Author Topic: Hummus - Israeli\Lebanonese Heaven.  (Read 8309 times)

Tomer1

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Hummus - Israeli\Lebanonese Heaven.
« on: January 27, 2011, 09:35:17 PM »
Backround:This is one of the tastiest and heaviest food of the Mediterranean kitchen,
One of those dishes that you eat early in the morning and feel like going back to sleep.
Main thing to understand is that hummus is a very free style thing.
The quality and type of thini ,variety of garbanzo,spices (if used) and type of processing greatly affect the final result in terms of flavor and consistency.

Here is my favorite way of doing it, I make it every 2-3 weeks on Friday or saturday morning along with fresh sourdough pita's I bake, fresh cut vegetables (yellow onions,tomatos and green fermented olives). Most often we skip lunch, sometimes even diner on that day.

Ingridients: (kills 3-4 people,might be served to up to 6-8)
1kg dry small variety type garbanzo
0.5kg Tahini (the whole quantity may not be needed)
Extra virgin olive oil
Salt
Lemon – the juice of 1 large fruit.
Garlic – 2 to 4 clots, according to taste.
Spices:Ground Cumin (About a fingernail pinch, its strong stuff. I normally skip it If you like it add it),Sweet\hot Paprika.


Prep:
Stage A:
1.Choose the smallest type of chickpea available, these have thinner skins and cook faster.
Pre soak overnight about 1kg of dry pees in cold water, adding 1 large tbsp of baking soda will further accelerate cooking.
2.The next day drain the water, give the pees a good wash and put them in a pressure cooker and cover with water to about 2 inchs of extra water, it can also be done in a normal covered pot It just takes about X2.5 the cooking time and you CANNOT skimp on cooking time, they have to become soft as butter turning in mush when you squeeze the pee between your fingers.
3.Bring to a boil and skim off the foam, adding more water if needed to bring water back to level and Cook for about 1-1.5 hr in pressure cooker\3-5 hr under low heat if cooked in regular pot, adding more water if too much has evaporated.

Caution: DON’T ever add salt at the cooking stage or the pees will never soften.

Stage B:1. while still steaming hot separate the pees from the cooking liquid ,keeping the liquid in a pot slowly boiling to keep it hot and a small amount of pees to top up the plate for presentation.
2. Force the pees through a seive to separate the skins from the "meat",
I used to do it manually but now I have a fancy food processor with a sieve attachment.
You may find that by the time you did this the pees are getting cold (hummus is served HOT),
Don’t worry,stick the sieved pees into the microwave for .5-1 min to warm it up.
3. Add half of the lemon juice (you may add later to correct),
3-4 tbsp of HOT cooking water,minced garlic, 250ml of thini and salt (1\3 tbsp is a good start)
Mix well.
Now taste it and correct acidity and salt,more cooking liquid if you want it runnier.
You may add more thini to make it richer while adding a bit more cooking water to make it runnier.

Presentation:
In warm soup bowl (I warm in up in the microwave) add hummus paste,top up with hot pees,add few tsps of hot cooking water and add ALOT of olive oil.

Dive  in with pitta and veg.
Sourdough pita recipe is next.

« Last Edit: January 27, 2011, 09:47:32 PM by Tomer1 »

Cheese Head

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Re: Hummus - Israeli\Lebanonese Heaven.
« Reply #1 on: January 28, 2011, 01:26:35 PM »
Tommer, thanks, I make Humous (many spellings) often with food processor and mine is grainy from the skins. Next time I'll try pushing the softened skins through a sieve.

Your picture looks great but almost more like a warm dish I used to buy at local foul store when we lived in Damascus called I think Foul Medina which was whole chick peas in a white slightly curdled sauce with lemon juice and garlic. Most humous I've had in restaurants is served at room temp, but having it warm certainly brings out the flavour!

In Damascus we also used to buy a version called Humous Beiruti which was creamier, no idea what they changed.

Looking forward to your Pita Recipe.

Tomer1

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Re: Hummus - Israeli\Lebanonese Heaven.
« Reply #2 on: January 28, 2011, 11:16:09 PM »
As a side dish or mezze often beside grilled meats itsserved cold as a humus circle with diluted thini in the middle,parselly and olive oil.

I assume hummus biruty Is a large ratio of diluted thini (water,garlic,lemon,salt) which has a great creamy texture and just a bit of hummus to give it additional body and flavour.

You should try Hummus Mahlutta which is steaming hot whole soft peas with very ALOT of lemon and garlic,mixed into a slurry of hummus and thini with the hummus cooking water drizzeled with EVO. Great variation.

