If you enjoy hummus, making it yourself is completely worth it. It’s so much cheaper and fresher than anything you can buy at the store, and like anything you make yourself, you have ultimate control over what goes in it. If you read the label of most commercial hummus you’ll find that they use a vegetable oil other than olive oil, which does not taste as good, and many sources would say is less healthy. I also like the bright lemon flavor you get when you use fresh lemon juice, which generally isn’t possible with packaged varieties.
Making it goes quite fast. Cleanup takes slightly longer than with your typical smoothie because you may need to use a non-abrasive sponge to wipe down the sides of the container. Alternatively, you can make a soup directly after so that the remains of the hummus are blended into your soup and you don’t have to worry about scraping out every last bit.
If you use a powerful blender like a Vitamix there is the additional advantage that you do not need to buy expensive tahini: you can use whole sesame seeds that are much cheaper (and they keep better too). One thing to look out for is the distinction between hulled and unhulled sesame seeds. The first time I made Vitamix hummus I used unhulled sesame seeds and the hummus came out unpleasantly bitter. Unhulled means that they are still in the hull, which gives them a light brown appearance, compared to hulled ones that have the hull removed and are white. Traditionally tahini is made with hulled sesame seeds, and when I switched to hulled sesame seeds it tasted much better. It’s possible that if you toasted the hulled sesame seeds they would taste better; I just used them raw.
I usually cook the chickpeas myself, but you can use canned if you’re short on time and haven’t made any ahead of time. I like to make a bunch (~2 lbs) in a pressure cooker, and then save them in 2 cup containers in the freezer. If you plan ahead you can move a container from the freezer to the fridge the day before you make hummus, and the chickpeas will be nicely thawed.
Vitamix Hummus Recipe
2 cups cooked chickpeas
¼ cup bean cooking liquid or water
1 clove garlic
½ cup hulled sesame seeds
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
juice from 1 large lemon (if your lemon isn’t large you may want to have another on hand in case you want to add more to taste)
Blend it on high and, if using a Vitamix, use the tamper to make sure it circulates well. Taste it and add flavorings to your liking. You can adjust the consistency by adding more liquid or oil if you want it to be thinner.
Hummus goes nicely with freshly baked bread, or raw vegetables like carrots.
I have a fabulous hummus recipe and the Vitamix turned it from fabulous to exceptional, but now I want to try it with sesame seeds rather than tahini. Does anyone know how to convert 6 Tablespoons of tahini to regular sesame seeds?
Thanks.
My technique for doing a conversion like that is to look up the two things (in this case tahini and sesame seeds) on nutritiondata.self.com. The Nutrition Data site search is a bit clunky and annoying, so I generally do a google search instead. But nutritiondata.self.com has such good results that they are almost always a top hit when you search for “*food name here* nutrition facts.” I did it for you in this case: 1 Tbsp sesame seeds is 9 grams, and 1 Tbsp tahini is 14 grams. So your 6 Tbsp tahini is 6*(15/9) = 9.3 Tbsp sesame seeds. Please share your recipe!
I just came across this post again, and I wanted to add that after I made this comment Google started giving nutrition facts in search results. Google “*food name here* nutrition facts,” and it will give you a handy nutrition label that you can customize with different quantities of the food.
Hi wanted to thank you for the recipe. Made it in my Vitamix and it is simply delicious. Now I know exactly what is in my hummus, marvelous. Keep up the great work
James
Hi – thank you for the suggestion to use sesame seeds in place of prepared tahini — do you use the dry or the wet container?
Wet container. Anything that circulates in a liquidy state is best in the wet container. Things like flours that can be pushed up (to avoid compaction in the corners) are better in the dry container. For example, if you wanted to make almond flour, the dry container would be better, but the wet container is better for almond butter.
I tried and liked this recipe. Using seeds is a great improvement over making the tahini separately.
But much more liquid is required (1/4 water + 1/4 C oil + lemon juice = 3/4 C) proved too difficult for my Vitamix. I added probably 1 C more liquid (chicken stock is nice here), also 1 tsp cumin is very good. Did anybody succeed with the liquids as listed above. I will continue to use this recipe with these minor adjustments.
