The best hummus is lusciously creamy, yet somehow light and fluffy. It’s beautifully smooth and swirled, and begging to be scooped up onto a wedge of pita bread. It’s nutty and tangy, thanks to the tahini, with notes of bright, fresh lemon and mellow garlic.
I encountered the most delicious hummus at Aladdin Cafe, a local Mediterranean restaurant. That hummus met all of the above characteristics, and I was hoping the owner might enlighten me with his techniques. When I asked, though, he replied, “It’s a secret,” with a sly smile and walked away.
I went home determined to learn how to make magnificently creamy hummus. First, I took the fancy flavorings out of my other hummus recipes to make plain hummus. It was dense, a little gritty, and harshly garlicky. I was so disappointed.
Next, I went to Google and opened up a million tabs to learn everything about hummus. You know me. Ten hummus attempts later, I’m ready to share all of my hummus tips and tricks with you. Get ready to make the best hummus of your life!
The internet at large raves that an Israeli chef named Michael Solomonov makes the very best hummus. It’s so good that Bon Appetit named his hummus their 2015 Dish of the Year. That’s some serious hummus.
Solomonov’s secret? He uses chickpeas that have been cooked until they’re so tender, they’re mushy.
He cooks his chickpeas with some baking soda, too. According to Bon Appetit, baking soda “raises the pH of the water and helps the little guys break down to a soft, pulpy mass… perfect for an ultra-smooth purĂ©e.”
Overcooked chickpeas seemed like a promising idea to me. You see, I once tried to make hummus with canned chickpeas that were oddly undercooked, and they made terrible hummus. No matter how long I blended the hummus, those undercooked chickpeas never blended into creamy oblivion.
Plus, baking soda helps break down the chickpea skins, which means you do not need to peel off the skins individually. Who has time for that?! I bet you don’t have time to soak your chickpeas overnight and cook them from scratch like Solomonov, either.
Here’s my time-saving solution: Just boil canned or leftover cooked chickpeas with baking soda for twenty minutes.
You can see the difference that baking soda makes in the photo below. See how the chickpeas on the right are popping open more? They are significantly softer in texture as well.
The chickpeas are ready to go after a quick rinse under cool running water, which rinses off the baking soda flavor and cools the chickpeas so your hummus doesn’t develop a weird outer film.
Are you as excited about this as I am? You can have this incredible hummus now-ish, not tomorrow! No chickpea peeling required.
I have a few more tips and techniques to making great hummus, so read on or scroll down for the full recipe and variations.
How to Make the Best Hummus
1) Mushy chickpeas
Cook canned or leftover cooked chickpeas according to step 1 below. This only adds 20 minutes to your hummus-making time, and it’s my number one tip for making perfect hummus at home.
Want to cook your chickpeas from scratch? You sure can—see the recipe notes.
Can you over-cook your chickpeas in an Instant Pot? I don’t recommend it—you’ll end up with a mess of chickpea mash clogging your vent and a puddle of chickpea cooking water surrounding your Instant Pot. I speak from experience.
2) Great tahini
All tahini is not created equally. When I was in Israel, Israelis’s spoke of tahini, or “t’hina,” with reverence. I learned that the best tahini comes from Ethiopia. Store-bought tahini in the U.S. varies widely in flavor, with some of them so bad that they’ve ruined my hummus.
My favorite brands of tahini? I had to try Solomonov’s favorite, Soom. I found it on Amazon (affiliate link) and I have to say that it is worth it. Second favorite? Trader Joe’s organic tahini, which is made from Ethiopian sesame seeds like Soom’s. Whole Foods 365 used to be my go-to, but I encountered a few bad jars that tasted so bad, I’m afraid to try again.
Don’t skimp on the tahini, either—you need to use 1/2 cup tahini per can of chickpeas for rich and irresistible hummus. I once toured an enormous hummus production facility and learned that they often reduce the cost of producing store-bought hummus by using less tahini. Sneaky!
3) Ice-cold water
Why do you always want to mix ice-cold water with tahini? This is another trick that I learned on my trip. I can’t find a scientific explanation, but it seems to help make the hummus light and fluffy, and lightens the color of the tahini to a pale ivory color.
4) Fresh-squeezed lemon juice
Store-bought lemon juice always tastes stale and sad, and it will make your hummus taste stale and sad. Buy lemons and your humus will taste fresh and delicious. I almost always add another tablespoon of lemon juice to my hummus for extra flavor before I plate it, but I’ll leave the tang factor up to you.
5) Garlic, mellowed in lemon juice
This is another trick from Solomonov—if you mince the garlic in the food processor or blender with the lemon juice and let that mixture rest for a few minutes, the garlic will lose its harsh, raw bite and mellow out. I tried it before and after, and he’s right! Here’s Serious Eats’ scientific explanation for why this works.
6) Olive oil, blended into the hummus and drizzled on top
Solomonov doesn’t blend any olive oil into his hummus, but I think that one tablespoon makes the hummus taste even more luxurious and creamy. I recommend it!
