For four glorious months, we lived a mere 100 yards from Trader Joe’s. This also coincided with four long months of cooking in the smallest kitchen I ever want to cook in. Needless to say, I was at TJ’s on a daily basis. The pre-chopped produce and the prepared foods sections were pretty key during that time. One of my weekly TJ’s purchases was a container of hummus. There were so many different options…Mediterranean, red pepper, roasted garlic…all of which were delicious and convenient.
We still live close to a grocery store (thank goodness!), but it’s no TJ’s. I have one hummus option at the grocery store, and one pretty gross option at that. I really don’t understand what they put in it to make it so gross, but just trust me; you don’t want it. So I’ve been making my own hummus, and it turns out it’s pretty darn easy. And it’s easy to keep the ingredients on hand. The hardest part is probably washing the food processor at the end, but dishes are just a small price to pay for healthy, creamy, and yummy hummus.
I’ve experimented with a bunch of different recipes, and they all seem to have different tricks to make smooth hummus. Some peel off the shell of the chickpeas and some blend the ingredients in a certain order for optimal creaminess. I found that I couldn’t taste difference when those extra steps were taken, so my recipe is pretty darn simple. Hence the “easiest hummus” title I have awarded it.
Throw all the ingredients in.
Blend.
Done.
Even faster than walking the 100 yards to the store.
- 1 can of chickpeas, drained and rinsed (15 ounces//400 grams)
- 3 tablespoons tahini
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- juice from one large lemon
- 1 garlic clove
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- dash of paprika for serving
- Put all the ingredients into a food processor. Process until the hummus has a smooth and creamy texture. Spoon the hummus into an airtight container and refrigerate for at least 20 minutes before serving.
- Sprinkle a dash of paprika on top of the hummus and serve with sliced veggies, crackers, bread, or slather it on your sandwich!
5 Responses
I am so spoiled by Trader Joe’s. I always have their hummus in my fridge. Confession time? I’ve never actually made hummus. Ah! Shocking! But this looks so easy. You’ve inspired me!
I probably wouldn’t have either! I have no complaints about TJ’s hummus, but I have to say, I might be converted to homemade! (i say that now, but I’ll let you know what happens when I have the option again:)
I love TJ’s but homemade hummus is the absolute best! And so inexpensive with canned beans and a jar of tahini that lasts forever! Yours looks awesome, Caitlin! Pass the pita chips and veggies!
Are you referring to the one they sell at Coop? It’s awful! I’ve also been making my own, I like adding in roasted red peppers too! Great post 🙂
Yes! That’s the stuff! I just don’t know how they can even call it hummus. Red pepper hummus sounds delicious! I plan to do some more experimenting with different types too….beet hummus coming to the blog soon 🙂