The Best Hummus
Learn how to make the best homemade hummus! It's ultra creamy, dreamy and light. This hummus recipe is easy to make, too—no need to peel your chickpeas!
Updated by Kathryne Taylor on August 29, 2024
The best hummus is lusciously creamy, yet somehow light and fluffy. It’s beautifully smooth and swirled, and begging to be scooped up onto a wedge of pita bread. It’s nutty and tangy, thanks to the tahini, with notes of bright, fresh lemon and mellow garlic.
I encountered the most delicious hummus at Aladdin Cafe, a local Mediterranean restaurant. That hummus met all of the above characteristics, and I was hoping the owner might enlighten me with his techniques. When I asked, though, he replied, “It’s a secret,” with a sly smile and walked away.
I went home determined to learn how to make magnificently creamy hummus. First, I took the fancy flavorings out of my other hummus recipes to make plain hummus. It was dense, a little gritty, and harshly garlicky. I was so disappointed.
Next, I went to Google and opened up a million tabs to learn everything about hummus. You know me. Ten hummus attempts later, I’m ready to share all of my hummus tips and tricks with you. Get ready to make the best hummus of your life!
The internet at large raves that an Israeli chef named Michael Solomonov makes the very best hummus. It’s so good that Bon Appetit named his hummus their 2015 Dish of the Year. That’s some serious hummus.
Solomonov’s secret? He uses chickpeas that have been cooked until they’re so tender, they’re mushy.
He cooks his chickpeas with some baking soda, too. According to Bon Appetit, baking soda “raises the pH of the water and helps the little guys break down to a soft, pulpy mass… perfect for an ultra-smooth purée.”
Overcooked chickpeas seemed like a promising idea to me. You see, I once tried to make hummus with canned chickpeas that were oddly undercooked, and they made terrible hummus. No matter how long I blended the hummus, those undercooked chickpeas never blended into creamy oblivion.
Plus, baking soda helps break down the chickpea skins, which means you do not need to peel off the skins individually. Who has time for that?! I bet you don’t have time to soak your chickpeas overnight and cook them from scratch like Solomonov, either.
Here’s my time-saving solution: Just boil canned or leftover cooked chickpeas with baking soda for twenty minutes.
You can see the difference that baking soda makes in the photo below. See how the chickpeas on the right are popping open more? They are significantly softer in texture as well.
The chickpeas are ready to go after a quick rinse under cool running water, which rinses off the baking soda flavor and cools the chickpeas so your hummus doesn’t develop a weird outer film.
Are you as excited about this as I am? You can have this incredible hummus now-ish, not tomorrow! No chickpea peeling required.
I have a few more tips and techniques to making great hummus, so read on or scroll down for the full recipe and variations.
How to Make the Best Hummus
1) Mushy chickpeas
Cook canned or leftover cooked chickpeas according to step 1 below. This only adds 20 minutes to your hummus-making time, and it’s my number one tip for making perfect hummus at home.
Want to cook your chickpeas from scratch? You sure can—see the recipe notes.
Can you over-cook your chickpeas in an Instant Pot? I don’t recommend it—you’ll end up with a mess of chickpea mash clogging your vent and a puddle of chickpea cooking water surrounding your Instant Pot. I speak from experience.
2) Great tahini
All tahini is not created equally. When I was in Israel, Israelis’s spoke of tahini, or “t’hina,” with reverence. I learned that the best tahini comes from Ethiopia. Store-bought tahini in the U.S. varies widely in flavor, with some of them so bad that they’ve ruined my hummus.
My favorite brands of tahini? I had to try Solomonov’s favorite, Soom. I found it on Amazon (affiliate link) and I have to say that it is worth it. Second favorite? Trader Joe’s organic tahini, which is made from Ethiopian sesame seeds like Soom’s. Whole Foods 365 used to be my go-to, but I encountered a few bad jars that tasted so bad, I’m afraid to try again.
Don’t skimp on the tahini, either—you need to use 1/2 cup tahini per can of chickpeas for rich and irresistible hummus. I once toured an enormous hummus production facility and learned that they often reduce the cost of producing store-bought hummus by using less tahini. Sneaky!
