Miche wrote on Tue, 08 Jul 2008 08:38:27 +1200:

> If you have access to a food mill, try that. Better results
> than a food processor, and probably quicker too.

You know, I don't know what is a "food mill" but my Cusinart
mini-processor just takes a few seconds to deal with a 14 oz can of
garbanzos.



--

James Silverton
Potomac, Maryland

E-mail, with obvious alterations: not.jim.silverton.at.verizon.not

In article >,
(Steve Pope) wrote:

> Miche > wrote:
>
> > "James Silverton" > wrote:
>
> >> The recipe is made in a food processor
> >> and involves a tablespoon of olive oil but that is not necessary and
> >> some of the liquid from a can of garbanzos ( never use fresh)
>
> >I've seen "never use fresh" a couple of times now. Why not? I've made
> >fabulous hummus with cooked-from-fresh chickpeas.
>
> Do you mean cooked-from-fresh or cooked-from-dried?

Dried.

> Fresh garbanzos right out of the pod are green and I associate
> them with Mexican rather than Mediterranean cuisine. They could
> be used to make a dip, maybe a very good dip, but it would not
> resemble hummus.

Ah, so that's what "never use fresh" means -- it made me wonder what
humans did for thousands of years before the invention of the can.

Miche

--
Electricians do it in three phases

In article <B7vck.822$4a3.120@trnddc04>,
"James Silverton" > wrote:

> Miche wrote on Tue, 08 Jul 2008 08:30:32 +1200:
>
> >> wrote on Sun, 6 Jul 2008 22:14:03 -0700
> >> (PDT):
> >>
> > >> I love humus. However in restaraunts the quality always
> > >> varies, some great, some nasty.
> > >> I would like to make my own great Humus at home? Whats the
> > >> secret of making great
> > >> Humus? Is it ingredients, freshness or both? Please share
> > >> your recipes and techniques.
> >>
> >> My daughter reminded me of a hummus recipe a friend brought
> >> back from Mexico where the lemon juice is replaced by lime
> >> juice. This gives a different but interesting taste. The
> >> recipe is made in a food processor and involves a tablespoon
> >> of olive oil but that is not necessary and some of the liquid
> >> from a can of garbanzos ( never use fresh)
>
> > I've seen "never use fresh" a couple of times now. Why not?
> > I've made fabulous hummus with cooked-from-fresh chickpeas.
>
> Just because I'm lazy and it's not worth the time and trouble for no
> discernible taste difference, IMHO.. I might have been better to have
> said "I never use fresh"!

I think there is a discernible taste difference, and I'd rather use
dried (soaked and cooked) chickpeas rather than canned. And in NZ it's
a lot cheaper, too.

Miche

--
Electricians do it in three phases

James Silverton wrote:
> Serene wrote on Mon, 07 Jul 2008 11:03:02 -0700:
>
>> Grocery store hummus often has citric acid or other
>> preservatives in it that make it inedible to me, so I always
>> make my own. I usually cook the chickpeas from scratch, but
>> not always.
>
> That's a funny thing! Both lemon and lime juice contain citric acid and
> both are good in hummus.
>

But just plain sour salt (citric acid) doesn't taste good in hummus.
Not to me, anyway, and I've tried it.

Serene

--
"I think I have an umami receptor that has developed sentience." -- Stef

Miche wrote:
> In article <B7vck.822$4a3.120@trnddc04>,
> "James Silverton" > wrote:
>
>> Miche wrote on Tue, 08 Jul 2008 08:30:32 +1200:
>>
>>>> wrote on Sun, 6 Jul 2008 22:14:03 -0700
>>>> (PDT):
>>>>
>>>>> I love humus. However in restaraunts the quality always
>>>>> varies, some great, some nasty.
>>>>> I would like to make my own great Humus at home? Whats the
>>>>> secret of making great
>>>>> Humus? Is it ingredients, freshness or both? Please share
>>>>> your recipes and techniques.
>>>> My daughter reminded me of a hummus recipe a friend brought
>>>> back from Mexico where the lemon juice is replaced by lime
>>>> juice. This gives a different but interesting taste. The
>>>> recipe is made in a food processor and involves a tablespoon
>>>> of olive oil but that is not necessary and some of the liquid
>>>> from a can of garbanzos ( never use fresh)
>>> I've seen "never use fresh" a couple of times now. Why not?
>>> I've made fabulous hummus with cooked-from-fresh chickpeas.
>> Just because I'm lazy and it's not worth the time and trouble for no
>> discernible taste difference, IMHO.. I might have been better to have
>> said "I never use fresh"!
>
> I think there is a discernible taste difference, and I'd rather use
> dried (soaked and cooked) chickpeas rather than canned. And in NZ it's
> a lot cheaper, too.
>
> Miche
>



You might wanna go to an Indian market and look for bags of "Chana Dal".
Might also be called "gram dal", but I'm not sure about that one.
It is split chickpeas when the skins already removed.