7) Ground cumin
The cumin is subtle and offers some “Je ne sais quoi,” if you will. It’s a common ingredient in plain hummus recipes, and makes the hummus taste a little more special.
Hummus Variations
This hummus recipe is plain (and by plain, I mean delicious), but you can blend any of the following in with the chickpeas to make variations.
- Green goddess hummus: 3/4 cup loosely packed fresh, leafy herbs
- Kalamata olive hummus: 3/4 cup pitted Kalamata olives
- Roasted garlic hummus: Cloves from 1 to 2 heads of roasted garlic
- Roasted red pepper hummus: 3/4 cup roasted red peppers, drained and sliced into strips
- Sun-dried tomato hummus: 3/4 cup oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, rinsed and drained (from one 6.7-ounce jar)
- Toasted sesame hummus: 1/2 teaspoon in the hummus, plus 1 teaspoon drizzled on top
Hummus Garnishes
- Drizzle of olive oil
- Sprinkle of ground sumac, which is gloriously sour and deep pink, or paprika, which is basically flavorless but offers a splash of color
- Sesame seeds or seeded spice blend, such as dukkah
- Middle Eastern hot sauce, such as zhoug or shatta
- Chopped fresh parsley
Ok, let’s make some hummus! I’m dying to hear how this hummus turns out for you. Please let me know in the comments and tell me if overcooking your chickpeas makes all the difference!
You can also share a photo of your results on Instagram with the hashtag #cookieandkate so we can all see your results.
Watch How to Make Hummus
Best Hummus
- Author:
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Yield: 2 cups (8 servings) 1x
- Category: Dip
- Method: Food processor
- Cuisine: Israeli
Learn how to make the best homemade hummus! It’s creamy, dreamy and light. This hummus recipe is easy to make—no peeling chickpeas or overnight soak required. Recipe yields about 2 cups.
Ingredients
- 1 can (15 ounces) chickpeas, rinsed and drained, or 1 ½ cups cooked chickpeas
- ½ teaspoon baking soda (if you’re using canned chickpeas)
- ¼ cup lemon juice (from 1 ½ to 2 lemons), more to taste
- 1 medium-to-large clove garlic, roughly chopped
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt, to taste
- ½ cup tahini
- 2 to 4 tablespoons ice water, more as needed
- ½ teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
- Any of the following garnishes:Â drizzle of olive oil or zhoug sauce, sprinkle of ground sumac or paprika, chopped fresh parsley
Instructions
- Place the chickpeas in a medium saucepan and add the baking soda. Cover the chickpeas by several inches of water, then bring the mixture to a boil over high heat. Continue boiling, reducing heat if necessary to prevent overflow, for about 20 minutes, or until the chickpeas look bloated, their skins are falling off, and they’re quite soft. In a fine-mesh strainer, drain the chickpeas and run cool water over them for about 30 seconds. Set aside (no need to peel the chickpeas for this recipe!).
- Meanwhile, in a food processor or high-powered blender, combine the lemon juice, garlic and salt. Process until the garlic is very finely chopped, then let the mixture rest so the garlic flavor can mellow, ideally 10 minutes or longer.
- Add the tahini to the food processor and blend until the mixture is thick and creamy, stopping to scrape down any tahini stuck to the sides and bottom of the processor as necessary.
- While running the food processor, drizzle in 2 tablespoons ice water. Scrape down the food processor, and blend until the mixture is ultra smooth, pale and creamy. (If your tahini was extra-thick to begin with, you might need to add 1 to 2 tablespoons more ice water.)
- Add the cumin and the drained, over-cooked chickpeas to the food processor. While blending, drizzle in the olive oil. Blend until the mixture is super smooth, scraping down the sides of the processor as necessary, about 2 minutes. Add more ice water by the tablespoon if necessary to achieve a super creamy texture.
- Taste, and adjust as necessary—I almost always add another ¼ teaspoon salt for more overall flavor and another tablespoon of lemon juice for extra zing.
- Scrape the hummus into a serving bowl or platter, and use a spoon to create nice swooshes on top. Top with garnishes of your choice, and serve. Leftover hummus keeps well in the refrigerator, covered, for up to 1 week.
Notes
Recipe adapted from Michael Solomonov, via The New York Times and Bon Appetit, and Yotam Ottolenghi.Â
How to cook dry chickpeas in a hurry for this recipe:Â In a large saucepan, combine 5 ounces (¾ cup) dried chickpeas and ½ teaspoon baking soda, and fill the pot with water. Bring the mixture to a boil over high heat and skim off the surface foam as needed. Continue boiling over medium-high, adding more water if you start running out, until the chickpeas are very mushy and falling apart, about 1 hour to 1 hour 15 minutes. Drain in a fine-mesh colander, rinse under cool running water, and drain well before using. Start the recipe at step 2.
