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Hummus (Arabic: حمٌص 'hoummos ▶(?); Armenian translit: hamos; Greek: Χούμους; Hebrew: חומוס; also rendered as houmous, hommus, or humus )

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Originally posted by andi330:
You can't find chickpeas? Have you looked in the garbonzo beans section instead?

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*breathe* *breathe* *breathe* *breathe* *breathe* *breathe* *breathe*

Okay, I'm fine now. *breathe* No, really I am.

Um, andi, I think you don't know where I live. Sri Lanka. And I was happy to find red kidney beans the other day - first time I'd seen them here. Shopping is a whole other experience living in this country, let me tell ya!

kq - hey, sure! If you feel like sending me one, I won't argue! I'll let you know if I find any here before it gets sent.
 

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Posted by ketchupqueen (Member # 6877) on :
 
quid, I have looked it up, and they definitely do sell chickpeas in Sri Lanka. You just haven't found them yet. And have you asked anyone yet?
 

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Posted by quidscribis (Member # 5124) on :
 
Nope. Haven't.

Short version of that story - my CPAP's dead, I'm sleep deprived, and on top of constant nausea and headaches, I feel like crap. I'm not going out much at all right now, and what with my impaired memory due to said sleep deprivation, I don't remember to call anyone to ask. But then, it's not an emergency, so it doesn't matter if it waits a while.

But yes, I'm pretty sure it's available here as well. Like you said, I just have to find it. I mean, heck, chickpea flour is available in every grocery store. It's gotta be here somewhere.
 

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Posted by ketchupqueen (Member # 6877) on :
 
Awww.

What's the word on the CPAP, btw? Any news?
 

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Posted by quidscribis (Member # 5124) on :
 
Yeah. The company's computer is having problems, so they're having problems with email, which means problems getting prices for us. Even though they know it's a matter of health and medical necessity for me to get that *insert copious profanity here* machine. *grrrr!*

Sigh.

Welcome to Sri Lanka.
 

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Posted by digging_hoIes (Member # 6963) on :
 
My sister makes humus. It's quite good. I didn't like it at first, but it grew on me.

I, on the other hand, make my own salsa. Yeah, I was surprise that I could cook something more complicated than Kraft Dinner too. And without a recipe!
 

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Posted by ketchupqueen (Member # 6877) on :
 
I make salsa just like my dad, and somehow his still turns out better. But my soups beat his all to heck, even when we use the exact same recipe. So it works out.
 

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Posted by TomDavidson (Member # 124) on :
 

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My sister makes humus.

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quote:

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Please, please, call it "hummus." For me? Because every time I see "humus," I think "forest floor."

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Tom, first I should inform you that in my mean, spiteful nature, asking me to do something because it makes you feel better is likely to make me want to do the opposite. Humus humus humus. However, as I said, this is very mean-spirited of me, which is not something to aspire to, so I will spell it "hummus", as you asked.

Just for you.
 

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Posted by Derrell (Member # 6062) on :
 
I have some questions about hummus.

1. What are chickpeas?

2. What does hummus taste like?

3. If I want to try hummus, where is the best place to get some?


Making it is out of the question because I have a limited amount of time, and because I figure you should know have at least tasted something before trying to make it.
 

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Posted by theCrowsWife (Member # 8302) on :
 
1. Chickpeas are the same thing as garbanzo beans.

2. Hummus is very garlicky. So if you like garlic, you'll probably like hummus.

3. The best place to get hummus would be a middle-eastern restaurant, if you have one in your area. You could try grocery store hummus, but it varies considerably in quality from brand to brand. I never buy it at the store, so I can't recommend any brands.

Making it by hand is very time consuming, because you have to remove the skins from the chickpeas. If you don't, it will be too thick and goopy.

Oh, and my favorite way to eat it is on pita bread (again, something that's better to get at the restaraunt than the grocery store). Tear off a piece of pita bread and use it to scoop up some hummus. In fact, that is the traditional way to eat most middle-eastern food. And if you're eating with actual middle-easterners, don't use your left hand to eat.

--Mel
 

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Posted by ketchupqueen (Member # 6877) on :
 
Trader Joe's has great hummus, for store-boughten.

And you can make it really, really easily in the blender. No peeling required. It takes 5 minutes. Seriously.
 

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Posted by Derrell (Member # 6062) on :
 
If I did buy some at the store, I don't think I'd buy it from the one I work at. I wonder if Trader Joe's carries it?
 

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Posted by ketchupqueen (Member # 6877) on :
 
*points at previous post*
 

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Posted by Derrell (Member # 6062) on :
 
I should point out that my previous post was written before I saw KQ's post.
 

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Posted by theCrowsWife (Member # 8302) on :
 
I find that it tastes better without the skins, because they do wierd things to my teeth. Like eating unripe bananas.

--Mel
 

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Posted by Mike (Member # 55) on :
 
*sigh* If only I had a food processor.
 

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Posted by ketchupqueen (Member # 6877) on :
 
When they're all ground up completely, they don't do anything to my teeth. As long as I add enough oil to emulsify properly.

But if you don't like the skins, you can take the cooked beans, mash part-way-- just about half-smooshed-- with a potato masher, and then pour water over them and wash. Most of the skins float to the top. Then drain and prepare as usual.
 

