Spicie Foodie Nancy Lopez-McHugh with her personal take on the classic mid-east chickpea dip. Sans Tahini.
Hummus is a middle eastern spread or dip made mostly from white chickpeas (also know as garbanzo beans). Hummus has enjoyed great popularity in not only middle eastern cuisine but also in Greek cuisine. In recent history it has gained popularity all over the world. Chickpeas have been used in the middle east since ancient times. Some believe that the earliest hummus recipes date back to the 13th century.
Recipes for hummus can vary greatly from country to country and home to home. This makes hummus one of those dishes that can easily be personalized according to taste. The most common ingredients are boiled chickpeas, tahini (sesame seed paste), olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, spices and herbs. All or any combination of ingredients is then ground to make a thick dip or spread and served cold. Hummus can be served as an appetizer with pita or any Arab breads, as part of a Meze, it can be spread on sandwiches, or even served with fresh vegetables as a healthy snack. Hummus makes a healthy snack because the chickpeas are high in fiber, folic acid, a good source of iron, magnesium, copper and zinc. The lemon provides a good source of vitamin C and the olive oil is a source of healthy fat.
Tahini is an ingredient that can sometimes be hard to find. My recipe omits the tahini but still yields a delicious flavor with a lemony flavor.
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Hummus Without Tahini
- Total Time: 10 mins
- Yield: 3-4 1x
Description
Learn how to make perfect hummus without tahini
Ingredients
- 14 oz. or 400 g cooked chickpeas (garbanzo beans)
- 1/4 cup or 60 ml reserved broth from boiling chickpeas or from can
- 3 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil, (E.V.O. oil)
- 1 medium lemon (I used Meyer lemon) juiced about 3 tbsp juice
- 1/2 tsp. granulated garlic
- 1 tsp. salt
- pinch black pepper
- to decorate:
- olive oil
- extra cooked chickpeas
- paprika
- parsley, dried or fresh
- Tools:
- immersion blender or regular blender
- small bowl
- serving bowl
Instructions
- In a small bowl combine lemon juice, garlic, salt, pepper and olive oil. Place drained chickpeas/garbanzo beans in blender, remember to reserve the broth. Pour 1/4 cup of the reserved broth and the lemon mixture into the blender. Pulse until you have a smooth thick paste. If needed, add extra broth or water to the blender to achieve the consistency needed. Taste and adjust spices if necessary. Pour the hummus into serving dish.
- To decorate as in photo: Make a small well near the edge going in a circular motion. Pour some olive oil in the well, place some cooked chickpeas into the well and a few in the center of the dish. Sprinkle with paprika and fresh or dried parsley. Serve with pita and enjoy.
- Prep Time: 10 mins
- Category: Side
- Cuisine: Mid Eastern
I’ve done hummus without tahini and didn’t miss it. I think the key ingredients are the lemon and garlic — and, of course, the garbanzos and olive oil. :) I really like your plating.
Hi Joan, I didn’t miss the tahini either, it was still so delicious. Yes I agree and thank you :)
I make all my hummus without tahini and don’t miss it either! As you said, tahini can be hard to find, plus its shelf life is very short. Love the meyer lemon here – and gorgeous presentation!
What a gorgeous humus recipe! Tahini is probably the main reason people fear being able to create this delight, or better said the inability to find it. Excellent recipe!
Nancy this sounds so good and delicious! Thank you so much for sharing bit of history about hummus! I love this photo too! Well done!
I don’t usually buy tahini because of the short shelf life and because I can never think of anything to do with besides hummus. Half the time I even make my “hummus” with white beans instead of garbanzos! But I recently learned that the combination of chickpeas and tahini forms a complete protein, which makes me look a little harder at the options. Gorgeous presentation, by the way! :)
I have had hummus a number of ways… both with and without tahini. I love it either way… with or without tahini. With that being said, my sister is allergic to sesame, so I’m always looking for a good recipe that doesn’t call for it.
And here I may have found the ultimate one.
Have you ever tried subbing peanut butter for the tahini?
Hi Brady, No I never have. But I have read that peanut butter can be substituted for tahini. Why not?
Thank you ladies for the great feedback. Glad to hear your tips as well.
great background history, thanks for sharing..my girls love hummus, so I always try to have chickpeas onhand, great remake without the tahini..stunning plating!!
sweetlife
I can not wait to try this recipe! I love the addition of meyer lemon. Looking forward to reading more!!
What an exciting take on hummus…delicious!
Thank you Deeba!
In Lebanese kitchens, hummus is made without tahini and called hummus balila.
It is garnished with pine nuts and flavored with garlic, olive oil and cumin.
Thank you for the information, it’s always great to learn more about hummus.
I’ve made a white bean version without tahini that worked out well too.
Yum! I love hummus, and it is true that tahini can be hard to come by sometimes. Also, the price for tahini has become a bit ridiculous in the States, so it is great to have an alternative.
Beautiful photo!
You are correct Christine, the price can be quite high. Even when purchased at Middle Eastern stores.
Like others, I balked at making hummus at home because of the tahini. That and Sabra hummus is ungodly delicious, but then I realized I could make my own tahini by grinding up sesame seeds (which I always have on hand) and adding olive oil. And now I’m a hummus making fiend. But I still cave once in a while when it comes to Sabra but who can blame me?