Suzy
This is my second attempt at making homemade hummus and my first success. The whole family loved it!
cathy smogolski
homemade hummus is so much better than store bought. I am doing a 3 day cleanse and one of the fats allowed is hummus. So here I am. I made a special trip to trader joes to get the tahini. I opened it and tasted it and didn’t like it. It was bitter. I hesitantly put 3 tablespoons in. Other than that I followed the recipe exactly. My chickpeas had to cook longer too. Wow, this is so good. I’ve never put cumin in hummus before, but it amps up the flavor. Thanks for this yummy recipe.
Kate
I agree with you, Cathy! Thanks so much for your feedback. Dedication to go get another tahini!
Grago C.
Best hummus I have ever had. Not made, had. Thank you thank you thank you. It is light, tangy, creamy. Perfect.
Nathalie
Tahini by itself tastes awful! But, put the whole amount in next time. It’s fantastic in the hummus
Diane
Cooking the chickpeas made all the difference in the world! That is definitely the trick. It made the hummus smooth, creamy, and took out that slight bitterness that it can sometimes have. I made two batches, one plain, and one with jalapeño and cilantro. Both were a hit. Yummy! Thank you so much.
Jane
Being of Italian and Greek decent and married to a Lebanese, I have to say I didn’t like this recipe. It tasted on the sweet side for me and not quite sure what purpose the baking soda served in this recipe. Needless to say I went back to my old go to hummus recipe.
Kat
Key words “needless to say.”
Laura
I personally appreciate the honest feedback and I feel it’s wrong to discourage people from speaking their minds. Her review helped me decide if I want to try this or not. Cooking is work and can be expensive. Not everything can or should be positive all the time.
When people look at comments they are looking for honest ones. I appreciate this comment and it wasn’t needless. I like most of the recipes here but not everything can be a home run for everybody.
Ania
Jane – would you mind sharing what your recipe is? I heard the Lebanese hummus is a little different tasting.
Barbara
The BEST hummus recipe ever. Thank you for taking the time to write all of the tips which really make a big difference. I, too, had a similar experience in asking a Lebanese restauranteer for advice on making hummus. He replied that it was creamy because of his very expensive commercial blender, saying that I would never be able to make it as well at home. Well, your recipe tops his – using my 35 year old food processor!
Janine
Amazing! I’ve been peeling chickpeas for far too long and NEVER getting results this creamy. You’ve forever changed how I make hummus. Thank you!
SPenny
Wow Kate
THis IS theBEst Hummus I have ever made!!
Really is so much better with the CHick Peas cooked more.
Absolutely Delicious!!
Thank You Penny
By the way … I Love your Recipies
❤️
Erica
Pressure cook the chickpea. For less cooking time soak overnight or add 1/4 teaspoon baking soda/powder to the water [ not the healthy option as it denatured the protein] cook for for about 3/4hr.on medium flame. The taste is excellent. You can also make your own tahini using a food processor roast the sesame seeds slightly.
Aggie H
I have to say…this is the smoothest and most deliciously satisfying hummus of my life!! I’ve made it 2 times so far and it gets more delicious each time. I do recommend the pricier tahini. It’s worth it :)
Thanks for doing all the research
Kate
You’re welcome, Aggie! I’m glad you loved it.
Molly
Hello!
This was my first time making hummus and it was terrific! I called my sister (as one does) to get some hints and she directed me to your recipe (which I’d already been on your great site before). It instantly made sense to cook the chickpeas, so I started in with gusto. Thank you so much for saving me from a lot of guesswork. Cheers!
Claudia
Great recipe. Worth the extra steps in preparation. The hummus is so smooth and creamy. It is now my go-to hummus recipe!
Kate
I’m glad you thought it was all worth it, Claudia!
Bridget
First time ever making hummus ! This was so easy! Followed the directions and it was perfect !! Thank you!
Susan McClarnon
I have made several batches of hummus and gave up because they all tasted funky and were coarse. I eat hummus everyday and wanted to decrease the cost and the use of plastic containers. So, I decided to try ONE MORE TIME…boy I am GLAD I did!!! this recipe is amazing. I totally believe it is the tahini you recommended and the baking soda. I used Trader Joe’s because I wanted to make today, but ordered the Soom to see if there is a difference. I did cook my chick peas in my pressure cooker for the normal time. Then I put them on the stove with the baking soda…turned out GREAT. Thank you so much
Kate
I’m glad you decided one more time and this was a winner! Thank you for your review, Susan.
Carole
Zoom tahini makes all the difference.
Amy
Delicious! I wasn’t a huge fan of hummus but this is yummy! I added the extra salt and lemon like you suggested too. I used lemon oil & water as I didn’t have any lemons and ended up using 5 drops. I also added 1/4 cup roasted capsicum & 1/4 cup sundried tomatoes to use them up. Currently snacking on with some rosemary & sea salt grissini.
Kate
I’m glad you liked this version, Amy!
David A
I had not made hummus for some time so I had to refresh my memory. Took your word and tips as “best” and it truly is. Next time I am going to something I used to do and roast the canned/cook peas in a dry fry pan. It takes a little more liquid after but gives it a nutty taste.