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Posted by Allegra (Member # 6773) on :
 
I looked at this thread and reached for the hummus that I brought from Indiana to Valdosta to enjoy. My roomate ate half of it! I cannot find this stuff in southern Georgia and I do not have the stuff to make it. I am a bit peeved.
 

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Posted by ketchupqueen (Member # 6877) on :
 
Garbanzos are cheap, Allegra. And one lemon doesn't cost much. Oil you should already have. And if you want tahini in it, it's a $2-$4 investment initially, but will last a long time.
 

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Posted by breyerchic04 (Member # 6423) on :
 
But you need a food processor or blender. My mom occasionally uses canned beans instead of dry ones, and it doesn't turn out badly at all. Allegra, do they have Food Lion as a grocery store, because I was in one in Atlanta, and I know they had Hummus.

I have on my list of requirements for a place I'll live, large bookstore, grocery that has at least some international food and good fresh bread, and must have a park within a twenty minute drive.
 

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Posted by ketchupqueen (Member # 6877) on :
 
I always use canned; too lazy to use dried.
 

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Posted by Will B (Member # 7931) on :
 
My favorite recipe for humus:

* 1 bucket sandy dirt
* 1 bucket of vegetable matter, fresh or rotting
* 2 buckets of leaves
* earthworms, to taste

Stir dirt, vegetable matter and 1 bucket of leaves; cover with the other bucket of leaves. Let sit for three weeks. Season with earthworms, and let sit for 2 months to a year. Serve with a shovel.
 

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Posted by breyerchic04 (Member # 6423) on :
 
see this is why it should be spelled the other way, I may or may not be able to eat anything for two days
 

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Posted by quidscribis (Member # 5124) on :
 
You don't have to have a food processor to make it. Sure, it's easier with the food processor, but it can be mashed by hand.

Just make sure you add lots and lots and lots of minced garlic. Yum!
 

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Posted by Sterling (Member # 8096) on :
 

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Originally posted by Derrell:
I have some questions about hummus.

1. What are chickpeas?

2. What does hummus taste like?

3. If I want to try hummus, where is the best place to get some?


Making it is out of the question because I have a limited amount of time, and because I figure you should know have at least tasted something before trying to make it.

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1. Chickpeas (or garbonzo beans) are vaguely round, pale yellow-orange legumes most common to middle eastern cuisine. They tend to be sweet (though less so than, say, kidney beans) and somewhat starchy tasting.

2. Hummus CAN be garlicy (and I like it so) but it varies a lot by recipe. I've seen hummus with sundried tomatoes, with spinach, with vinegar. Many American supermarkets carry it in their deli/specialty foods sections these days. The most common iterations involve garbonzo beans and tahini (a peanut-butter like paste made of ground sesame seeds.) It is usually about the thickness of a bean dip, slightly spicy with hints of tartness, and altogether good.

3. I second ketchup queen's endorsement of Trader Joe's hummus, if you have one nearby, but with a caveat that I found their "hummus nouveau" blend unpalatable. When I make hummus I tend to use the Moosewood Restaurant Cookbook recipe, though I recommend using some water and/or olive oil to thin it, otherwise I've found it too thick to be used as a dip.
 

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Posted by Nell Gwyn (Member # 8291) on :
 
Mmm...I loves me some hummus!

Humus is quite nice in its own right, but I'd rather not eat that - although I suppose it might be pretty nutritious if no other option was available.
 

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Posted by quidscribis (Member # 5124) on :
 
I made me some today. I'm in heaven.

Humus humus humus humus humus.

Sigh.

I'm in humus heaven.
 

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Posted by Raia (Member # 4700) on :
 
Mmm hummus from Jerusalem... I miss it!
 

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Posted by breyerchic04 (Member # 6423) on :
 
Yay Quid!!! What did Fahim think?
 

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Posted by quidscribis (Member # 5124) on :
 

quote:

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Originally posted by breyerchic04:
Yay Quid!!! What did Fahim think?

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It's all right here. Check it out.
 

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Posted by Ela (Member # 1365) on :
 
I like my own homemade chumus better than any commercially made type I have ever had. That way I can adjust the garlic, lemon juice and tahini to my own taste.

(And, yes, an alternate spelling. Since the original word is not in this alphabet, alternate spellings can be considered correct. There is no one right way to spell it.)

And sorry, Sterling, but those modern variations that you see in the stores these days containing sundried tomatoes and other exotic and non-exotic ingredients are not authentic chumus.
 

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Posted by quidscribis (Member # 5124) on :
 
Ela, love the alternate spelling! Coolness!
 

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Posted by Ela (Member # 1365) on :
 
Thanks, quid.

I would also like to point out that humus is better if it is not blended to a totally smooth paste. It is supposed to have texture.
 

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Posted by andi330 (Member # 8572) on :
 

quote:

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Originally posted by Will B:
My favorite recipe for humus:

* 1 bucket sandy dirt
* 1 bucket of vegetable matter, fresh or rotting
* 2 buckets of leaves
* earthworms, to taste

Stir dirt, vegetable matter and 1 bucket of leaves; cover with the other bucket of leaves. Let sit for three weeks. Season with earthworms, and let sit for 2 months to a year. Serve with a shovel.

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