Zahav's Hummus Tehina
Author Notes: Chef Solomonov writes, "The secret to great Israeli-style hummus is an obscene amount of tehina, as much as half of the recipe by weight, so it's especially important to use the best quality you can find. Unlike Greek-style hummus, which is heavy on garlic and lemon, Israeli hummus is about the marriage of chickpeas and tehina." Note: The original recipe makes a much larger quantity of Tehina Sauce (the garlic, lemon, tahini, and salt mixture in steps 3 and 4), which is wonderful to have on hand if you want to scale up—it will keep for a week refrigerated, or it can be frozen for up to a month. Here we're using the single batch of Tehina Sauce developed by Bon Appétit. Recipe adapted slightly from Zahav: A World of Israeli Cooking, by Michael Solomonov and Steven Cook (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2015) and Bon Appétit (September 2015). —Genius Recipes
Makes about 4 cups
-
1
cup dried chickpeas
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2
teaspoons baking soda, divided
-
4
garlic cloves, unpeeled
-
1/3
cup (or more) fresh lemon juice
-
1
teaspoon kosher salt, plus more
-
2/3
cup excellent quality tahini (a.k.a. tehina—Chef Michael Solomonov loves Soom Foods, available on Amazon)
-
1/4
teaspoon (or more) ground cumin
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Olive oil, for serving
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Chopped parsley and paprika, for serving (optional)
- Place the chickpeas in a large bowl with 1 teaspoon of the baking soda and cover with plenty of water. (The chickpeas will double in volume, so use more water than you think you need.) Soak the chickpeas overnight at room temperature. The next day, drain the chickpeas and rinse under cold water.
- Place the chickpeas in a large pot with the remaining 1 teaspoon baking soda and add cold water to cover by at least 4 inches. Bring the chickpeas to a boil over high heat, skimming off any scum that rises to the surface. Lower the heat to medium, cover the pot, and continue to simmer for about 1 hour, until the chickpeas are completely tender. Then simmer them a little more. (The secret to creamy hummus is overcooked chickpeas; don't worry if they are mushy and falling apart a little.) Drain.
- Meanwhile, process garlic, lemon juice, and 1 teaspoon salt in a food processor until coarsely puréed; let sit 10 minutes to allow garlic to mellow.
- Strain garlic mixture through a fine-mesh sieve into a small bowl, pressing on solids to release as much liquid as possible. Return liquid to food processor; discard solids. Add tahini and pulse to combine. With motor running, add 1/4 cup ice water by the tablespoonful and process (it may seize up at first) until mixture is very smooth, pale, and thick. Add chickpeas and cumin and puree for several minutes, until the hummus is smooth and uber-creamy. Then purée it some more! Taste and adjust the seasoning with salt, lemon juice, and cumin if you like.
- To serve, spread the hummus in a shallow bowl, dust with paprika, top with parsley and more tehina sauce if you have any left, and drizzle generously with oil.
- This recipe is a Community Pick!
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19 days ago Hmmm
Could you use iced chicken/vegetable stock instead? What would an equal amount of miso paste instead of salt do?
22 days ago Syl
Tempest in a teapot over origin of hummus🕉🔯✝️
about 1 month ago Beth
First full day of spring and we're having a snow storm, so I decided to make this hummus (I happened to have a jar of Soom tehina I bought on a recent visit to Philadelphia where I went to Solomonov's falafel place, Goldie's). And you can't just make hummus, so I made pita, too. Best snow day!! The hummus, well, it's heavenly. My next door neighbor is Lebanese, and when I was all done, I invited her and her kids over. She said this recipe nails it. And it does. Thank you!!