Kate
Thank you for sharing, David!
Kelly
I never would have thought of boiling canned chickpeas. Great results! Turned out a little bitter aftertaste but i blame my old leftover Tahina i used. Off to the store for a better Tahina. Love the texture.
Kate
Thank you for sharing, Kelly!
Ines
Thank you Kate, it was the most amazing hummus I have ever tasted before! I couldn’t find any tahini in Portugal (i tried to look in a few supermarkets) so I had to do my own, and it was super exciting to do everything by myself :D Hummus will definitely become a part of my week menu.
Just wanted to ask if you know any variations with beetroot. I would like to try and add it to the hummus.
Thank you again for your amazing recipe!
Leslie Abbott
I live in Dearborn, MI. We have the highest population of Arabic peoples outside of the Middle East. I can literally walk down the street and buy a huge plate of delicious hummus for $6.00. I have never been able to recreate that hummus (believe me I have tried) until now.
Great recipe- the BEST!! Thank you for making me successful.
Leslie
Kate
I’m glad you think this one is so good! I appreciate you taking the time to comment, Leslie.
Yifat Clein
Very good hummus. I am an Israeli living in the US and I miss good hummus. I have always been intimidated to try and make it myself. This recipe is user friendly and delicious. I probably reduced the garlic and lemon by a little bit and added a little more salt than the recipe calls for. Turned out creamy and delicious.
Carol
I have been looking for a tip on how to make hummus smooth and creamy and this is it!
Diane Garnham
This was the first time I made hummus and my word, It is delicious! It is so easy to make and I ask myself why I’ve never tried it before. Even my husband that doesn’t like hummus, loves it. I will never buy store bought hummus again.
Just one question. If I want to make a sundried tomato hummus, how will I incorporate that into this recipe?
Kate
Hi Diane! You could try mixing in sun dried tomatoes at the end!
Em
Made this and it is so delish! The texture is what has been missing from all my other hommous attempts over the years. It is so soft and velvety! Thank you!!
Stephanie
So delicious! I travel quite a bit for work, and being vegan, hummus is often one of the only choices in a menu. So, I’ve tried so many I’ve become quite the hummus snob. I’d never tried to make my own until this morning to take to a football watch party. Well, this is so amazing, I have to make another batch now to take to the party. My family and I ate the entire first batch on anything we could get our hands on for breakfast. I may or may not have licked the food processor bowl.
Kate
I’m glad this one passed your tests!
Selma
This is the BEST hummus I have ever made- I never got it right before. Like ALL of your recipes I’ve tried, this is yet another big winner! THANK YOU!
Jess
Made this yesterday and it was a huge it! First time cooking the chickpeas before hand and could definitely tell a difference in texture. I tried to remove as many of the skins that came off but couldn’t get all of them through the strainer – curious if you have any tricks for it or if you leave them in? Still tasted ever so slightly gritty.
stephanie
This is the best hummus I’ve ever had!! I’ve made it twice so far. The first time the classic hummus, the second time I added sun dried tomatoes. Amazing!!!
Lindsey
I had given up on making my own hummus. I saw this recipe and thought I would give it one more try. I am so glad I did. I just made it for the second time. The first time I forgot the oil and I didn’t miss it. I also prefer to add roasted garlic. This really is the best hummus.
Kate
I’m glad you did give it one more try, Lindsey! Thank you for sharing.
justbloom
WOW! BTW, I’m an expat, living in Peru, in the jungle. Lots of fresh food, but not much variety in the jungle, so I have a little garden and make a lot of stuff from scratch. So I made my own tahini, and soaked/cooked the garbanzos in a hot pot with onions, garlic, and deathly hot peppers. I also made garlic olive oil.
Then followed your directions for putting it together. I think having a food processor definitely helps because it whips up the hummus almost like whipped cream!
Thanks for enriching my (already great!) life down here. You can easily live anywhere now, as long as you have high-speed fiber optic internet (yes, in the jungle!) Great recipes and I love your page-
Anisa
Amazing hummus recipe. This is definitely the best hummus you will make! Thanks Kate!
I’ve always been disappointed with store bought hummus, now I don’t have to wait until I go on holiday to have the genuine thing.
Kate
You’re welcome, Anisa!
Suha
Hi,I’m from Palestine living in the UK and this recipe reminded me of the hummus I used to eat when I was a little girl. So thank you
Josie
I have tried making Hummus before, but not liked the result, so I took the “just buy it route”. BUT!, twice (that I know of) last year there was recalls by supermarkets because of Salmonella risks, so I stopped buying it. Fast forward to today, I figured now would be a good time to find a recipe I like….Tastes just like shop bought …and I had to “close enough ” some ingredients
I didn’t have any Cumin, so subbed with half the amount Gram Masala, and I didn’t have any (in date) EVOO so used Avocado Oil instead….YUMMY! This really is the best!
Kate
Thank you for sharing, Josie!