I have found that the tahini is used more as a filler and an alternative to olive oil. I will be doing a lecture next week at the Mid – West / Mid – East coalition on the role hummus has played in pre 1200 ad westward expansion. Looking forward to it.
This is the first time I have made hummus at home. Just tried it and it is delicious. This is way better than the stuff in the shops and without any additives. Thank you.
Hi there! I live in Greece and have no trouble finding tahini at a reasonable price. I just wanted to suggest that if you do like the taste of sesame but can’t get it or find it expensive, an idea is to toast a cup of sesame seeds in a frying pan on medium heat until golden brown and add them to your mixture. I do this whether I add tahini or not and it gives a nice flavour and texture to the hummus.
Thank you! Tahini is also calorie laden. I didn’t know I could just omit.
Love your presentation as well.
I found this recipe searching for a non-Tahini hummus. I found this and what a find! I couldn’t believe this actually came out fo my kitchen. My wife (pregnant) and I eat this up constantly especially with me being on the daniel fast for Lent. I even brought it into work and shared the dish and nowe the recipe. Thanks so much and please keep ’em coming!
certainly like your website however you need to check the spelling on quite
a few of your posts. A number of them are rife with spelling problems and I find it very bothersome to inform
the reality nevertheless I’ll certainly come back again.
If you have a Trader Joes around they always have very affordable fresh tahini!
MMMM!! That was delicious! I was always told you HAD to have tahini to make homemade hummus. But I tried this recipe tonight, and it was great! Taste better than the store bought brands.
If I use pj in place of tahini, how much should I use?
Reading thru your comments, I am wondering if it would make sense to substitute tahini for a very small amount of sesame oil- readily available and with a longer shelf life?
Hi there! Nice post. I too like hummus and will be making my hummus recipe to go along with a chicken salad tonight. I have never used tahini but do use sesame seeds. The addition of roasted seasame seeds adds a nice texture to an already delicious dish! Ingredients in my recipe are:
1 can chickpeas warmed
fresh lemon juice
cummin
fresh chopped garlic cooked in olive oil
roasted crushed sesame seeds
little salt/pepper to taste
I haven’t tried this recipe as of yet but it sounds very good. I was wondering if substituting lime juice would be ok? We don’t get fresh lemons here but the little limes are readily available. Also question about the tahini–I made some and it has a different kind of taste and was wondering if that is normal. Thanks
Hi! Your dish looks gorgeous! I wanted to know how long we could store this in the fridge. Would be helpful if you could elaborate. Cheers.
Our neighbor proudly makes what he calls hummus without tahini. It was delicious with lots of cumin, but it just isn’t hummus without the flavor of the sesame tahini. I’m a bit puzzled about all the claims for short shelf life of tahini. We keep ours in the refrigerator and have no trouble with it lasting a long time. Also, Costco carries a brand of organic hummus called Pita Pal. It’s delicious. I like Sabra, too.
Well sure you can make hummus without tahini, but why would you want to?
Tahini makes the hummus taste fabulous. Yes, tahini has a short shelf life, but buy it canned(shelf life of 6 months until opened), then store the remainder out of the can in the refridgerator, where it will last a nice long time. I am bewidered by the complaints that tahini is hard to find, at least in the U.S. Good grief, freaking Walmart carries hummus. Yes, it is expensive, but a recipe for hummus is 80% chick peas, so a little goes a long way. What is life without our little joys?
As far as the value of having a recipe of hummus without Tahini goes, I personally think it’s awesome to be able to try this great recipe out because Tahini is not only hard to find…. it’s expensive as well as very high in calories. This alternative is a win/win! Thanks so much for publishing this! I’m excited to try it out!
I’ve found sesame oil (dark better than light) is a perfect substitute for tahini. Especially since it is much easier to find than tahini and usually a bit less (since you use less – about 1 tbls per 16oz of beans).
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Thanks for that recipe just tried it and outcome was delicious.
My son used to LOVE hummus but when he was 4 we found out he’s allergic to sesame seeds. I’ve tried other recipes without the tahini and this is by far the best with out it. My son is so happy he can have hummas again. Thank you!
Where does the broth come from. I try to drain and rinse the canned chickpeas. Too many preservatives. Do I cook the chickpeas in water or chicken broth. I’m confused.
Hummus made with only organic ingredients: chick peas, navy beans, pinto beans, 1/4 c lemon juice fresh squeezed, hot cherry pepper seeds, (yes from organic peppers) peanut oil, from homemade organic peanut butter (the oil separates) and fresh ground sea salt and pepper. yummmmm blended in a magic bullet and in a few minutes it’s ready to spoon out like a side dish.
i would add extra olive oil to achieve desired consistency at the end, to compensate for the fat lost by omitting tahini. This should hopefully make for a creamier less watery humous.
★★★★
Just another little nutritional add on: I went in search of this recipe because of my concern about the instability of polyunsaturates especially when heated, and their implications on health. Failing to find a tahini paste that wasn’t made from sesame seeds which had been roasted/toasted, I went on to consider what other natural emulsifier to use. Since egg would make it too much like mayonnaise and possibly reduce the shelf life of the humous, (plus offend vegans) I was delighted to find that you were able to use the ‘bean juice’ as the emulsifier, with great success!
Thank you.
Love this recipe, absolutely delicious and the tahini is not missed!
★★★★★