Snack

Hummus with Roasted Garlic and Onion recipe

Name: Hummus with Roasted Garlic and Onion
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 1 h
Total time: 7 h 15 min
Yield: 6
Ingredients: 1 whole bulb of roasted garlic (skin on, or 2-3 raw cloves); 450g cooked chickpeas; 175ml runny tahini; 1 tsp ground cumin; juice from 2 lemons; 100ml ice-cold water (more as needed); salt and black pepper (I use around 1 tsp of kosher salt); 1 tbsp olive or vegetable oil; 1 red onion, sliced (or 3 small shallots); 100-150g cooked chickpeas; 1 tbsp harissa (I use smoked); small handful of fresh parsley, chopped; drizzle of extra virgin olive oil; a food processor or blender

Jump to recipe

Hummus, made from dried chickpeas, topped with optional roasted veg and smoked harissa. It’s more effort than using tinned chickpeas, or buying a tub, but the difference is like night and day (no shade to store-bought).

Prep15m
Stand6h
Cook1h
Total7h 15m

vegan

Hummus with roasted garlic, onion, smoked harissa and crispy chickpeas

Ever since I discovered Rainbow Plant Life on YouTube, Nisha Vora has been my constant companion in the kitchen and at the gym.

Get the good tahini

Nisha inspired me to make hummus from scratch. It’s worlds away from the supermarket varieties but you do need decent tahini. There’s no point in cooking dried chickpeas if you’ve only got solid tahini cemented to the bottom of a jar. Ask me how I know. Related: I’ve stopped storing mine in the fridge.

I bought the good stuff (but didn’t stretch to the tahini made by roasters on Mount Gerizim). Nisha recommends tahini made from hulled sesame seeds as the other kind can be bitter. The one I buy (Mighty Sesame Co.) is unhulled but I think it's lovely.

Garlic

I really wanted to make a garlic-free recipe but I no longer believe that hummus should exist without garlic. I’ve gone for roasted rather than raw as it’s sweeter and far less pungent*. Incredibly, an entire bulb of roasted garlic is, to me, more mellow than a couple of raw cloves.

The toppings

I’m generally hummus-neutral, so if I’m going to make one I’ll go all out, finishing it with roasted shallots and onions, smoked harissa and crispy chickpeas. You can forgo all the toppings but the pimped up hummus earned a “wow” from Col. I feel like that’s uncommon (sorry, hummus).

Another bonus if you go the whole hog; you’ll end up with leftover roasted chickpeas. They last for days and make for a really more-ish, satisfying snack.

★ ★ ★

* I feel like there are two camps of people: garlic-worriers and those who don’t give a hoot. I enjoy garlic but try to follow it up with some yoghurt if I’ve eaten a lot.

Notes

It’s much easier to remove the hummus from a food processor compared to a blender (but a blender works just fine). You may need extra water if using a blender.

Heads up: I squeezed lemon juice directly into my Magimix bowl before adding the other ingredients. Now the container has discoloured. Don’t make this mistake — add anything acidic alongside other ingredients or later in the process. Serves me right for not following my own recipe.

Store for up to 4 days in the fridge in an airtight container (although I’ve eaten it on day 5 and been fine). I haven’t tried freezing the hummus yet.

Recipe credit

Inspired by: The Best Homemade Hummus by Rainbow Plant Life.

Recipe

Hummus with Roasted Garlic and Onion

Prep15m
Stand6h
Cook1h
Total7h 15m

Serves: 6-8

Ingredients

Hummus

1 whole bulb of roasted garlic (skin on, or 2-3 raw cloves)
450g cooked chickpeas
175ml runny tahini
1 tsp ground cumin
juice from 2 lemons
100ml ice-cold water (more as needed)
salt and black pepper (I use around 1 tsp of kosher salt)

Optional extras (to roast)

1 tbsp olive or vegetable oil
1 red onion, sliced (or 3 small shallots)
100-150g cooked chickpeas
1 tbsp harissa (I use smoked)
small handful of fresh parsley, chopped
drizzle of extra virgin olive oil

You will need

a food processor or blender

Method

Cook 250g of dried chickpeas using one of the methods below. The chickpeas will more than double in weight. Set aside 450g for the hummus. Roast leftovers in the oven along with the other toppings (see below).

Boil chickpeas

Add 250g of dried chickpeas and ½ tablespoon of salt to a large bowl or saucepan. Fill to the top with water and leave to soak for at least 6 hours (24 if possible).
Drain the chickpeas, cover with plenty of cold water, add ½ tablespoon of salt then boil for 1-2 hours, occasionally skimming off any scum that forms on top of the water. Cook until the chickpeas are very soft.

Pressure cook chickpeas

No need to soak but I like to as my chickpeas are not always super fresh. Soak 250g of dried chickpeas in salted water for 1-6 hours.
Pressure cook on High for 45 minutes or until soft (up to 1 hour). I use my Instant Pot.

Roast garlic and toppings (optional)

Preheat your oven to 200°C (180°C fan). Line a baking tray with foil and drizzle over 1 tablespoon of olive or vegetable oil. Roast the following (the timings are loose):
1. 1 whole bulb of garlic, skin on. Slice off the pointed top to expose the cloves and loosely wrap in tin foil: 45 minutes
2. 1 onion or 3 small shallots, sliced: 20-25 minutes
3. Cooked chickpeas, 100-150g: 30 minutes

Hummus

If using roasted garlic, squeeze all the cloves into a food processor or blender. Otherwise, add 2-3 raw cloves instead.
Add 450g of cooked chickpeas, 175ml of runny tahini, 1 teaspoon of ground cumin, the juice from 2 lemons and 100ml of ice-cold water (more if needed). Blend until smooth. Add salt and black pepper to taste then blend again. I add roughly 1 teaspoon of kosher salt.
Transfer the hummus to a bowl (or container if not eating straightaway). Top with the roasted chickpeas and veg, 1 teaspoon of smoked harissa, a handful of chopped, fresh parsley, and a large drizzle of extra virgin olive oil. The hummus goes really well with Wholemeal Pitta Bread Crisps.