Dorri
You are so right, thee best hummus!! And taking the extra steps made it extra good!! It’s a keeper, for sure
Kate
Wonderful you loved it, Dorri! Thank you for your review.
Sonni
Amazing and simple!
Ann
I have made your hummus twice and gotten rave reviews! So creamy and tasty! Both times I used canned chickpeas. But now I want to use dried chickpeas. I can cook them in my Instant Pot. Not sure if I can, or need to, add the baking soda when I cook them. Also, would I need to add any of the remaining liquid in the pot to help make the hummus smoother? Thanks, Ann
Kate
Hi Ann, I’m not sure since I tested this in the way I laid out in the instructions. You could try cooking your chickpeas in your insta pot, but I’m not sure what adding the baking soda at that stage would do without try it. Sorry!
lyse
This hummus recipe is delicious but I have trouble sifting through the cooked chickpeas and the skins…any suggestions as to how to do this?
Kate
No need to worry about peeling or removing the skins for this recipe! See step 1. :)
Heidi
I need to pressure cook the chickpeas to kill the lectins, any thoughts?
Kate
Hi Heidi, sorry I’m not quite sure! You could cook them and then try and follow the recipe from there using pressure cooked chickpeas instead of canned. Let me know how it goes!
Pat
Hi Kate,
I made this humus recipe and it is by far one of the best I have ever made! I could eat a jar in one sitting. Thanks for the step by step instructions as it does make a difference.
Kate
You’re welcome, Pat!
Diane B.
Yummy humus! I added a little fresh turmeric, you really can’t taste it much but oh soo good for you! Do you know if this can be frozen?
Diane
Kate
Hi Diane! I don’t think this is a great option to freeze, sorry!
Ashley Karanja
This hummus absolutely blew me away!! It farrrrrrr exceeded any hummus I have ever made or bought. It was soooo amazingly creamy and the garlic was just right for me. Wow!!!! The only change I made was to substitute sunflower oil for olive oil as that’s what I had on hand.
Nathalie
I’ve made hummus before, but I’ve lost the recipe. I gave this one a try. Amazing! I made a double batch. I didn’t have any cumin. I used chili powder instead. Plus, I put almost a whole head of garlic in it (we like it garlicky). So freaking tasty!
When I opened the can of tahini, it was completely separated! Oil/liquids on top, solids GLUED together & to the bottom of the can. So, I threw the whole can in after I hacked the solids out of the can. But, it worked
Jeanne
Light and creamy homemade hummus! It’s amazing! Thanks for the great tips!!!
Peter S. Suluma
This my second attempt at making homemade hummus and everyone always enjoying it.
I like hummus as my favourite recipe and I always enjoy to have it.
Hilary Vedder
GREAT RECIPE! I DID ADD MORE SALT AND ANOTHER HALF OF A LEMON JUICED AND IT TURNED OUT DELICIOUS! SO MUCH BETTER THAN STORE BOUGHT AND I LIKE HOW ITS SO CUSTOMIZABLE. SOAKING THE CHICKPEAS WITH BAKING SODA WORKED WONDERFULLY :)
Sara
This is a good hummus recipe! I cook my chickpeas in a crockpot for 4-5 hours which makes them really soft and flavorful and they can just go in without the baking soda or stove cooking. I got really strong tahini (I had never used that brand before) so the first batch was overpowered by the tahini flavor. Second and third batches I cut it in half and it was perfect. If you’re using tahini from Trader Joe’s the recipe proportions should be fine. I also liked this recipe because the garlic wasn’t as strong. It is a very flavorful, mellow, easily adaptable recipe.
Mel
Such great tips! The lemon/garlic and the baking soda are fantastic. But I’m not sure what I did wrong because my hummus was too smooth and creamy and not thick like hummus should be. I wasn’t able to do the little grooves with my fork for the olive oil
Paddy
I’ve made this recipe for over a year now. The intriguing steps to bring this top-notch recipe together appears to have been thoroughly researched, tested and tried. Simply because it is beautifully delicious. Follow directions exactly as written. I used the Soom brand tahini. Soaking the garlic in the lemon juice for 10 plus minutes really helps, be sure to include this step. When serving in the summer, I sprinkle fresh chopped mint throughout sprinkle Sumac on top. Tip: Do not refrigerate if serving for company, it toughens up a bit. Take out of fridge 2 hours before storing.
Tami
It was very creamy, which I liked, but pretty bland. I would like it to have more punch. I put in extra garlic and cumin, and added chili powder to spice it up, but it was still very bland. I was disappointed.
Kate
I’m sorry to hear you didn’t love it, Tami.
sidders2
Did you skimp on the salt? It brings out the flavour of all other ingredients….
Kate
You can add more if you like!
Dani
So grateful! So yummy! Thanks for sharing your super important not-so-secret tips!!
Kate
You’re welcome, Dani!
