Ottolenghi's Hummus with Ful

Hummus is one of my very favorite things to eat.

If I had to guess, I'd say hummus is beloved the world all over the world. How do I know that? They sell over 20 variations and dedicate an entire refrigerator case to it in the supermarket.

If you love hummus as I do, then leave that storebought hummus at the supermarket because NO ONE will ever write a better hummus recipe than Yotam Ottolenghi. I've made several versions, and all of them are good....come on, it's hummus people, HOWEVER Yotam Ottolenghi takes hummus to a whole new level. EVERY SINGLE TIME!

Years ago I made Ottolenghi's Hummus Kawarma with Lemon Sauce which is his basic hummus recipe with chunks of seasoned lamb, toasted buttered pine nuts, and the most flavorful lemon sauce. It was heaven on earth, and to this day, it remains one of the best dishes I've ever made on my blog. You probably already know this because I have not stopped talking about it and I likely never will.

Ottolenghi's Heavenly Hummus Kawarma with Lemon Sauce

Today's hummus recipe is much different than Ottolenghi's Hummus Kawarma, starting with the hummus itself. Ottolenghi's Hummus with Ful begins with a tahini-based hummus, much thicker and heartier than his basic hummus. This hummus with the tahini is like velvet. It's so smooth and creamy and decadent. Top that hummus with ful, a paste made of fava beans, olive oil, garlic, lemon juice, and cumin. The ful is delightfully zingy from the hefty dose of lemon juice and carries a punch of flavor from the garlic and the cumin. When you pour the ful over the hummus you are in for a double bean flavor explosion. Then come more toppings: whole cooked chickpeas for texture, chopped parsley to add that herbaceous quality, a good dusting of paprika to add some earthiness, and more olive oil and lemon juice to round things out.

Proceed to have your hummus loving mind blown. This hummus was very good warm, but my eyes nearly rolled back in my head when I tasted it chilled. How in the world can something as humble as beans taste so very extrodinary? Is it just me?

Ottolenghi says to serve this hummus with onion wedges and quartered hard-boiled egg, which was very different than anything I've served with hummus before. I like onions, so I dunked an onion wedge in to the hummus and used it as a scoop...different, delicious, and not overwhelmingly oniony. Goes very well together. I love hard-boiled eggs and hummus, but thought they were just OK together so I'm not sure I'd mix the two together again. However, I absolutely LOVED eating this hummus with some warmed naan bread that I tore up and dunked right in. The naan bread is so soft and fluffy and it is so wonderful for dunking into this rich, decadent, heavenly hummus.

So, what are you waiting for? You have hummus to make! Go look up ANY Yotam Ottolenghi hummus recipe and get busy. It will change your life!

Hummus with Ful

Adapted from Plenty

by Yotam Ottolenghi

Serves an army

For The Hummus:

2-1/2 cups dried chickpeas

1-1/2 tablespoons baking soda

1-1/4 cups tahini paste

3 tablespoons lemon juice*

6 garlic cloves, crushed*

salt and pepper, to taste

For the Ful:

1-1/2 cups dried fava beans

1/3 cup olive oil

1/3 cup lemon juice

1 tablespoon ground cumin

4 garlic cloves, crushed

1 teaspoon salt

For the Garnish:

1/3 cup olive oil

1/3 cup lemon juice

1 teaspoon sweet paprika

6 tablespoons roughly chopped parsley

3 eggs, hard-boiled and quartered

1 medium red onion, cut into 6 wedges

Optional:

Pita, naan, crackers, and/or veggies for dipping and dunking

Soak the chickpeas and fava beans overnight. Place them in two separate bowls and cover with double their volume of cold water. Add 1 tablespoon baking soda to the chickpeas. Set both aside. The next day, drain and rinse both.

Place the soaked chickpeas and remaining baking soda in a medium saucepan and cover with double their volume of cold water. Bring to the boil, then simmer very gently for 2 to 3 hours (mine were cooked in less than 2 hours), or until totally soft and easy to mush. Add more water during cooking, if necessary, to keep them immersed. Drain them, retaining the cooking liquid**

Transfer the warm chickpeas to a food processor, reserving a few to garnish at the end, and add the tahini, lemon juice, garlic, and salt to taste. Blitz for a minute or two until totally smooth. Add some of the cooking liquid and blitz again. You want the mixture to be very soft, almost runny, but just holding its shape. Taste and add more salt if you like. (I found that I needed to add another clove of garlic and a few more tablespoons of lemon juice for more flavor). 

To make the ful place the fava beans in a medium saucepan and cover with double their volume of water. Simmer gently for about 3 hours (they may take longer), adding more water if necessary. By the end of the cooking time, hardly any liquid should be left in the pan (drain it out if needed) and the beans should have begun to disintegrate, or will do so easily when crushed with a fork. Remove from the heat and add the olive oil, lemon juice, cumin, garlic, and salt. Taste and adjust the seasoning.

To serve, spread the warm hummus in small individual plates. Spoon the ful in the center and drizzle the olive oil and lemon juice on top and around. Sprinkle with paprika, garnish with the reserved chickpeas, plenty of parsley, and serve egg and onion on the side.