Everything You Wanted To Know About Hummus But Were Afraid To Ask

hummus at bab touma restaurant - damascus syria

Ten years ago in the States no one but a handful of vegetarians knew what hummus was. Today it's all the rage. This odd looking dipping sauce has been around for thousands, that's right, thousands of years however, and it is definitely here to stay. Several new brands have popped up and you can buy them in most any stores anywhere in the world. The best is still homemade, though, and the best restaurants make their own blends.

Hummus is Arabic for "chickpea" and is a staple good for every meal in this modern age. It's what falafel is also made out of. Usually you will see it called "Hummus bil Tahini" which means Hummus with ("bil" = "with" - see our learn Arabic page) Tahini sauce mixed in (Tahini is a sesame paste). At some traditional restaurants you have to ask for the Hummus "Naim," which means blended, or else you might get a bowl of cooked (whole) garbanzo beans!

The mainstay of the dip is the chickpea, AKA garbanzo bean, which is a vegetable that has been grown and harvested for some 7,000 years, both in India and the Middle East. Since when have people mushed it up, added garlic & oil and sopped it up with pita bread? Many areas of the world claim to be the originators of many common dishes. Where does hummus come from? The answer is everywhere.

The main way to eat hummus is by mixing a little tahina (AKA tahini) with it. You can buy this at your local ethnic grocer, or somewhere online (not here, yet!). Most premade hummus already has tahini in it. The best canned hummus, if you are going to be lazy about it, is Cortas (and I don't get any money for saying so). There is another common brand in a green can which is not as good.

The Cortas hummus should be mixed already with tahini, so just add some garlic powder, lemon juice and olive oil and you're good to go (start dippin!).

Hummus is used in making falafel and sometimes couscous as well. It can also be added to your shawarma (if the shawarma is the Arabian taco then hummus is Arabian ketchup and falafel is Arabian french fries).

Click here for our mumtaz hummus recipe (from scratch) --->

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