This is the pita recipe I followed (to the letter) and it was perfect. And great that it is cooked in a cast iron skillet (and not a 700 F wood burning oven).
https://www.allrecipes...
about 1 month ago draya3
I couldn't agree more with your comment! I especially love it when it's still warm, right out of the food processor. And thank you for the pita recipe. I think I have some new priorities for tomorrow!
about 2 months ago Edna Ocasio-Medina
Hummus is a healthy comfort food. I respect its Arab or Jewish outstanding culinary origin. I am looking forward to try this lemon juice garlicky recipe. Afterall, it is definitely a very healthy, free and simple recipe. Thanks to Chef Solomonov for his kindness to share his "Hummus Garlic-Infused. Lemon Juice recipe. Please, kindly keep sharing your healthy recipe.
Thanks in advance!
Very respectfully,
E. Ocasio-Medina
Puerto Rico, USA
2 months ago M Stuart Itter
Just saw the definitive entry from Pennywhistler who does a good job taking apart the whole Zahav issue and its relationship to Jewish vs other Hummus. It clearly points out that Solomonov uses lavish amounts of sesame paste. HERE IS WHERE THINGS GET INTERESTING. SOLOMONOV IS VERY PARTICULAR ABOUT THE SESAME PAST HE USES. WHATS CHICK PEAS FROM SPECIAL PLACE THAT ARE PROCESSED IN ANOTHER SPECIAL PLACE. HIGHLY RECOMMENDS SOOM SESAME PASTE, WHICH IS MOSTLY AVAILABLE ON LINE. IT IS SOMETHING LIKE $12+SHIPPING FOR TWO CUPS-MOST OF WHICH GETS USED IN SIZE APPROPRIATE VERSIONS OF HIS RECIPE. THE PRODUCT IS GOOD. HIS RECOMMENDATION IS UNDOUBTEDLY HELPFUL TO THE MAKER OF SOOM. IT IS DISTRIBUTED FROM PHILADELPHIA WHERE ZAHAV IS.
2 months ago M Stuart Itter
PS SORRY ABOUT THE TYPOS: SESAME PAST=SESAME PASTE/WHATS=WANTS/
3 months ago j n
Strange how Israel style hummus is exactly the same as the Arabs have been making hummus have been making hummus for way longer than Israel has existed. Enough with the cultural appropriation already.. go ahead an make hummus to your heart's content, just leave Israel out of it.
3 months ago jerri
whoa
3 months ago Pennywhistler
What is so strange about Israelis making ... and enjoying ... hummus?
Why EXACTLY do we need to "leave Israel out of" a discussion of Middle Eastern hummus recipes?
Do you think Israelis got their favorite hummus recipe from the the millions of Mizrachi Jews who fled to Israel from the ... now Judenrein ... Arab countries?
3 months ago M Stuart Itter
I completely agree. Why do we need to "leave Israel out of " a discussion of Midlle Eastern hummus recipes. Why is Zahav an Isreali food restaurant, why did Solomonov write a cookbook about Jewish/Isreali cooking, why does the recipe differ from other top Middle Eastern cookbooks.
3 months ago j n
I was saying that his "israeli-style" hummus is actually just hummus.. there's nothing different about it. So calling it "Israeli-style" is cultural appropriation, esp by an occupying entity. I don't actually care if he got the recipe from Jewish Arabs or if he's israeli.. I think it's great that Israelis love the food of the place that they have taken over and occupied. Calling it "Israeli-style hummus" is a form of cultural occupation. Just ask Native Americans in the US about this.
3 months ago Pennywhistler
Their hummus is lousy.
3 months ago jerri
:-)
3 months ago M Stuart Itter
You are not correct. The Isreali hummus made by micheal solomonov is very different. Much more sesame paste etc. His technique is mind-boggling and everybody across all strata rave about it. They make pilgrimages to Zahav. This video shows the whole thing: https://www.bing.com/search...
2 months ago icharmeat
I think that you are missing j n's point. One chef (who happens to be Israeli?) tweaks an age old arab dish and suddenly this is "Isreali style"? To my thinking, it takes more than one famous guy changing things up a bit in a traditional recipe to make it a national "style" of preparation. A style named for a region/country needs to be practiced widespread throughout the area of acclaimation and for some time to be valid. If everyone in Isreal generally followed the large proportion of tahini that Mr. Solomonov uses over a significant amount of time, then it would be fair to call this "israeli style hummus". I don't believe that this recipe meets the criteria.
