Vegan hummus is so easy to make from scratch - once you try it you will never go back to store bought. This authentic Turkish recipe starts with dried chickpeas for that super creamy texture, and only adds 4 ingredients: tahini, garlic, salt and olive oil for a recipe with just 5-10 minutes of active time cooking.
Course Side Dish
Cuisine Mediterranean, Middle Eastern, Turkish
Diet Gluten Free, Vegan, Vegetarian
Cook Time 50 minutesminutes
Soaking & cooling time 12 hourshours30 minutesminutes
Soaking dried chickpeas (soak for at least 12 hours)
Start by placing your dried chickpeas in a bowl and cover generously with water. Cover and let sit in room temperatur for at least 12 hours.
½ lb dried chickpeas
Cooking chickpeas (30-45 minutes)
Drain the chickpeas and place in a large pot. Cover with new, fresh water and mix in the salt. Cover and boil for 30-45 minutes, until the chickpeas are very soft. Then set aside to cool for at least 30 minutes.
0.5 tablespoon salt
Drain the water from the chickpeas but do not throw it away - you need it for making the hummus.
Making hummus (5 minutes)
Place your chickpeas in a food process and add the peeled garlic cloves and tahini. Mix for a minute, and then add in the olive oil and half of the chickpea cooking water. Mix another minute, then continue adding in chickpea water until you've reached your desired consistency.
3 garlic cloves, ½ cup tahini, 2 tablespoon olive oil, 1.25 cups chickpea cooking water
Taste test, and season if needed with more garlic, salt, tahini or olive oil. Top with olive oil and chili flakes (optional) and serve as a sauce or as a starter together with bread or vegetables.
olive oil, chili flakes*
Video
Notes
Ingredient notes
Dry chickpeas make all the difference - you'll never get the same texture with canned. However, if that's what you have and you need it ready in five minutes... then go for it.
Chickpea cooking water is another important ingredient to make the hummus super creamy. If you're using canned chickpeas you don't have this - so double the amount of olive oil instead and add cold water as needed to get the texture you want.
Tahini can be light or dark - I prefer the dark one. I try to find a brand that sounds Middle Eastern, that usually means the tahini is a bit more authentic.
Olive oil can be switched for a neutral vegetable oil, which gives the same texture without any added taste. Or skip it, your hummus will still be good.
Garlic - Adjust the amount if you want more or less garlic flavor. This recipe makes a vegan hummus with a bit of garlic flavor, but not too much.
Fine table salt is added when cooking the chickpeas. If using canned chickpeas - or if you think your hummus needs more salt - feel free to add more when making the hummus.
Tips & Tricks
Soak and cook chickpeas for more than one batch at once, and then freeze the leftover chickpeas together with some of the cooking water. The next time you want to make hummus, just bring out a bag of chickpeas the night before and let it thaw slowly in the fridge.
If you don't have a food processor you can make this using a handheld immersion blender or a regular blender instead
Adjust the consistency by adding more or less cooking liquid
Adjust the taste by adjusting the amount of garlic, olive oil, tahini and salt
Use a small cream jug for the olive oil to make pouring it slowly on top of the hummus much easier
For a less spicy topping, use a less-spicy type of chili flakes (like Aleppo chili flakes*) or use a fresh or dried herb like parsley or mint instead
Leftover chickpea cooking water can be used as a vegan egg substitute in many recipes that call for eggs
How to store it
Store hummus in the fridge for up to a week, or freeze it for up to a few months. If freezing it, make sure to leave 1 cm/½'' of space at the top of the container as the hummus will expand slightly while freezing.