Lisa
I made the hummus recipe for a Super Bowl party and served with veggies, fresh herbs (mint/basil/parsley) and toasted pita chips. It was a huge hit. I should have made a double recipe! Thank you for the useful tips on tahini and cooking the chickpeas! Will definitely make again!
Kate
Thanks for sharing, Lisa!
Charlene Miller
My 6 year old son has recently discovered “hummus and pita”. This was the first recipe I came across that said “easy”… I’m sold!
I’ve made hummus before but didn’t like it, didn’t bother trying again.
Well, that all changed today!! This recipe is incredible, I can’t wait for my son to try it. I boiled down the chickpeas, let the lemon and garlic soak in the vitamix, threw it all together and couldn’t stop eating it like soup!!! My 2 year old daughter quite enjoyed the process as well… and the final result!!!
Bravo!! Great recipe, thank you!
Kate
Hooray! I love your son love hummus and that you found a recipe you would make again!
Laurie
I had given up on making a decent hummus until I made this. Truly, I’m not stalking you Kate! It’s just that every recipe I’ve tried is so dang good! Being a newbie at this way of eating, I feel so relieved to have a “go to” website for making wholesome and delicious food for my family.
Kate
I love it! :)
Lynnie
Yes! This is definitely a keeper, worth the effort of cooking the chickpeas, turns out beautifully smooth, I replaced olive oil with avocado oil. Love, love, love!
Steph G
Best ever! Never buying store bought hummus again!
Kate
I love to hear that, Steph! Thanks for your review.
Janae
Very yummy. First time making hummus. I ran out of ground cumin and used whole cumin instead-gave it a slightly unique taste.Maybe I will grind the cumin first next time. A bit bummed that the baking soda takes out some of the Vitamin B. Does the baking soda make a big difference?
Kate
Hi Janae! Thank you for your comment. The baking soda helps with the overall process to get the flavor delicious and texture smooth.
Sheryl Joplin
That is the best hummus I have ever tasted! Made it with dried chick peas the first time, canned the second. Really no difference except the amount of time. It’s a healthy snack with carrot sticks.
Kate
I’m glad you love it, Sheryl!
Bella
So do you pick out the skins that have come off? Or do you stick them right back with the chickpeas in the blender?
Kate
No need to pick them off! Put them with the rest in the blender or food processor.
Louise
I have tried making hummus a bunch of times but nothing beats this one! This is now my go-to hummus!
Its creamy fluffy and just divine! Since i made it first time i have my partner asking for hummus Weekly! Very Well done describing everything ! I love it!
Darina
Absolutely delicious Kate. I have been making humus for a while but this recipe is the best. Thank you
Meg
Finally made your hummus- absolutely yummy! Love the tip about baking soda. My husband says it’s the best hummus he’s ever eaten. So superior to store bought. I doubled the recipe and so glad I did, since we are eating this every day. Thanks for a great recipe!!
Holly Love
Absolutely the best hummus recipe ever. I tried so, SO many over the years and always had some complaint on texture or taste. THIS is the way you do it, people!!!!
Teri Ann Peri
This really THE BEST! I will never get store bought again. It is so creamy.
Thank you Kate
Clancy Sohn
Best hummus I’ve ever tasted! Followed the directions exactly and it honestly is the best! ❤️
Zellie B
Great recipe. Interesting about boiling canned garbanzo beans, but it worked. Very smooth and delicious. I perhaps added 1 tsp too much water. Be careful of this.
Carole Bartlett
Made this hummus dip a couple of times. Absolutely perfect! Wonderful texture and flavor. Makes a believer even out of those that don’t particularly like hummus!
This one’s going in my recipe binder! Thanks!
Tracy T.
I have never loved hummus more! SO much better homemade! This recipe is AMAZING, creamy perfection❤️
It’s so creamy, garlicky, lemony and definitely the best I’ve ever tasted. Will be making this on repeat for my girls. Thanks for the great tips!!
Denise Willmarth
Do you cook the canned chick peas?
Kate
Hey Denise, canned chickpeas are pre-cooked but we’re cooking them again for this recipe.
Jan
Im very happy ;)
Holly Kozminski
I really thought my hummus recipe was the best, then on a whim I decided to try yours. I was wrong. I love yours, the creaminess is amazing. The only thing I added was Alden Mills Miracle Blend, because I put that on everything.:) Thank you for your great recipes.
Lenka
I can’t believe my taste buds :). I lived in the Middle East for years, where we always bought ready made hummus, of course. After returning back to the Czech Republic, all hummus in stores was just chick-pea porridge, similar to what I could do myself, only I made it with great Israeli tahini at least. Now with this recipe, I am back in the Middle East. Thank you so much for your hummus investigation. I found your blog only a couple of days ago and all your recipes look tempting, I shall try some. Regards from Czech!
Andrea
Amazing! Smooth, fluffy, mild and so tasty! Thank yooooou for this recipe!
Daniel
Looking forward to trying this! I’ve been trying to make homemade hummus but haven’t gotten the texture quite perfect (haven’t tried peeling the skins or using baking soda yet), so was excited to see some ideas on how to get that better.
