Lébu’s best Hummus recipe: Hummus with basil , topped with hot & spicy bacon

Shake up the Hummus

I love bacon & I love hummus, this is the hummus that dream party snacks are made of

Food does not exist in vacuum , a dish is not created in isolation. A recipe is literally a melting pot of influences that it derives from to reach its entirety. We did not have Hummus while growing up, hell I didn’t even know what hummus was. It was only after I moved to Bombay in my 20s (more than a decade ago) that I came across it in a small restaurant, located in one of the many back lanes of Bandra, an old , stylish neighbourhood in the suburbs of Bombay. I don’t remember the name of the place, it was a trendy restaurant but trying not to look trendy, you know the kind? Small, unfinished walls, faux crumbling.. Ah well, so I think my date ordered the hummus. I didn’t know up till this point that chickpeas could do that, become creamy and smooth, melt in your mouth, you want some , then you want some more, and then some. I must have been a rude date, since I finished mine & his share. Food took priority like it often does. And I wondered How to make Hummus from scratch?

Years later when I met my husband, who cooked a little when we were dating and he introduced me to ‘his’ hummus. He had spent a lot of his growing years in Dubai being a vegetarian primarily he had eaten a lot of hummus , in all its versions. His recipe is simple but utterly delicious.

Hummus is vegetarian, but what if does not have to be? As I mentioned before,  food is an amalgamation of influences. I love bacon & I love hummus and it was time the two married. And doesn’t everything taste better with bacon? But seriously, this dish will make you rethink all the boring ‘middle eastern’ platters that I am forced to eat in bars. I understand why they serve it, it’s easy and they can charge a lot, I once paid Rs. 650 for a hummus platter, the horror. Then, I thought it yummy already why not make it yummier, by adding wait for it…’BACON’.

Occasions: This works so well if you are planning for a hummus appetiser platter.  I like to make this for casual party where we have more appetisers than food.It’s great for a Hummus Tray for party and Hummus ingredients are so easy to get. Get a bag of pita chips to dip and this is going to run faster than you know. The crunch of the crispy bacon and the smooth hummus is like party in your mouth. And so simple to make too.

Note: Fry the bacon at the last minute just before you are going to serve. You can of course make the hummus ahead.  I won’t advice keeping this in the fridge & eating it later. If you have leftovers, put it between two slices of whole wheat bread, & toast it for the yummiest hummus sandwich.

Let me know your hummus platter ideas & if you’re making any variations other than the traditional hummus with dried chickpeas or any other creamy lebanese hummus recipe?

Equipment needed:

1. Food Processor or a really good blender.

2. Spatula

3. Small Pan

4. Tempering Pan or the same pan used above

5. Fine mesh strainer

6. Citrus reamer (optional)

Recipe:

Servings: 2-3

For Hummus:

Ingredients:

Chickpeas-1 Cup

Basil- 6-10 leaves (fresh)

Tahini- 5-6 Tsps

Salt to taste

Lime Juice- ½ lime

For homemade Tahini-

Dry roast the sesame seeds, put oil and blend it- Use 2-4 TBPS in the recipe

For the hot & crispy bacon:

Store bought Bacon-6-7 slices depends on how much you want to eat

Spices

Soy sauce- 5-6 TBS

Cumin- 2 Tsps

Black Pepper- 4 tsps

Red Chilli powder- 3 tsps

Sriracha Powder- 3 Tsps

Ginger powder- 3 tsps

For Tempering

Butter- 1 TBS

Red Chilli powder-2 tsps

Garlic- 5-6 cloves

Method

1. Soak the chickpeas overnight in water, strain & throw away this water

2. Boil the chickpeas with some baking soda over stove- it should  take 30 minutes and strain the water, keep it, you can use it to blend the hummus

3. Put all the ingredients for the hummus in a food processor - first chickpeas and grind it properly, add other ingredients and grind- keep adding ¼ cups of water every time to adjust consistency. It should be creamy and not runny.

4. Mix the bacon with all the ingredients listed above and keep it aside for 10 minutes

5. Take a good amount of oil in a pan and fry the bacon till its cooked

6. Take a small tempering pan & add the butter, chilli and garlic and add on top of the bacon

7. Add the add bacon on top of Hummus & serve

8. Serve with Whole wheat bread toasted with some garlic butter or Pita Chips

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