil, then turn the heat right down and partially cover with a lid. Simmer gently for about 3 hours, until the chickpeas are really soft, skimming the surface and topping up with boiling water as necessary to keep the chickpeas covered. Add ½ teaspoon of salt near the end of cooking.
Drain the chickpeas, reserving the liquid, and discard the bay leaf. Put 3-4 tablespoons of the hot cooking liquid into a food processor or blender with half the chickpeas, 4 tablespoons of the lemon juice and the garlic. Whiz for a few seconds. Add the remaining chickpeas, 2 tablespoons of tahini and 2 tablespoons of oil, then whiz again until you have the consistency you like.
Scrape into a bowl and season with salt and plenty of pepper. If you think it needs more oil, lemon juice or tahini, add a little at a time, beating well, until you're happy with the flavour. Top with a sprinkling of cumin, if you like.
Serving suggestions
Variation
Add 3 or 4 tablespoons of finely chopped flat-leaf parsley, chervil or chives - or all three - to create a lovely, green-flecked purée.
Ingredients
- 125g dried chickpeas
- 1 bay leaf
- Juice of 2 lemons
- ½-1 small garlic clove, crushed with a little salt
- 2-3 tbsp tahini (sesame seed paste)
- 2-3 tbsp rapeseed or extra virgin olive oil
- Pinch of ground cumin (optional)
- Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
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If you like this recipe, you might like the following course...
Veg Cookery
Who needs meat? During the River Cottage Veg cookery course you'll learn to turn local, seasonal produce into delicious veggie dishes.
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