One thing I was wondering – I would plan to use dried chickpeas in mine, and I saw you mentioned cooking the chickpeas without pre-soaking them first. Is that just due to time constraints (the section says “in a hurry”) or is pre-soaking unnecessary when using baking soda? I would think soaking would make them even better, but maybe the baking soda takes care of that.
Thanks!
Kate
Hi Daniel! Yes, per the note below. I hope that helps. The baking soda works magic!
CMB
DANG…. I made this for my husband… I almost ate it all before he got home. BEST. HUMMUS. EVER. You can dip anything in it, but my personal favorite… spoon to mouth!!! It’s soooooo amazingly good. Thank you. Never buying hummus again, thanks to you.
Charlotte
Oh my goodness. I just made this (literally finished blending ten minutes ago) and it is INCREDIBLE. I’m not sure I’ll ever be able to buy hummus from a store again. I only used about half as much tahini because that’s all I had, but other than that I followed the recipe exactly. Thank you!
Cyndie
I made this tonight and it is so creamy & delicious! I used lemon-flavored olive oil from a local winery/olive oil maker and that put it over the top. My only issue was it was I tried to make it in a blender that has a food processor button & it kept getting clogged up in the blender blades. Next time I’ll use the actual food processor. Yes, there will definitely be a next time!
Padmaja Vangipuram
Hi Kate! I love hummus. It’s amazing with warm rotis. The recipe sounds promising. Do you have a recipe for tahini as well? I’m from India and we don’t get tahini here commercially. Thanks in advance. Can’t wait to try it out!
Kate
Hi Padmaja! That’s a great question. I’ve tried making tahini from scratch (by simply blending sesame seeds in the food processor until creamy) and was only semi-successful. The trouble is that most tahinis are made with hulled sesame seeds, and I’ve never been able to buy hulled sesame seeds nor have I figured out a way to remove the hulls myself. The hulls contain fiber that can make the tahini less creamy and also less tasty, in my opinion. I’m sorry!
Michelle Nasser
Will have to try boiling the canned chickpeas. I haven’t had an issue with creamy texture… I add some of the separated can juice. Someone asked about Lebanese hummus. In my family experience, there’s no cumin. Cumin is for tahini sauce.
Carol Blundell Conrad
I have made hummus for years. I never peeled the beans and I always used canned, but I used about 1/2 cup of olive oil to can of beans to get that creamy texture. This is fabulous….so creamy with less calories from the olive oil. Thank you,Kate. I love your blog!
Lauren Mueller
Thanks for the recipe. Easy to make. However, I used the full 1/3 cup tahini (of very good quality) and it was too much. Overall, loved the creaminess of the result and letting the garlic mellow in the lemon juice did add to the flavor. But I will definitely only use 1/4 cup of tahini next time I make this recipe.
Shon
Uhm…Your don’t mention when to put the chickpeas in the blender. I’m assuming it’s before step two?
Kate
Hi! See step 5.
Shon Pistoll
Oh! Duh! I just ended up throwing everything in together and blended it for a few minutes until supper smooth. It came out great! (twice already!) I think next week I’ll throw an avocado in and switch lemon for lime!
Mandy
Amazing! First try making hummus ever and it turned out great! It was a hit at the office too. If I wanted it to be garlic flavored, how many extra cloves would you suggest using before it’s over the top?
Thanks!
Kate
Hi Mandy! Garlic can get overpowering quickly. It also depends on size of clove. I like the ratio in this recipe and method to mellow it.
Sandee
OH MY GAWD this is absolutely incredible! I kid you not, it is worth the extra time to boil! I am not joking! THANK YOU!!
Kyle Marie
Best hummus recipe out there. We’ve tried some others and no comparison. Thanks!
Mindy DuBois
Best hummus recipe I’ve ever tried. Creamy and delicious.
Juju
I love this hummus recipe because it is light and fluffy. It reminds me of a local Marietta Meditteranean restaurant’s hummus.
Lucy
This recipe was amazing!!! I love to eat…but not a cook. My friends buy me smoke alarms for my birthday. This was easy, very well explained, and loved the helpful notes. My daughter and I made the recipe and it was so delicious and creamy (as promised!!!) Thank you
judy
Delicious hummus recipe! I have been using a different recipe posted online and I thought it was very good but wanted a change from the same old —I like how the hummus was so fluffy and smooth. I cooked my already overly cooked chickpeas as directed and was surprised the difference it madeI I started to pick out the skins till I saw your tip that it was not necessary. Nice balance of flavors and texture- Thanks!
Rebecca
Wow! I used home cooked garbanzos. Delicious recipe. Thank you.
Amy
Boiling the chickpeas with baking soda is brilliant! Creamiest hummus ever. Thank you!
Cass
Do you have a recipe for the bread in these photos?
Kate
Sorry Cass, I’ve yet to perfect a whole wheat pita bread recipe. Those were store-bought from a local company.