3) Ice-cold water
Why do you always want to mix ice-cold water with tahini? This is another trick that I learned on my trip. I can’t find a scientific explanation, but it seems to help make the hummus light and fluffy, and lightens the color of the tahini to a pale ivory color.
4) Fresh-squeezed lemon juice
Store-bought lemon juice always tastes stale and sad, and it will make your hummus taste stale and sad. Buy lemons and your humus will taste fresh and delicious. I almost always add another tablespoon of lemon juice to my hummus for extra flavor before I plate it, but I’ll leave the tang factor up to you.
5) Garlic, mellowed in lemon juice
This is another trick from Solomonov—if you mince the garlic in the food processor or blender with the lemon juice and let that mixture rest for a few minutes, the garlic will lose its harsh, raw bite and mellow out. I tried it before and after, and he’s right! Here’s Serious Eats’ scientific explanation for why this works.
6) Olive oil, blended into the hummus and drizzled on top
Solomonov doesn’t blend any olive oil into his hummus, but I think that one tablespoon makes the hummus taste even more luxurious and creamy. I recommend it!
7) Ground cumin
The cumin is subtle and offers some “Je ne sais quoi,” if you will. It’s a common ingredient in plain hummus recipes, and makes the hummus taste a little more special.
Hummus Variations
This hummus recipe is plain (and by plain, I mean delicious), but you can blend any of the following in with the chickpeas to make variations.
- Green goddess hummus: 3/4 cup loosely packed fresh, leafy herbs
- Kalamata olive hummus: 3/4 cup pitted Kalamata olives
- Roasted garlic hummus: Cloves from 1 to 2 heads of roasted garlic
- Roasted red pepper hummus: 3/4 cup roasted red peppers, drained and sliced into strips
- Sun-dried tomato hummus: 3/4 cup oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, rinsed and drained (from one 6.7-ounce jar)
- Toasted sesame hummus: 1/2 teaspoon in the hummus, plus 1 teaspoon drizzled on top
Hummus Garnishes
- Drizzle of olive oil
- Sprinkle of ground sumac, which is gloriously sour and deep pink, or paprika, which is basically flavorless but offers a splash of color
- Sesame seeds or seeded spice blend, such as dukkah
- Middle Eastern hot sauce, such as zhoug or shatta
- Chopped fresh parsley
Ok, let’s make some hummus! I’m dying to hear how this hummus turns out for you. Please let me know in the comments and tell me if overcooking your chickpeas makes all the difference!
You can also share a photo of your results on Instagram with the hashtag #cookieandkate so we can all see your results.
Watch How to Make Hummus
Best Hummus
Learn how to make the best homemade hummus! It’s creamy, dreamy and light. This hummus recipe is easy to make—no peeling chickpeas or overnight soak required. Recipe yields about 2 cups.
Ingredients
- 1 can (15 ounces) chickpeas, rinsed and drained, or 1 ½ cups cooked chickpeas
- ½ teaspoon baking soda (if you’re using canned chickpeas)
- ¼ cup lemon juice (from 1 ½ to 2 lemons), more to taste
- 1 medium-to-large clove garlic, roughly chopped
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt, to taste
- ½ cup tahini
- 2 to 4 tablespoons ice water, more as needed
- ½ teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
- Any of the following garnishes: drizzle of olive oil or zhoug sauce, sprinkle of ground sumac or paprika, chopped fresh parsley
Instructions
- Place the chickpeas in a medium saucepan and add the baking soda. Cover the chickpeas by several inches of water, then bring the mixture to a boil over high heat. Continue boiling, reducing heat if necessary to prevent overflow, for about 20 minutes, or until the chickpeas look bloated, their skins are falling off, and they’re quite soft. In a fine-mesh strainer, drain the chickpeas and run cool water over them for about 30 seconds. Set aside (no need to peel the chickpeas for this recipe!).
- Meanwhile, in a food processor or high-powered blender, combine the lemon juice, garlic and salt. Process until the garlic is very finely chopped, then let the mixture rest so the garlic flavor can mellow, ideally 10 minutes or longer.
- Add the tahini to the food processor and blend until the mixture is thick and creamy, stopping to scrape down any tahini stuck to the sides and bottom of the processor as necessary.