It sounds delicious and I intend to make it this way tomorrow (beans are soaking now) but j n has a valid point that some here are missing- leave the "israeli style" out of it and attribute it to Zahov's or to Mr. Solomonov.
2 months ago Pennywhistler
Cute, icharmeat. jn's REAL point was "cultural appropriation, esp by an occupying entity" and "calling it "Israeli-style hummus" is a form of cultural occupation. Just ask Native Americans in the US about this".
Meanwhile Chef Solomonov's real point was "The secret to great Israeli-style hummus is an obscene amount of tehina, as much as half of the recipe by weight ... Unlike Greek-style hummus, which is heavy on garlic and lemon, Israeli hummus is about the marriage of chickpeas and tehina."
In the meantime, pretending that I never mentioned the judenrein character of the Moslem countries many Israelis come from is ludicrous.
Israeli food? Here is Mr. Solomonov: "Solomonov has long been a champion of the diverse food of Israel — a country the size of New Jersey whose residents represent many different countries of origin. “Every single one of those cultures or cuisines, they all brought it from somewhere else. That’s what Israeli food is,” Solomonov says." "Israeli food takes influence from arguably 160 different places." https://www.bostonglobe...
"Written by Zahav owners, Mike Solomonov and Steven Cook, the 2016 James Beard Award Winner for "International Cooking" and "Book of the Year," Zahav: A World of Israeli Cooking showcases the melting-pot cooking of Israel, especially the influences of the Middle East, North Africa, the Mediterranean, and Eastern Europe." http://www.zahavrestaurant...
2 months ago icharmeat
Pennywhistler, I'm not sure what you found "cute" about my reply but my guess is that you are being sarcastic. Mostly we try and avoid that here on Food52. My reply to M Stuart Itter's post was that i didn't think it appropriate to say that j n was "not correct" for the reason I mention in my post. I should have just cut to the chase and asked why is Zahov's hummus "Israeli style"? I haven't seen this very heavy use of tahini in other books about Israeli cooking so it is surprising to me that this recipe would be considered the Israeli style of making hummus.
BTW, I made the hummus this morning. I've personally never had a problem with the texture of the hummus I've made using more traditional methods but my wife really prefers the smooth texture (and probably the extra richness from the tahini) She generally eschews chickpeas becasue of their texture. I did add more lemon and some of the garlic that had been squeezed to bring those flavors to where I like them. Whirling the unpeeled cloves of garlic in my small, prep processor didn't work well-pushed the lemon juice up and out through the join of the lid and the bowl. Peeling garlic that will be pulverized is no big deal anyway.
2 months ago Pennywhistler
Cute in that you elided over jn's point AND my point.
Great - just what the world needed: instructions on how to comment on a friggin' FOOD AND RECIPE site from someone who cannot even spell the restaurant's name right.
Since I have already answered your deeply felt query "why is Zahov's hummus "Israeli style"?" with two links, I shan't go over it again.
2 months ago M Stuart Itter
Interesting discussion. Should lead to enhanced hummus for all of us. As for me, I am taking all of Solomonov's tips, the prep of the paste, a touch of the garlic, the overcooked chick peas, but keeping the sesame paste closer to the middle eastern levels I always used. Two reasons: I did invest in Soom which is expensive and worth it and why would I want to give up legume protein for a large amount of oil/fat for enhanced smoothness. Very happy with the result.
3 months ago karen
this is the best hummus i've ever eaten, or made come to that!. Totally delish.
4 months ago M Stuart Itter
Carney certainly on the right track. So many interpretations of Zahav's hummus. Differences, whatever. But, Solomonov has done a video on how to make his Zahav hummus. Whole other world. Just discovered it. Now, its reputation makes sense. https://www.pannacooking...