Also hummus fhull is one of my favorite where soft cooked faba beans are topping the hummus.
This combination is the main ingridient to toxic gas.  ^-^

Tomer1

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Re: Hummus - Israeli\Lebanonese Heaven.
« Reply #3 on: November 15, 2011, 06:53:44 PM »
I got C&&& right on top of my hummus with this guy! lol

gstone

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Re: Hummus - Israeli\Lebanonese Heaven.
« Reply #4 on: November 15, 2011, 11:12:10 PM »
Mmmmm, Spam and hummus.  ;)

ellenspn

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Re: Hummus - Israeli\Lebanonese Heaven.
« Reply #5 on: November 16, 2011, 12:19:34 AM »
All hummus is humus but not all humus is hummus.

Sorry, could not resist.

Tomer1

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Re: Hummus - Israeli\Lebanonese Heaven.
« Reply #6 on: November 16, 2011, 12:29:13 AM »
I made Lentil  "hummus" tonight with some left over dhal which were cooked in lamb stock.
Same technique (garlic,lemon juice and thini), Superb.

Brewandwinesupply

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Re: Hummus - Israeli\Lebanonese Heaven.
« Reply #7 on: May 19, 2012, 04:33:08 PM »
What is Tahini? I am not sure where I can get it in the States or is there a substitute ?

Tomer1

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Re: Hummus - Israeli\Lebanonese Heaven.
« Reply #8 on: May 19, 2012, 08:46:07 PM »
Its a sort of Sesame seed paste.  A bit like peanut butter. 

Offline DeejayDebi

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Re: Hummus - Israeli\Lebanonese Heaven.
« Reply #9 on: May 19, 2012, 10:47:27 PM »
Funny this should come up now. I was trying to make a milkess cheese for a lactos intolerant friend and it tasted like hummus when I was done. It gave me a hankerin to make some falafels with tahini sauce so I guess I will add it to you thread being it was asked ....

Here are my little falafels



Here's the recipe I used for the falafels

2 cups dried chickpeas, soaked overnight (plumps up to 4 cups)
1 onion (I used 2 medium)
1/4 cup each chopped parsley and cilantro (I used ground coriander so about 1 tables spoon)
2 tsp. salt
2 tsp. baking powder
6 cloves garlic ( I only used 4 cloves)
2 (or more) tsp. cumin (I used 1 not a big cumin fan)1 tsp. red pepper flakes
1/2 tsp. black pepper (Iused 1 teaspoon course ground)
1/2 cup flour

 and the tahini sauce

Tahini Sauce
1/2 cup tahini
2-4 cloves garlic, finely minced or pressed (1used2)
1/4 cup lime juice (can substitute lemon)(Iusedboth)
2 T. olive oil
salt to taste
pinch red pepper flakes (optional)(Iused1teaspoon)


Tahini sauce and falafels




Tahini is just 1 cup sesame seeds and 1/4 cup vegetable oil. Roast the seed in the oven for 15min at 375 F, let them cool, grind them in the mixer using half the oil then mix it well add the balance of the oil, and grind till it's a smooth paste.

My cuisinart food porcessor self destructed when I slapped the side to loosen the gabonza beans. I didn't notice when using it for the second time that the paddle gear was a hard plastic. What a rip off! My mini chopper didn't do so well on chopping sessame seeds. If I wasn't so agrivated at this point I would have put them in my coffee grinder first then mixed everything but I wasn't really thinking ... I was still good. I just think there would have been more sessame flavor if I ground them first in the coffee grinder.
« Last Edit: May 19, 2012, 11:15:34 PM by DeejayDebi »

Tomer1

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Re: Hummus - Israeli\Lebanonese Heaven.
« Reply #10 on: May 20, 2012, 09:19:30 AM »
Thini is stone ground and doesnt contain additional oil.   the result is sikly smooth.

Myrrh

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Re: Hummus - Israeli\Lebanonese Heaven.
« Reply #11 on: May 20, 2012, 03:08:10 PM »
You should be able to get Tahini in most places in the states. Try looking in the foreign foods section of your local super market, or with the peanut butter. It is really just sesame butter. If you can't find it in your local market, try a health food type store. If you cant find it you can try without it, but the hummus wont be quite as delicious.

I don't actually like Tahini very much (I know, that makes me a defective Israeli), but I still like to add a few tablespoons to my hummus for a smoother texture and more complex flavor.

Tomer1

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Re: Hummus - Israeli\Lebanonese Heaven.
« Reply #12 on: May 20, 2012, 04:22:56 PM »
The thini basically acts as a fat based emulsifier.  you can use egg yokes and olive oil for a Nuvo approach.
Ive even made hummus using mayonaise and its very tasty.     

Offline DeejayDebi

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Re: Hummus - Israeli\Lebanonese Heaven.
« Reply #13 on: May 21, 2012, 02:28:14 AM »
The 1/4 oil hint they posted seemed way tooily so I used the one listed in the recipe. I am parcial to lemons.

Tomer1

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Re: Hummus - Israeli\Lebanonese Heaven.
« Reply #14 on: May 21, 2012, 08:57:53 AM »
I accually like the egyption style where white wine vinegar is used and tiny bit of powered cummin.