- While running the food processor, drizzle in 2 tablespoons ice water. Scrape down the food processor, and blend until the mixture is ultra smooth, pale and creamy. (If your tahini was extra-thick to begin with, you might need to add 1 to 2 tablespoons more ice water.)
- Add the cumin and the drained, over-cooked chickpeas to the food processor. While blending, drizzle in the olive oil. Blend until the mixture is super smooth, scraping down the sides of the processor as necessary, about 2 minutes. Add more ice water by the tablespoon if necessary to achieve a super creamy texture.
- Taste, and adjust as necessary—I almost always add another ¼ teaspoon salt for more overall flavor and another tablespoon of lemon juice for extra zing.
- Scrape the hummus into a serving bowl or platter, and use a spoon to create nice swooshes on top. Top with garnishes of your choice, and serve. Leftover hummus keeps well in the refrigerator, covered, for up to 1 week.
Notes
Recipe adapted from Michael Solomonov, via The New York Times and Bon Appetit, and Yotam Ottolenghi.
How to cook dry chickpeas in a hurry for this recipe: In a large saucepan, combine 5 ounces (¾ cup) dried chickpeas and ½ teaspoon baking soda, and fill the pot with water. Bring the mixture to a boil over high heat and skim off the surface foam as needed. Continue boiling over medium-high, adding more water if you start running out, until the chickpeas are very mushy and falling apart, about 1 hour to 1 hour 15 minutes. Drain in a fine-mesh colander, rinse under cool running water, and drain well before using. Start the recipe at step 2.
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice. See our full nutrition disclosure here.
Great post – I had just made what I thought was hummous (typically not using a recipe!!) with a ton of chick peas soaked and boiled from dry, a ton of Macedonian tahini, a dollop of Palestinian pomegranate molasses, oodles of garlic, olive oil, cumin and some Lebanese 7-spice and it did not work! It was like wet cement! I suspected lemon juice might be needed and only then did I check out an actual recipe, duh, then added that and the iced water as you suggest. Bingo, yummy perfection ready to top our veggy couscous. Thank you for saving our dinner. I’ll try the baking soda tip next time and read a few more of your recipes.
I have tried so many hummus recipes, this one is perfect. The hummus is the fluffiest ever and there isn’t any bitterness or over tanginess of other hummus’. All the steps make a huge difference so do them and they will pay off. Thank you for this! It’s amazing
Outstanding recipe! I precook and freeze raw chickpeas so I have them portioned and ready to go. This recipe is great. I use 2 lemons, two cloves of garlic, and one cup of mushy chickpeas.
For fun, I garnish with roasted sesame seeds and sumac or sun dried tomatoes. Thanks, Kate!
Just made this hummus recipe. I think it’s better than any other hummus recipe I’ve ever tried. My husband’s reaction: Did you make this? (Meaning he really likes it, too!)
I love it, Mary! Thank you for sharing.
My hummus is never quite right and I had no idea what I was doing wrong. This recipe turned out great, thanks for all of the little tips and tricks!
I have tried many hummus recipes. This is the best by far. Thanks for sharingMarilyn
Amazing !! Tastes so smooth and oh so delicious !
I can’t wait to try this recipe out! If I don’t have a food processor, can I make this in my Vitamix?
Hi Andie! Yes, this will get deliciously creamy in a Vitamix.
Absolutely outstanding!!! Kids and hubby scarfed it up!
This recipe is the BEST!!! This is the 3rd time I have used this recipe in two weeks and it’s so good I decided to double the recipe but the texture was not as smooth so next time I will make two batches instead. Letting the garlic marinate in the lemon juice for a bit is a great tip. Thanks for sharing your recipe.
Do you use the baking soda with canned chickpeas? I am confused
Yes! This is meant for canned chickpeas. I hope that helps!
I understand for cooking chickpeas but why for canned?
Thank you:)
Hi Natalie, I have found that chickpeas can vary greatly in their texture and firmness. The baking soda, as explained in the post, helps to get you a creamy consistency every time even if there is variance in your chickpeas.
How many days will this hummus last for in the fridge?