Bob

zxcvbob wrote:
>
> Miche wrote:

>> I think there is a discernible taste difference, and I'd rather use
>> dried (soaked and cooked) chickpeas rather than canned. And in NZ
>> it's a lot cheaper, too.
>>
>> Miche
>>
>
>
>
> You might wanna go to an Indian market and look for bags of "Chana Dal".
> Might also be called "gram dal", but I'm not sure about that one. It
> is split chickpeas when the skins already removed.

Not exactly, at least to my understanding. I think they're
similar-but-different things. At any rate, I tried making hummus with
chana dal once, and it was TERRIBLE. Powdery and yuck. And I love chana
dal normally. I never tried that again.

Serene
--
"I think I have an umami receptor that has developed sentience." -- Stef

Miche wrote:

>
> > Indeed. I have has humus that has been terrific, but more often than not
> > it has been vile.I once sampled some in a grocery store and it left me
> > wish a horrible taste in my mouth. That experience left be reluctant to
> > bother trying to make any.
>
> You'll probably find the home-made ones to be much better than the
> store-bought ones.

Perhaps. It seems that way with most things, but having had so many bad
variations of humus I don't feel very inspired to try making it myself. It
would be different if most of those I have tried had been good.

On Jul 6, 10:14*pm, wrote:
> I love humus. However in restaraunts the quality always varies, some
> great, some nasty.
> I would like to make my own great Humus at home? Whats the secret of
> making great
> Humus? Is it ingredients, freshness or both? Please share your recipes
> and techniques.

The latest Cooks Illustrated has a hummus recipe in it. i read thru
it but don't have it near me right now so i can't give any advice from
it, but i have found that most of the Cooks Illustrated are quite
excellent (although the ethnic ones are rather hit and miss).

-goro-

Thanks to all for the great advice.

* Correction - Hummus - spelling correction.
* Should I use paprika or cumin and is it best mixed in to the Hummus
or sprinkled on top for presentation.
Same with the olive oil, should I just drizzle it on top or mix the
olive oil into the Hummus.
* Someone mentioned "find a quality tahini". How do I know a quality
Tahini from a sub-quality Tahini.
Should any Tahini at a market like whole foods be sufficient?
* Some recipes call for x ounces of chichpeas. Is that volume or
weight. I need to know since I plan to soak and boil dry beans instead
of using canned.

Thanks



On Jul 6, 10:14*pm, wrote:
> I love humus. However in restaraunts the quality always varies, some
> great, some nasty.
> I would like to make my own great Humus at home? Whats the secret of
> making great
> Humus? Is it ingredients, freshness or both? Please share your recipes
> and techniques.

wrote:
> Thanks to all for the great advice.
>
> * Correction - Hummus - spelling correction.
> * Should I use paprika or cumin and is it best mixed in to the Hummus
> or sprinkled on top for presentation.
> Same with the olive oil, should I just drizzle it on top or mix the
> olive oil into the Hummus.

I never (okay, almost never) put olive oil in the hummus -- I almost
always drizzle it on top and then sprinkle on paprika.

> * Someone mentioned "find a quality tahini". How do I know a quality
> Tahini from a sub-quality Tahini.

Eh. The fresher the better, but most tahini will be fine. Refrigerated
from a health-food store is likely to taste freshest, bottled is
next-best, canned has a tinned taste (naturally).

> Should any Tahini at a market like whole foods be sufficient?

Yep.

> * Some recipes call for x ounces of chichpeas. Is that volume or
> weight. I need to know since I plan to soak and boil dry beans instead
> of using canned.

They often call for 15 ounces, which is a can, which is just short of 2
cups of your own cooked beans (between 1 1/2 and 2 cups, but 2 cups
seems to work fine for me in those recipes).