This recipe requires vigorous use of the tamper (push down the corners of the mixture). If you like a thinner hummus there’s nothing wrong with adding more liquid, but it should be possible to get it to blend using the tamper with the listed amounts.
Hi, Adam. Thanks for the conversion ratio from tahini to sesame seeds. I just bought a Vitamix and was googling around to find out how to substitute seeds for tahini in my hummus, and your comment was just what I needed.
I noticed that Linda did not post the recipe you asked for. I love my recipe for hummus and have gotten raves about it for years; it’s an adaptation of the one in the Greens cookbook. Here it is:
Hummus
Ingredients:
• 2 – 15 oz cans garbanzos (drained; save the liquid) or equivalent cooked garbanzos
• Salt to taste (not too much; start with a tsp. and add as needed)
• 6 Tbs tahini (or sesame butter; same difference)
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
• The juice of 2 lemons
• 3 Tbs good olive oil
• 1 Tbs ground cumin
• 1/2 – 3/4 tsp cayenne (start with less, test, then add more if necessary)
• 1/4 cup liquid (maybe a little more) from the beans
Procedure:
Start by peeling the garlic and chopping it in the food processor.
Add the beans to the garlic in the food processor along with the tahini, lemon juice, olive oil, salt, cumin, and cayenne, and process until very smooth. Be careful that liquids and seasonings are added low, around the edges of the food processor bowl, so they don’t leak out.
If necessary (and it probably will be), thin with the liquid from the beans to get it to the right consistency. Don’t add the bean liquid until the initial processing is underway, though; the liquid can ooze out of the food processor if added before blending, possibly taking some of the seasonings with it.
Taste and adjust the salt, cayenne, cumin, lemon, and oil to your own preferences.
Serve it with slices of pita bread, vegetables, etc.
Raw vegan tahini sauce (Yummo!)
1 small handful raw cashews
1/2 cup tahini
1 cup water
3 cloves garlic
3 tbsp apple cider vinegar
* 2 tbsp nutritional yeast
Dash of extra virgin olive oil
Dash of soy or tamari
Generous sprinkle of black pepper
1) Blend all in blender- of course I use the fabulous Vitamix!
* if not vegetarian, can swap for any strong cheese
Never buying store bought hummus again. Very simple recipe and makes a lot of hummus. THANK YOU for posting this recipe.
Quite late to the table; nonetheless, I heartily recommend–when using canned chickpeas, at that–microwaving the beans and the canned liquid on high for 4-5 minutes WITH the garlic clove(s).
That’s usually why the hummus at Mediterranean restaurants is so good ‘n creamy without the “chalky” subtle texture. Speaking from professional experience here.
Do this with hulled sesame seeds per Alex’s suggestion and you’ve got gold!
Never too late to comment on recipes around here! Thanks for the tip. I usually cook chickpeas myself in a pressure cooker, and I cook them to a softer consistency than canned.
Be careful blending extra virgin olive oil. Most people don’t have problems, because most of what’s sold under this label is not really extra virgin (and a lot of it isn’t even olive oil … do a search on the various schemes going on around Southern Europe).
But if you do have the real stuff, especially if it’s the more flavorful varieties (which are less filtered and tend to be darker and cloudier, maybe with sediment) blending can release some of the polyphenol compounds. These usually stay coated with fatty acids that keep their biter flavors from being detectable on your tongue. A powerful blender can make good extra virgin oil almost inedibly bitter.
I think the best bet is to use olive oil the traditional way with hummus. Use good stuff, but don’t blend it in or even mix it in. Make a little depression in the hummus on your serving plate and pour some olive oil into it. When people dip, they can mix in as much or as little olive oil as they like.
Or if you prefer the oil mixed in, just stir it in by had after blending.
Thanks for the comment! For my next batch I’ll try to remember to split it in half and blend half with the olive oil and compare the flavor.
I’ve been making hummus for years. I tend to switch out the lemon juice and instead add something like
– sun dried tomatoes
– roasted garlic
– artichoke hearts
– pesto (everyone loves this one)
Then I serve up some homemade pita chips (very easy) and it’s wonderful.
Wow! It works! Thanks for this.
Hummus supposed to be slghtly bitter.