Hi Moni, it’s in the last step. Leftover hummus keeps well in the refrigerator, covered, for up to 1 week.
This is the best hummus recipe I’ve ever tried. Better than some restaurant hummus! My family has gone crazy for it. Thank you!
I’m glad you love it, Kate! Thank you for your review.
I made it today and it was perfect! Thanks
Awesome recipe, this is the first hummus recipe that produced a creamy texture. This recipe is so good I don’t think I’ll ever buy store bought hummus again! Thank you so much!
Holy cow, that is the tastiest hummus ever. Perfect recipe! Added 8 pitted Kalamata olives for the final blending for a bit of acidity. It was slightly warm from the boiled, canned garbanzo beans. Truly the tastiest I’ve had!
Yumm….fantastic recipe
Going to explore your site for more recipes
I just made this…its a little less firm than I am used to but I made it for a salad, so its actually perfect. Next time I will use less water. It is so so yummy!!!! Thank you for this! I need to make a double batch next go around for sure!
This is a great base recipe for hummus ! I always Double the seasoning for recipes! This time I added turmeric and black pepper to this recipe to add anti inflammatory benefits
Hi Kate
When I place the chickpeas inside my strainer and run water. The skins are still running around. They are not going at the bottom ?? What I did is pick some in my hands little by little and rub them and remove the skins. Do I miss an important step. It seems I should rinse and that’s it but it didn’t work for me :(
Hi Carine! No need to peel or pick the skins. The baking soda helps to break them down enough that you won’t need to do that. I hope this helps! Let me know what you think.
Yes it works wonderful the skins are detached but I don’t know if I am good at this but even when I run the water on the peas inside the strainer the skins are still around so when I want to grab the peas I still grab the detached skins with it.
Not sure I explain well but this is my problem :) the skins are really getting off with the soda it’s just once it’s done how to not “grab them inside the strainer with the peas not having the skins on”
Thanks, Kate! This is the best hummus I’ve ever had. I was slow-cooking Rancho Gordo chickpeas when I read your recipe, so I removed when done, added 1.5 cups back to the cooker and let it go on low for another hour. The skins popped off and were easy to pluck out. I appreciate how precise and articulate your directions are. I love how the garlic sitting in the lemon juice let the garlic flavor show through without the bite raw garlic usually has. I never would have thought of that. I pulled out the pickled jalapenos, cilantro and chips and ate waaaaay too much. Keep up the great work!!
Truly the best hummus ever! Pure creamy happiness You will never buy hummus again once you try this recipe!
Great recipe! Just made it. I followed your steps and I quite like the creamy texture, perfect! I tried one with another recipe before but it turned bad as it just used the canned chickpea with the skin on. I also like your idea of soaking garlic and lemon juice :) Definitely will do again!
Amazing recipe! This turned out so well, thank you for sharing
YES!!! You are the real MVP. I appreciate chefs and recipe developers like you who do this much research to truly perfect a dish. Thank you so much for sharing! This is a gem.
I’ve used a bunch of different recipes – this is by far the best. It was consumed really fast.
Realized I didn’t have baking soda after putting the peas onto boil. So I googled ways to increase water’s PH level and one of the ways was fresh lemon juice. I’m not sure if it made a huge difference, but they did look more like the ones in your right picture (picked out most of the skins just in case). The hummus came out great! It wasn’t seasoned enough for my taste so I had to tweak the spices. I topped it off with red onions that I soaked in lemon juice prior to(same concept as the garlic, it took out some of the bite and gave them a nice zing) and some fresh feta cheese! Thank you for sharing (:
Best recipe ever! I make mine with dried chickpeas soaked overnight. And I stir in a quarter cup of roasted red pepper and it’s perfect! Thanks for sharing!
I can’t get over how much more delicious your homemade hummus is than anything store bought. I’ve tried to make my own hummus in the past, with instructions from people telling me how easy it is, but it was always gritty and grainy. Ick. Following your tips, and using TJ’s organic tahini, my hummus is FABULOUS!! It’s hard to stop eating. :)
This was an okay recipe, but not as good as the ratings gave it. I applaud your efforts of posting a hummus recipe.
Wondering what your thoughts were about using jarred minced garlic?