Serene

--
"I think I have an umami receptor that has developed sentience." -- Stef

On Jul 7, 10:48 am, Jason Tinling > wrote:
> On Jul 6, 10:14 pm, wrote:
>
> > I love humus. However in restaraunts the quality always varies, some
> > great, some nasty.
> > I would like to make my own great Humus at home? Whats the secret of
> > making great
> > Humus? Is it ingredients, freshness or both? Please share your recipes
> > and techniques.
>
> Made a couple batches this weekend, with the following recipe:
>
> 22 oz Chickpeas, drained (reserve liquid) and rinsed
> 4 cloves garlic
> 6 T Tahini
> 1 T Olive Oil
> 1/4 C Lemon Juice
> 1/2 tsp salt
> 1/2 tsp cumin
> 1/2 tsp chile (cayenne, paprika, new mexico, depending on your heat
> preference)
> 1/2 tsp ground black pepper
> 1" jalapeno (1" slice, seeded and cut into quarters)
> 1 T dried parsley
>
> Put everything but chick peas in the food processor and run until
> mostly smooth. Add chickpeas and process, adding reserved canning
> liquid, as needed to reach desired consistency.

Recipe for great humus: worms, bugs, waste plant matter like old dead
leaves and kitchen scraps, some regular garden soil (not sterile from
a bag) shoveled on top, a big container to keep it all together,
maybe your kid's pee if he's into it (most boys will be), and water.
Combine and cover. If you've used kid pee let it sit for at least a
year. If not, and if you've built your pile with enough dead leaves
and soil, and made sure you put it somewhere the worms and bugs can
get at it, you should have nice rich humus in a few months with which
to dress your garden beds. Free fertilizer and it keeps the plants
moist too.

Oh, hummus? You say you want hummus, or hoummous, or hoummus, or
something like that, as long as it's chickpea dip? Well. No bugs, pee
or earthworms in hummus.

The word just means garbanzos in Arabic, so I could be snide (again)
and give you a can of chickpeas. But you want the dip, I know you do.
The recipes above all look pretty good. No, Lebanese don't put yogurt
in their hummus but on the other hand, why can't you if you feel like
it?

I posted a hummus recipe on RFC sometime in the Clinton
administration. Folks here keep saying "no blog posts" so I won't link
to mine. google dove's eye view and hoummus if you really care. (but
how did I spell it?? There's no accepted system for transliterating
Arabic into English)

Oh, homemade - many years ago a rather self-certain Israeli RFCer
--who I otherwise mostly liked --sniffed that HER sources were MOST
AUTHENTIC and not only did they cook the garbanzos from scratch, they
rubbed the translucent white skins off them before mashing with
tahini. I really didn't like her way of instructing us in this matter,
but when I tried it myself, she was right, the texture was much much
creamier and more refined. OTOH rubbing the skins off between your
fingers is a pain in the neck, and can only be done manually. You get
more fiber and grittier mouth feel if you skip this step. It's a real
"slow food" experience if you attempt it. You should then pound up
everything in a mortar and pestle and forego the food processor -
this, too, improves the mouth feel and flavor blends, but I won't tell
if you use an appliance.

Cook them from scratch or not, suit yourself. I do think that the from
scratch ones taste better but when I need hummus in five minutes for
the kids' lunches, I open a can. (or three. Hummus goes fast around my
house). Someone once suggested to rinse the beans to get that "can"
taste off them and I always do this, hoping that it helps. Maybe it
does. It's not as stark a taste difference as using from-scratch
beans.

With three cans I would put in about a third cup of tahini; at least
two lemons; NOT the bean juice but reserve some for thinning as
needed; and one large garlic clove to start, adding more to your taste
and tolerance. It all goes in the food processor. Taste, taste taste.
Lemons vary in their juiciness and acidity so I always start with just
one and add from there.

Cumin, hot pepper, parsley and/or allspice are optional additions in
the Middle East (among Arabs). Mayonnaise will make me sneer but
again, who's to say you can't add mayonnaise? Yogurt seems weird but
whatever. Many Americans add the olive oil to the blend, but
traditionally it's served with olive oil drizzled over the top.

You could garnish with paprika or red pepper, a few reserved whole
garbanzo beans (lets people know what's in the dip, besides looking
good - helpful when there's also baba ghanoush - eggplant & tahini -
on the table) or an olive or three. Parsley sprigs are nice too.

Good luck and sahtain (bon appetit in Arabic)

Leila

Thanks to all for the great advice.