4 months ago Carney
Weird - this certainly is not the same recipe that Zahav posts on Food and Wine or on their own site. That recipe is sooooooooo much better than this one. It has more flavor, is simpler to prepare and, oh my, so much more authentic. Not sure where this one came from, but it is very ordinary and not at all flavorful. Oh well...whatever.
4 months ago Pennywhistler
How is this different from the one on Wine & Cheese? How is that one better than this?
5 months ago Patricia Mulvey
The baking soda lowers the pH, which help soften the chickpeas skin.
5 months ago Karen McLachlan
Cool to know. Thanks for the chemistry lesson! :) Helpful for all pureed bean dishes.
I also add bay leaf to the cooking water of beans to reduce their "gassy" influence on some folks digestion.
5 months ago Karen McLachlan
I meant to say ... what is the purpose of adding baking soda to the soaking water?
5 months ago Karen McLachlan
Very curious about the adding of baking soda to the chickpea cooking water. What is its purpose?
5 months ago Patricia Mulvey
I just read the Zahav's Hummus recipe in Food and Wine, and it is COMPLETELY different than this one. It calls for 7 cloves of garlic, unpeeled, that you cook in the same water as the chickpeas. You then peel and puree 6 of the cloves with the chickpeas, and use the one remaining to puree with the lemon etc. which then gets spooned on top of the hummus.....why is this recipe so completely different? Seems like the food and wine version would rectify the blandness issue a lot of commenters have here. I haven't tried the recipe yet, but plan to make the one on Food and Wine. Looks tastier than this one.
5 months ago shelagh
Only one small grocery store where I am. No tahini there, but a product called
" Alwadi Tahina". It is still sesame seed paste, but I cannot find an explanation of the different between tahini and tahina.
5 months ago Gail Smith
Tahini and Tahina are the same thing. Tahina is the way it is called in Hebrew and Arabic, Tahini - English
5 months ago shelagh
Thankyou so much!
6 months ago Chris Hite
Delicious. Made some mods. Used 2 cups canned chick peas. Increased cumin to a 1/2 tsp along with 1/2 tsp of both sumac and zahtar. Teaspoon olive oil in the mix.
9 months ago M Stuart Itter
Have been following this Zahav hummus thing for two years. Raves all over the place. Yet, like some of the other commenters, I did not find it earth shattering. One huge factor may be the chick pea garnish that Zahov puts on it. The garnish is not included in this recipe. It is included others. Well worth finding and including it. (Just saw a FoodandWine version that has it.)
about 1 year ago macfadden
Tasty hummus. We did not find it "life changing," as another reviewer thought, but it was definitely several steps above my usual recipe that calls for a can of chickpeas and a just a few tablespoons of tahini. It was very creamy and smooth tasting, without much sharpness from the garlic or lemon. I am not the sort of person who mail orders tahini from Philadelphia, but I did some research and decided on the house brand tahini at Whole Foods. It was not bitter at all.
about 1 year ago Michael52
Is Soom tahini not bitter? I used Sadaf tahini as I had that on hand and found this recipe to be very bitter as that tahini is quite bitter. I also thought the recipe had a lack of garlic flavor and will modify next time. Texture is very nice, hopefully i can get good flavor in the future.
2 months ago icharmeat
make your own tahini. it is as easy as making peanut butter and easier (technically) than making mayonaise.
about 1 year ago trent
Life Changing! Thank you!
about 1 year ago GW
Just made it today, and the added step of soaking the dried chick peas, allowing the garlic to mellow and put through the fine mesh strainer before adding to the softened chickpeas is worth the effort. The added comments about switching out the lemon for red wine vinegar or roasting the garlic are all great ideas to try for future...did purchase the recommended Soom Foods Tahini through Amazon...served on a platter w/caper berries, red peppers, castelvetrano olives, marinated artichokes, creamy pickled herring, cornichons/pearl onions, pickled shallots, smoked salmon, gorgonzola and provolone cheeses, and crisp toasts...dinner is going to be good tonight!
Showing 39 out of 76 comments