Hi Jodi, I don’t like jarred garlic as I don’t find the flavor to be the best. For this one, to really make it the best, I recommend fresh.
I have tried many hummus recipes & this one is by far the beat I’ve ever made! Thanks so much for the helpful technique tips that made all the difference!
hi cookie and kate,
best hummus recipe ever ..
thanks for sharing and i will be sure to make at least once a week.
so light and fluffy ..
all the best to you in kansas from us (va) and the k9s, sapphire and [sparkle].
yeah, girl! i used this on EVERTHING. i doubled both the garlic and lemon. originally, i made my chickpeas from scratch. this was a fiasco… they took FOREVER to cook. i wont spend 7 dollars on a bag of chickpeas again. If time is money, I’ll use the canned version
Your recipes are amazing.
I have made hummus before and you are right the chick peas were hard and the whole dish wasn’t very nice. I came across your recipe and have just finished making it exactly to the recipe. Yum..yum..absolutely just like (but better) than you buy, creamy, smooth and full of just the right flavour. Cooking the chick peas (I used tinned) was a great tip. I’ll definitely be keeping this recipe and I’m sure it will become one of my favourites. Thanks for sharing.
i wonder if using the canned chickpeas if boiling is still required? I am a little confused on how the recipe is written. Thanks.
Hi Nikki, I found to make this super creamy and smooth, it was just the trick. It helps to break them down since canned chickpeas can vary so much. All of that is in the post! :)
Absolutely delicious!! Superior over another recipe I’ve tried!
I’m making this hummus right now in stages. I need to go to the store for some lemons. We are spending the weekend with some non vegans and I need to have something delicious to eat while they cooking bacon and eggs!! I’m doubling the recipe so 1/2 can be sundried tomato and the half to be decided. Enjoy making your kitchen messy with a fun recipe!
I hope you love it, Joanna! Thank you for your review.
Thank you! I have searched high and low for homemade hummus that’s smooth. I am familiar with the NYT recipe where you have to peel the beans but this was so much easier with equally good results! Only change I would make is using unsalted canned beans next time to better control the salt in the final product. I found I slightly over salted this batch but that’s on me!
I made this tonight according to specs (meaning, your recipe). It is the best hummus I have ever had, let alone made. A keeper. Thank you!
But if you do peel them the skins make a fantastic gluten free cracker. Waste no Ingredients!
So, so good! I knew peeling the chick peas made a difference, but LOVE the boil in baking soda trick.
I have made this three times and love it. Going to try it without oil today and see how it goes. Also, did one of the batches adding sun dried tomatoes, which was great also. Absolutely agree, the boiling with baking soda makes a huge difference in the creaminess and smoothness. Thank you.
Best hummus I have ever eaten. I love that I can enjoy it without the bad oils and additives the store-bought version has.
I’m hooked, Love this humans. Have now made it several times.
Love the creaminess. Use the best tahini and live oil you can. I like a crunch so add when served, papittas, pine nuts, or shelled sunflower seeds.
Made it this afternoon for the first time. Instructions were easy to follow and the hints made it even better– it turned out great!! Thank you!
Oh my goodness this is excellent. Thank you!
Great idea about cooking chic peas with baking soda. I add to felafel as well.
In israel, where I lived for a short while, they cook or soak chic peas. I as well make fresh pita to dip into hummus.
Something p once tried with the garlic is to simply roast the head with top sliced off, salt and olive oil in a piece of tin foil wrapped to close in 400 degree oven for about 10-15 minutes. It gives it a more mellow flavor as raw garlic can have a bite.
I’m making sundries tomato hummus today.. it’s one I love. I blend some olive oil later with a little leftover tomato and drizzle it over hummus..
Thanks for the suggestion about baking soda!!!
This IS the best hommos – and I have tried many different ways of making it, including peeling my home cooked chickpeas! And I just discovered that you have gone so far as scaling the recipe. You are truly the best! Thank you, THANK YOU!
I think this has WAY too much tahini – but overall is a great starting point for making great hummus. Boiling the canned chickpeas did make a really creamy hummus. It was the best hummus I’ve made yet, but with a few tweeks, it could become the best hummus I’ve had.