Ultra-Smooth Whipped Hummus

By Sprig Originals ✓ · cooked up in Sprig

The silkiest hummus you can make at home: dried chickpeas simmered far past tender with baking soda until their skins slip away, then whipped hot with a heavy pour of good tahini, lemon, and ice water until the bowl goes pale and mousse-like. Restaurant mezze plates charge about $14 for this texture — it costs pennies and one long, unhurried simmer.

Ingredients

• 1 cup dried chickpeas
• 1 1/2 tsp baking soda, divided
• 8 cups water, for cooking
• 1 garlic clove, peeled and smashed

• 3/4 cup good-quality tahini, well stirred (Lebanese, Palestinian, or Israeli brand)
• 1 small garlic clove, grated on a Microplane
• 3 tbsp fresh lemon juice, plus more to taste
• 1 1/4 tsp fine sea salt, plus more to taste
• 1/4 tsp ground cumin
• 1/3 cup ice water, plus more as needed

• 3 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
• 1/4 tsp sumac or paprika
• 2 tbsp reserved whole cooked chickpeas
• 1 tbsp chopped flat-leaf parsley
• warm pita, for serving

Instructions

1. The night before, put the dried chickpeas in a large bowl with 1 teaspoon of the baking soda and cover with 4 cups cool water. Soak at room temperature 12 to 18 hours; they should roughly double in size and feel plump.
2. Drain and rinse the soaked chickpeas well under cold running water, rubbing them between your hands — a few skins will already float free. Discard the soaking water.
3. Put the chickpeas in a medium saucepan with the remaining 1/2 teaspoon baking soda and the smashed garlic clove. Add 8 cups fresh water and bring to a boil over high heat. It will foam aggressively; skim off the gray foam and loose skins with a spoon for the first 5 minutes.
4. Reduce to a bare simmer, partially cover, and cook 60 to 80 minutes, stirring occasionally and topping up with hot water if the chickpeas peek above the surface. You are cooking them well past tender: a chickpea should completely collapse to paste when pressed against the side of the pan with no resistance in the center. Undercooked chickpeas are the single biggest cause of grainy hummus, so give them more time if there is any bite left.
5. Set aside 2 tablespoons of the whole chickpeas for garnish, then drain the rest, reserving 1 cup of the cooking liquid. Do not rinse and do not let them cool — hot chickpeas puree far smoother.
6. Transfer the hot chickpeas to a food processor and run for 2 to 3 full minutes, scraping down twice, until you have a thick, stiff, completely smooth paste with no visible pieces. Be patient here; this is the base of the texture.
7. Add the tahini, grated garlic, lemon juice, salt, and cumin. Process 1 minute more — the mixture will seize up and look pasty and pale. That is exactly right.
8. With the machine running, drizzle in the ice water 1 tablespoon at a time, then continue processing 3 to 4 minutes. The hummus will lighten in color, climb the sides of the bowl, and turn glossy and mousse-like. Add more ice water, 1 tablespoon at a time, until it is slightly looser than you want to serve it — it firms as it cools. If it needs body instead, add a spoonful of the reserved cooking liquid.
9. Taste and adjust: more salt for depth, more lemon for lift. Let the hummus rest 20 to 30 minutes at room temperature so the garlic mellows and the salt distributes.
10. To serve, spread the hummus in a wide shallow bowl and use the back of a spoon to sweep a spiral well from the center outward. Pool the olive oil in the well, scatter the reserved chickpeas, and finish with sumac and parsley. Serve at room temperature with warm pita.

Chef's tips

Nutrition (per serving, estimated)

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