Sri
Thank you for this! I’ve made hummus quite a few times before, but never had it turn out as soft as this. It was so light and fluffy, yet intensely flavorful. The only change was that I made my own tahini at home, since it’s pretty simple to make. Again, loved this! Thanks!
Tori
Thank you so much for this recipe and technique. Finally, after years of trying, I made hummus with the right texture and the perfect garlic taste!
Bonnie
A few months ago, my husband and I decided to convert to a plant based way of life; it has been a very good thing but there have been challenges, and finding consistently good hummus was one of them.
That challenge is no more.
I have bought my last tub of hummus at the store, because this is the very best stuff ever! (Also, today I added a couple of roasted jalapeños and, oh, my!) Thank you for this recipe – it’s a game changer.
Bonnie
A few months ago, my husband and I decided to convert to a plant based way of life; it has been a very good thing but there have been challenges, and finding consistently good hummus was one of them. So many tubs contain coarse, gluey hummus, and I hate the single use plastic.
That challenge is no more.
I have bought my last tub of hummus at the store, because this is the very best stuff ever! (Also, today I added a couple of roasted jalapeños and, oh, my!) Thank you for this recipe – it’s a game changer.
Allison
Wonderful & creamy! Not to mention very cost effective for hummus-lovers. Could a similar method be applied to white beans for a white bean hummus? I’d love to make other hummus varieties with the same smooth, creaminess. Thanks!
Kate
Hi Allison! That’s a good idea. I haven’t tried, but I think it would work. I wonder if white beans might break down more quickly when boiled. Please report back if you give it a go.
Steve Leary
I gave up trying to make hummus a long time ago….it always tasted too much of raw garlic, olive oil or just generally unbalanced. Reading how you came to your recipe made me want to try once again and I’m so glad I did…. it’s sensational in the true sense of the word. I used dried chickpeas and a good Lebanese tahini, the garlic/lemon process really tempered the raw garlic taste. Thank you so much for sharing it xx
Dominika Ratajczyk
Maybe it is a stupid question, but, do I boil the caned chickpeas?
Kate
Hi there! You do, per step 1.
Kate
Yes, you boil the canned chickpeas. :)
Sean Sayers
I made this hummus, and let me tell I have great smooth creamy hummus before; but this is by far the best I have ever had will never be able to go back to store bought again
Sara
great recipe for hummus well worth the extra steps
Sheila
Finally! I’ve been made homemade hummus before but I was never happy with the results. The texture was off and the raw garlic and tahini made it taste bitter. Following the recipe and tips it came out perfect! I will use a little less lemon next time, but that’s just a personal preference.
Kate
I’m glad you loved my version, Sheila! Thanks for commenting.
Chin
Loved this recipe but do you have to separate off the chickpea skins after boiling them? And if you use dry chickpeas would you have to soak them first
Kate
Hi Chin! No need to peel. See my notes on cooking chickpeas in a hurry at the bottom of the recipe. :)
Seline
I’ve been craving the hummus that was easy to find anywhere in East London where I lived until ten years ago. The hummus here in Manila always tastes like yogurt even in some of the “authentic” restaurants. I followed your recipe with no expectation of success because:
1) I made the tahini myself but forgot to toast the seeds before pulsing.
2) I was using tinned chickpeas and had no intention of removing the skins.
3) I’m disorganized and was bound to miss an important step in the recipe.
4) I tasted my creamy chickpeas and creamy tahini separately and they were both bland.
5) I was ready to accept that the chickpeas and sesame seeds in thos countey must be a different variety because all the hummus I’ve tried so far taste nowhere near.
So you can imagine my shock when I first had a tiny glob of the finished product. This is the exact taste! I just can’t believe I wasted all that time searching and fantasizing about hummus, never realizing I could try to make it myself. You cured a 10-year craving. It was so easy to make even for someone like me.
Sorry I can’t get over it.
CL
Yay! Thank you so much–I will never buy hummus again! I’ve made this twice and it is creamy and delicious, really just perfect. I make mine in the Nutri-Bullet. I plan on having it on-hand all the time! You solved all the problems I’ve had in the past making my own (not creamy, too strong garlic flavor, having to peel, etc.). I’ll definitely check out more of your recipes. Thanks again. :)
Emily
The tahini I get is super bitter, so I cut it back by about half and it is amazing! I used dried chickpeas (soak overnight) and it turned out great. The addition of the ice water makes it so creamy and fluffy – I’ll never need to look for another hummus recipe!
Kulisek
I used canned chickpeas and added the baking soda as directed, but I would not do this next time. It neutralizes the lemon juice so you have to add twice as much to get any flavor from it. I added some ground cayenne pepper which gave it some heat.
BTW, if you’re making tomato sauce from scratch, and it’s a little too tart, don’t add sugar. Put in tiny amounts of baking soda a little at a time until the sauce has just the right amount of acidity for your taste.
Anna
How long does it last for in the fridge?
Kate
Leftover hummus keeps well in the refrigerator, covered, for up to 1 week.