* Correction - Hummus - spelling correction.
* Should I use paprika or cumin and is it best mixed in to the Hummus
or sprinkled on top for presentation.
Same with the olive oil, should I just drizzle it on top or mix the
olive oil into the Hummus.
* Someone mentioned "find a quality tahini". How do I know a quality
Tahini from a sub-quality Tahini.
Should any Tahini at a market like whole foods be sufficient?
* Some recipes call for x ounces of chichpeas. Is that volume or
weight. I need to know since I plan to soak and boil dry beans instead
of using canned.

wrote:
> Thanks to all for the great advice.
>
> * Correction - Hummus - spelling correction.
> * Should I use paprika or cumin and is it best mixed in to the Hummus
> or sprinkled on top for presentation.
> Same with the olive oil, should I just drizzle it on top or mix the
> olive oil into the Hummus.
> * Someone mentioned "find a quality tahini". How do I know a quality
> Tahini from a sub-quality Tahini.
> Should any Tahini at a market like whole foods be sufficient?
> * Some recipes call for x ounces of chichpeas. Is that volume or
> weight. I need to know since I plan to soak and boil dry beans instead
> of using canned.
>
> Thanks
>

I think adding paprika or cumin should be per your preference. I don't
use either. I do add olive oil when I blend everything together, but a
drizzle on top for presentation looks nice.

I use this brand of tahini.

http://www.amazon.com/tag/joyva%20tahini

You can find it in most grocery stores.

As for the chickpeas.....soak the whole bag - or more. They freeze well
and you can toss them frozen into soups or stews. They do still need to
cook - so keep that in mind. Depending on the recipe - I'd use about 2
cups of soaked, cooked chickpeas.

-Tracy

In article >,
zxcvbob > wrote:

> Miche wrote:
> > In article <B7vck.822$4a3.120@trnddc04>,
> > "James Silverton" > wrote:
> >
> >> Miche wrote on Tue, 08 Jul 2008 08:30:32 +1200:
> >>
> >>>> wrote on Sun, 6 Jul 2008 22:14:03 -0700
> >>>> (PDT):
> >>>>
> >>>>> I love humus. However in restaraunts the quality always
> >>>>> varies, some great, some nasty.
> >>>>> I would like to make my own great Humus at home? Whats the
> >>>>> secret of making great
> >>>>> Humus? Is it ingredients, freshness or both? Please share
> >>>>> your recipes and techniques.
> >>>> My daughter reminded me of a hummus recipe a friend brought
> >>>> back from Mexico where the lemon juice is replaced by lime
> >>>> juice. This gives a different but interesting taste. The
> >>>> recipe is made in a food processor and involves a tablespoon
> >>>> of olive oil but that is not necessary and some of the liquid
> >>>> from a can of garbanzos ( never use fresh)
> >>> I've seen "never use fresh" a couple of times now. Why not?
> >>> I've made fabulous hummus with cooked-from-fresh chickpeas.
> >> Just because I'm lazy and it's not worth the time and trouble for no
> >> discernible taste difference, IMHO.. I might have been better to have
> >> said "I never use fresh"!
> >
> > I think there is a discernible taste difference, and I'd rather use
> > dried (soaked and cooked) chickpeas rather than canned. And in NZ it's
> > a lot cheaper, too.
>
> You might wanna go to an Indian market and look for bags of "Chana Dal".
> Might also be called "gram dal", but I'm not sure about that one.
> It is split chickpeas when the skins already removed.

Yeah, I think that is gram dal -- gram flour is chickpea flour. A must
if you're making onion bhajis.

Miche

--
Electricians do it in three phases

My secret is to add some toasted cumin...dry fry in a cast iron skillet
until toasty brown, remove quickly to avoid over doing it, mash with
back of spoon on the cutting board, add.

blacksalt

kalanamak wrote on Wed, 09 Jul 2008 06:03:03 -0700:

> My secret is to add some toasted cumin...dry fry in a cast
> iron skillet until toasty brown, remove quickly to avoid over doing
> it, mash with back of spoon on the cutting board, add.

