Ultra-Creamy Chickpea Hummus with Herbs

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It’s worth making hummus from scratch! If you’re bored with the basic flavor and texture of store-bought hummus, you can jazz up your snacking with this recipe for the creamiest homemade hummus. It’s made with chickpeas that are brightened up with with fresh basil, garlic, cilantro and cumin.

Yes, making homemade hummus takes more time than popping a lid off a plastic container, but it’s so worth it! I put this lusciously creamy dip right next to my roasted eggplant baba ganoush because not only does it taste great, it’s miles away from the stuff you buy in grocery stores.

Israeli-style hummus

Admittedly, I didn’t always bother making my own hummus until I had a life-changing hummus moment happened at an Israeli restaurant in Philadelphia. We had an amazing meal (omg, the lamb!), but later I couldn’t stop thinking about the hummus It was like nothing I’d had before.

For one thing, their hummus was mixed with an abundance of tahini. And, it was served warm on a plate, not refrigerator cold. This Israeli-style hummus was almost liquid in consistency, with an incredibly smooth, sensuous texture like whipped cream.

The secret to super creamy hummus

I’ve tried different recipes and methods testing hummus, including adding baking soda, and one that required peeling each individual chickpea (I drew a firm line against that one!). After making so many batches of hummus, I came away with a couple of simple, but important steps.

• Drizzling in cold water while pureeing the chickpeas creates a fabulous creamy texture.
• The biggest takeaway for making ultra-creamy hummus at home? Pureeing the mixture in a food processor for a longer time than you would think, about 3 minutes.
• If you’re starting from scratch with dried chickpeas, you’ll have much better results using ones that haven’t been stored for ages.

Key ingredients

The best hummus recipe doesn’t require a ton of ingredients, and it’s often made very quickly in a food processor or blender. Here’s what you need:

• Chickpeas: The freshest dried chickpeas (garbanzo beans) come from stores with a high turnover. An electric pressure cooker is a game-changer when it comes to cooking dried chickpeas, or really any bean. To make a super-quick hummus, skip the step for cooking chickpeas and use 2 15-ounce cans of drained chickpeas.
• Tahini: Look for liquid tahini paste made from hulled Ethiopian sesame seeds — you can bet I’m the one in the grocery store shaking up jars! If your tahini is hard and separated, give it a good shake or stir it up well before pouring it out.

More ways to serve hummus

• Smear some hummus on a large platter and top with these juicy spiced turkey meatballs.
• Place a scooped alongside a Mediterranean farro salad.
• Top flatbread with roasted red peppers, arugula, feta and hummus for a tasty lunch or appetizer.

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Ultra-Creamy Chickpea Hummus with Herbs

Karen Tedesco

It's worth making hummus from scratch! If you're bored with the basic flavor and texture of store-bought hummus, you can jazz up your snacking with this recipe for the creamiest homemade hummus. It's made with chickpeas that are brightened up with with fresh basil, garlic, cilantro and cumin.

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4.96 from 21 community reviews

Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 1 hour hr 30 minutes mins

Total Time 1 hour hr 40 minutes mins

Course Appetizers and Snacks

Cuisine Middle Eastern

Servings 12 servings

Equipment

Food processor

Ingredients

Yield: 3 cups (1/4 cup per serving)

• ▢ 2 cups cooked chickpeas, or 2 15-ounce cans chickpeas (drained)
• ▢ 1 plump garlic clove, chopped
• ▢ ½ cup tahini paste
• ▢ ¼ cup lemon juice, plus more if needed
• ▢ 1 cup fresh herbs – I like a mix of cilantro, basil and parsley
• ▢ 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• ▢ 1½ teaspoons ground cumin, optional
• ▢ Fine sea salt
• ▢ Ice cold water, as needed

Garnish

• ▢ Paprika, smoked or sweet
• ▢ Extra virgin olive oil

Instructions 

Make the hummus

• Put the chickpeas in a food processor. Add the garlic, ½ cup tahini paste, ¼ cup lemon juice, fresh herbs, 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, 1½ teaspoons ground cumin and 1½ teaspoons salt. 
• Puree the mixture for least 3 minutes, dribbling in cold water 2 tablespoons at a time until the hummus is velvety smooth.
• To serve, scoop some hummus onto a shallow bowl or plate and spread it out with the back of a spoon. To garnish, dust with paprika and drizzle with olive oil.

Karen’s Notes and Tips

• This hummus tastes best freshly made for up to 5 days (store refrigerated)

To cook chickpeas in an Instant pot or pressure cooker: 

• Put a half pound of dried, unsoaked chickpeas in the pressure cooker pot.
• Cover with 6 cups water and add 1 teaspoon salt.
• Cook on high pressure 42 minutes, releasing the pressure naturally. Drain and cool.

Nutrition

Calories: 82kcal Carbohydrates: 3g Protein: 2g Fat: 8g Sodium: 4mg Fiber: 1g Sugar: 0.1g

Nutrition facts are calculated by third-party software. If you have specific dietary needs, please refer to your favorite calculator.

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• Appetizers
• Beans
• Make Ahead
• Mediterranean Diet
• Vegetarian and Vegan

Hey, I’m Karen

Creator of Familystyle Food

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I’m a food obsessed super-taster and professionally trained cook ALL about creating elevated dinners with everyday ingredients. Find simplified recipes made from scratch and enjoy incredibly tasty food! Read more about me here.