24 Heavenly Hummus Recipes for Your Next Gathering (2024)

FAQs

How do you jazz up store-bought hummus? ›

Next, enhance the blank slate of flavor with a few squeezes of lemon juice, a sprinkling of garlic salt, a turn of freshly cracked pepper, a heavy-handed sprinkle of paprika, and a generous drizzle of your nicest olive oil. Bonus points if you have an herby olive oil on hand with a little color to it.

Give your plain hummus a burst of color and flavor by adding things like mashed avocados, pesto or even canned pumpkin puree. The mashed avocado and pesto will give the hummus a vibrant green color, giving your snack spread an eye-appealing look.

Store-bought hummus can be just as healthy as its homemade counterpart, the experts say, and very convenient—but you should read the label carefully. “Buy hummus with as few ingredients as possible, mostly whole foods,” Jones recommends. To do that, just look for ingredients with names you recognize on the label.

“Get creative with different veggies—sliced peppers, jicama, radish slices, celery, cherry tomatoes, snap peas, cucumbers, cauliflower, and broccoli florets are all great ways to change up what you dip into hummus,” Michalczyk says. You'll get a great crunch and tons of nutrition.

Warm hummus: It may sound unusual, but in countries where hummus originated (although we don't know exactly where this was), hummus is traditionally served – you guessed it – warm. Here in the US, hummus is usually chilled and served as a dip with veggies, bread, crackers, and more.

Use a classic hummus and then add garlic, lime juice, cumin, coriander, and cayenne to taste, or buy a flavored hummus like garlic or red pepper to eliminate additional seasonings. Mix the beans into your hummus and you're ready to go. A savory black bean hummus can be used in myriad ways.

The Ice Cube Trick for Hummus

For extra light and fluffy hummus, adding an ice cube to the hummus mixture before blending helps incorporate air into the mixture. Only add an ice cube if you're using a heavy-duty blender or food processor that can handle chopping ice.

It's already a near-perfect food. That said, we've started adding cold water to our hummus. While it sounds counterintuitive, the water makes the hummus creamy, light, and almost fluffy in texture. It's a trick we learned from Yotam Ottolenghi that has improved our hummus game considerably.

Store-bought hummus may have a longer shelf life than homemade, depending on how it is prepared. But both varieties should last up to 7 days in the refrigerator (for prepared hummus this applies once the container is opened). Like any food, hummus is perishable and is prone to spoilage.

While hummus is a very healthy snack option, it should not be consumed in large quantities. Even though it is low in fat, it contains calories.

What can I use instead of tahini in hummus? ›

If you feel adventurous, try replacing the tahini with an equal amount of peanut butter, sunflower seed butter, Greek yogurt, chopped roasted peppers, pitted olives, roasted beets, steamed sweet potato, avocado, or thawed frozen peas, to name just a few possibilities.

The two are nutritionally close in calories and fat; peanut butter has slightly more protein, and tahini is sugar-free.

Hummus nutrition

While it's a decent amount to get you toward that daily fiber goal, it won't wreck your digestive system. It's all about moderation. Individual food sensitivities aside, chickpeas and hummus are perfectly safe to consume as long as they don't make up your entire meal.

Refrigerated hummus, whether open or sealed and homemade versions, should be kept in the fridge under 40°F or below in an airtight container to minimize exposure to air. Shelf-stable, unrefrigerated hummus, such as canned hummus, can stay at room temperature for extended periods as long as they remain unopened.

But the commercial stuff requires refrigeration (as do leftovers of your homemade version). So the simplest way to improve any cold hummus is by taking the chill off: microwave it and/or whisk in little hot water (or aquafaba if you've got it) to loosen it up and return some of that silkiness to its texture.

If your Hummus tastes bland, start by adding more salt. You can also add more lemon juice or garlic, or stir in some fresh herbs, spices, roasted peppers, and more (see below for more tips).