> blacksalt

Yes, cumin is good too in hummus and browning it like you do is the way
to go. Uncooked cumin seed is not bad if you are in a hurry.
--

James Silverton
Potomac, Maryland

E-mail, with obvious alterations: not.jim.silverton.at.verizon.not

On Mon, 07 Jul 2008 16:38:31 -0700, Serene Vannoy
> wrote:

>zxcvbob wrote:
>>
>> Miche wrote:
>
>>> I think there is a discernible taste difference, and I'd rather use
>>> dried (soaked and cooked) chickpeas rather than canned. And in NZ
>>> it's a lot cheaper, too.
>>>
>>> Miche
>>>
>>
>>
>>
>> You might wanna go to an Indian market and look for bags of "Chana Dal".
>> Might also be called "gram dal", but I'm not sure about that one. It
>> is split chickpeas when the skins already removed.
>
>Not exactly, at least to my understanding. I think they're
>similar-but-different things. At any rate, I tried making hummus with
>chana dal once, and it was TERRIBLE. Powdery and yuck. And I love chana
>dal normally. I never tried that again.

Chickpeas are sold as Kabuli chana. This is the large white dal used in
Middle Eastern cooking. Chickpea flour is ground from this variety of
dal.

Bengal gram or chana, also known as Desi dal, kala chana, or chana dal,
is a smaller bean with a dark skin. It is common in South Indian
cuisine. It can be sold whole, with the skin on (kaala channa), split
and skinless, or whole and sprouted. Besan, or gram flour, is milled
from this variety. Desi dal has a much higher fiber content than
kabuli. Because of the high fiber content it has a very low glycemic
index.

On Mon, 7 Jul 2008 23:29:36 -0700 (PDT), wrote:

>Thanks to all for the great advice.
>
>* Correction - Hummus - spelling correction.
>* Should I use paprika or cumin and is it best mixed in to the Hummus
>or sprinkled on top for presentation.
> Same with the olive oil, should I just drizzle it on top or mix the
>olive oil into the Hummus.
>* Someone mentioned "find a quality tahini". How do I know a quality
>Tahini from a sub-quality Tahini.
> Should any Tahini at a market like whole foods be sufficient?
>* Some recipes call for x ounces of chichpeas. Is that volume or
>weight. I need to know since I plan to soak and boil dry beans instead
>of using canned.

1. In Israel and the West Bank when I ordered it, many years ago, it
was usually served with paprika sprinkled on, then dressed with olive
oil which usually had chopped parsley and/or cilantro mixed in. It
was often garnished with some chickpeas, a few olives and 2-3
peperoccini-type pickled hot peppers. There was always a plate of
warmed/toasted pita triangles to dip. The presentation was usually
made on a large round plate with the hummus spread by swirling outward
from the center with a spoon to create a central hummock of hummus
with a thinner surround and a thick lip at the very edge of the plate.
Looked lovely.

2. Any of the tahinis in a plastic or glass jar from a Middle Eastern
market will do well. I find that the oil sometimes separates out on
top and if you want "thick" tahini - don't mix it all in (or any if
you want stuff like nearly-set cement). Joyva is "OK" if you can't
find better. If you find the Thelma stuff in the Kosher section of
your supermarket - pass it by, it is really a condiment, but in Israel
they would put a swirl of it ontop of the hummus before splashing on
the oil for an extra fillip of sesame flavor.

3. The recipes are great, but after you've made it about twice you
can "wing-it" and taste as you go - you'll produce a better (to you)
product by tasting.

4. Lately I like hummus "dressed" with a sprinkle of Za'atar along
with the paprika - try it if you like Za'atar. Or better yet, eat the
hummus with Za'atar Bread made by taking pocketless pitas (or Naan)
painting with a generous swipe of olive oil and pouring on Za'atar,
then shaking off what doesn't stick and heating them in the oven until
warmed through. (Alternate putting hummus on and then Lebeneh
(yougurt cheese) for a real treat at lunch, or breakfast.

5. A nice Middle Eastern style side is a plate of pickles, pickled
hot peppers, pickled turnip (lefet) and olives. Known in Israel as
Harifim and Chamutzim (Hots and Sours).

On Mon, 7 Jul 2008 09:09:17 +0200, "Giusi" >
wrote:


>> You need chickpeas, canned or boiled from dry or fresh, garlic, vinegar,
>> roasted red peppers, salt, black pepper, and lemon juice. A food processor
>> is not necessary but makes the process easier.
>
>Mine instead is cooked chick peas (garbanzos, ceci) lemon juice, garlic,
>sesame tahini and salt. All is to taste as some like it very strongly
>garlicky and some prefer it very beany.

And mine is cooked chickpeas, garlic, lemon juice, olive oil, salt and
pepper.

Nathalie in Switzerland