Hummus - Arabic Chickpea Dip

Staying in UAE, Arabic food comes like normal to all of us, even though many of us may not cook their food much at home. Each time, we are out, the first thing I would want is the kebabs from any Lebanese food joinery for sure. Nothing can beat the satisfaction of eating the juicy succulent kebabs so well grilled... yummm.... always served with loads of salad, "khubz" (Arabic bread) and hummus...

Hummus is something that we make very frequently at home. Anytime we fry or grill chicken, hummus has to be there. In fact, it is easier to make than have a gravy go alongside with it. The combination of "khubz", hummus and fried chicken is amazing. My kids normally don't need any accompaniments for hummus. All I have to do is give it to them in bowls and watch with a smile, the way they scoop it up into their mouth and mess up their whole face... :)



Ingredients:

1-1/2 cup dry chickpeas, washed and soaked in lots of water overnight
6 cloves of garlic
4 tbsp tahini paste (sesame seeds paste)
1 tbsp paprika powder
Salt, as required
Olive oil, as required

Method: 

Pressure cook the chickpeas in little water (do not add too much water, just level should do) with the garlic and salt till well cooked. Allow to cool.

In a grinder (Prithi or Sumeet types!), add the cooked chickpeas, garlic, the tahini paste, paprika powder, some olive oil, salt and little of the water in the cooker and blend together into a very thick paste. If you face difficulty in blending, add a little more water.

Scrape into a serving bowl and serve with a splash of paprika and olive oil drizzled on top!

Notes:

1. I normally use my large grinder of my Prithi mixer and do the grinding in two trips.
2. The amount of the tahini paste and paprika is totally upto your like. We like to have the tahini taste so we add more.
3. For a slightly tangy version, add the juice of a lime at the end and mix well.