Perfect Hummus : IHCC

"Got A Pulse?" is the theme for last week at I Heart Cooking Clubs (IHCC). And the Optional Monthly Community Recipe for this month is Hummus. I'm late with this post, been busy the whole of last week, but I'm not going to miss out on making hummus, something that I've been wanting to do for ages. The current featured chef at IHCC is Yotam Ottolenghi, whose recipes we are cooking from until September, and so far, his recipes has been fantastic!

Here's the "Perfect Hummus", as called by Yotam Ottolenghi. Now I can understand what the fuss is all about in bloggerland about Hummus, this is darn right delicious! And so, easy peasy to make! I love it! I ate these delicious Hummus with some wholemeal tortilla wraps which I toasted till crispy, yummy!

The recipe calls for dried chickpeas to be soaked overnight and boiled for a few hours until soft. But I have taken the easy way by using canned chickpeas. And also one of the main ingredients is Tahini, which is too expensive, since they are imported! So I have made my own Tahini paste, and it is extremely cheap to make your own, the cost is only about less than fifteen percent of what you would pay for a jar of Tahini. 

The chickpeas are processed with the Tahini paste, garlic, lemon juice to taste, a pinch of cumin powder and some salt to taste, and some cool cooked water is added in, to make a loose paste.

To make the Tahini paste, first of all, pan roast some sesame seeds (I used 2 cups) until lightly brown, taking care not to brown it too much. Leave to cool completely and process in the food processor with some canola oil and a pinch of salt until smooth and creamy. Store in a airtight jar and keep in the refrigerator. Tahini paste may taste a little bitter, but once some lemon juice is added in when using it to make Hummus, there's not a trace of bitterness in it at all.

Please do stop by I Heart Cooking Clubs (IHCC) to view the delicious dishes that my friends have made for the theme "Got A Pulse?", and if you are interested to join us, please find out more details from IHCC.

Perfect Hummus

(source from : guardian, Yotam Ottolenghi)

200gm dried chickpeas
1-1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
6 tbsps tahini
juice of 1 lemon, or more to taste
3 cloves garlic, crushed, or according to taste
pinch of cumin
salt to taste
olive oil, to top
paprika or zaatar, to top (optional)

1. Put the chickpeas in a bowl and cover with twice the volume of cold water. Stir in 1 tsp of bicarbonate of soda and leave to soak for 24 hours.
2. Drain the chickpeas, rinse well and put in a large pan. Cover withcold water and add the rest of the bicarbonate of soda. Bring to the boil, then turn down the heat and simmer gently until they're tender - they need to be easy to mush, and almost falling apart, which will take between 1 and 4 hours depending on your chickpeas. Add more hot water if they seem to be boiling dry. (I skipped the first two steps, as I've used canned chickpeas).
3. Leave them to cool in the water, and then drain well, reserving the cooking liquid, and setting aside a spoonful of chickpeas as a garnish. Mix the tahini with half of the lemon juice and half the crushed garlic - it should tighten up - then stir in enough cooled cooking liquid to make a loose paste. Add this, and the chickpeas, to a food processor and whizz to make a paste.
4. Add the cumin and a generous pinch of salt, then gradually tip in enough cooking water to give a soft paste - it should just hold its shape, but not be claggy. Taste, and add more lemon juice, garlic or salt according to taste.
5. Tip into a bowl, and when ready to serve, drizzle with olive oil, garnish with the reserved chickpeas and sprinkle with paprika or za'tar if using.

Homemade Tahini Paste
2 cups white sesame seeds
1/4 cup canola oil
pinch of salt

Pan-toast the sesame seeds over low heat in dry saucepan until lightly browned, taking care not to let the seeds become too brown. Transfer toasted sesame seeds into a big plate or kitchen paper towel to cool completely. Process in food processor with some canola oil and a pinch of salt until smooth and creamy. Store in strelized jars and keep in the refrigerator.