Hummus, Improved

I've blogged my hummus recipe before, but there's something I wanted to mention about the great hummus served by the Lebanese restaurants of Dearborn. I have never been able to replicate the hummus of New Yasmeen or La Shish. But I know why now, and I'm getting close.

 

I use the same tahini as New Yaz does. Heck , I buy it there. That was something that I learned early on that moved my version much closer to theirs. The stuff you get in grocery stores sucks. The tahini Yaz uses comes right from Lebanon and it's very thin, way thinner than peanut butter. Thinner than pancake batter even...more like crepe batter. I also use the exact same olive oil they do (I also buy that there). Again, right from Lebanon and it's good stuff (and cheap).

 

I process the hummus for a long long time to make it as smooth as possible because their version is ultra-smooth. I use lots of garlic and lemon juice just like they do.

 

In my eternal effort to reverse-engineer New Yaz hummus, I have done much study and investigation, and have come to the conclusion that there are still two differences between how I make it and how they make it:

 

1) They use boiled dried chick peas, I use canned. They also use the fresh chick pea broth to thin the hummus.

 

2) They peel the chickpeas, I don't.

 

Well, I'm here to say that I tried #2 and wow. The difference is amazing. I'd say my current hummus recipe, done this way is 97% as good as New Yaz. And yeah, I realize that's a bold statement. The peeling of two cans of chick peas takes 10-15 minutes (half that if you have help:) but if you have the time, it's well worth the effort. You do lose some fiber, but we're going for authenticity here.

 

Another change I made is to run the garlic through a micro-plane grater instead of adding it whole. This avoids ending up with big round chunks the processor missed in the hummus. I suppose you could also use a garlic press but this is just as fast and way smoother.

 

Here's an update of my recipe to reflect the new stuff. As you may have guessed, next I'm going to get some dried chick peas and make a play for that last 3%! I'll update the recipe again with my findings.

 

 

Dave's Reverse-Engineered New Yaz Hummus

 

2  15 oz cans of Chick peas, drained. Every brand will give you a different texture and flavor of hummus, and there is a great deal of variation in quality within a brand as well. Get a high quality brand.

 

1/4 cup olive oil. I use a fruity yellowish version from Lebanon which I buy at New Yaz in bulk.

 

1/3 cup tahini. You have to get really good tahini. I use the stuff from Syria or Lebanon that is very thin, like crepe batter. I also get this from New Yaz.

 

Juice of two lemons. I like my hummus pretty tart and also fairly thin like New Yaz makes it. Lemons vary in acid and sweetness so taste test.

 

2 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped. You can use one if you like, but I go for broke. I run the garlic through a microplane grater so it's ultra-smooth.

 

Sea salt. Just enough, not too much. Hummus shouldn't be too salty.

 

Put these ingredients into a food processor (hummus is too thick for a blender though some people do it) and process until very smooth. I don't run it as long as I used to before I started peeling the chick peas, because I don't have to.

 

If the hummus is too thick, as mine often is for my taste, you must thin it out with water or more lemon juice. Some people also use the chick pea juice although this is sometimes good and sometimes not good depending on the brand. I've had some that is almost like jelly. For absolute authenticity use boiled dried chick peas and reserve some of that cooking liquid. That's what Yaz does.