Hummus bi Tahine
I’ve been on a mission to duplicate the hummus from a local favorite Greek restaurant, Farm Grill and Rotisserie. They won’t exactly give me the recipe but they did tell me their secret ingredient is the particular type of tahini they import from Lebanon. The other secret to the creamy, smooth blend is getting each and every last skin removed from each chickpea. You can use a foodmill for this process or painstakingly remove them by hand, one-by-one. The word hummus means ‘chickpea.’ You can serve the hummus with warmed pita bread lightly oiled and sprinkled with paprika and a side of falafel.
Hummus bi Tahine
INGREDIENTS:
2 cups cooked chickpeas, 1 (30 oz. can)
1/4 tsp salt
1 garlic clove
1/4 cup tahini
1/4 cup lemon juice
olive oil, paprika, parsley for garnish
DIRECTIONS:
In a colander, rinse the chickpeas, then place them in a saucepan, cover with water by one inch. Using your hands, carefully rub the chickpeas against each other to remove their skins. Once the skins float to the surface, discard them.
Bring the saucepan to a boil and then simmer about 20 minutes until chickpeas are soft to the touch. You should be able to squeeze it between your fingers very easily.
While the chickpeas are simmering, place the garlic and salt in a food processor and chop the garlic. Add the tahini and lemon juice and process until the mixture is smooth.
When the chickpeas are ready, remove the saucepan from the heat (Save the cooking liquid), skim off any chickpea skins that have floated to the surface and discard them. Save about 10 whole chickpeas for the garnish.
Using a slotted spoon, transfer the chickpeas to the processor and process until very smooth. Thin the hummus to your desired consistency using the reserved cooking liquid. Adjust the taste, seasoning with lemon juice and salt.
To serve, spread the hummus in the middle of a large plate, leaving a well in the middle for the oil. Fill the well with olive oil and add a few, whole chickpeas. sprinkle with chopped parsley and paprika.
Serve with warm pita bread brushed with a little olive oil and sprinkled with paprika, and falafel (falafel).
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Falafel
INGREDIENTS:
1 box falafel mix
1/3 cup and 2 tablespoons water
DIRECTIONS:
Mix falafel mix and water in a bowl, stir well. Let it stand for 10 minutes.
Heat a saucepan with 1/2 inch of cooking oil to 350 degrees.
Form 1 inch balls and drop them into the saucepan, cooking about 2 minutes or until golden brown. When done, place them on a plate covered with a paper towel.
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The secret for a perfect hummus is:
a. using the best tahini, preferably one with a light color and A LOT of it.
b. using the smallest chickpeas you can put hands on, and cooking it until it’s VERY soft (with baking soda or a pressure cooker).
Pealing the skins becomes important if you use larger chickpeas, which aren’t very good for hummus anyhow.
You can find the complete recipe and many tips in my blog.
Cheers.