Recently, the Huffingtonpost's Taste Associate Editor Julie Thomson wrote a 'straight from the heart' piece on the right and the wrong way to eat hummus. She wrote" "We know that this might be confusing to some since you buy hummus in the refrigerated section of the grocery store. But listen up: Freshly made hummus is never cold, not ever. It's usually room temperature - and sometimes even served hot."
Her aurguments, that sound very earnest rest on two key things. One, in the Middle Eastern countries that gave us hummus, that's the way it's eaten.
Two, she says, "cold hummus embodies the taste of nothingness," as the refrigeration masks the rich flavours. So, ideally you should wait for it to at least come to room temperature.
Now, for hummus fans, who already love it anyway, with anything, perhaps even without (licking it off their fingers, or scraping clean a bowl with a spoon), surely Thomson may appear to be kicking a fuss about nothing.
But talking from experience, it's worth a try. Anything just out of the fridge just doesn't have as much flavuor, as it does at room temperature. Try this with sauces or even a piece of good cheese.
Chickpeas have a nice nutty flavour that we miss when we eat hummus cold. Try keeping it out for half an hour before you dig in.
As for eating hummus hot, well that's just one of the ways its served in Palestine, Jorda and Israel, the lands that gave hummus to the world. If you like the idea, you could either bake some in a shallow casserlone or spread it on a warm piece of toast.
DIY
Making hummus at home
Soak a cup of dry chickpeas for at least two hours. Boil for about an hour or pressure-cook them till done, for about 7-10 minutes. In a small pan, add 5-7 cloves in little water, and bring to boil. Strain both, garlic cloves and chickpeas, and allow it to cool. Then pulse in a blender with a tbsp olive oil, salt, paprika, lemon juice and any herbs and spices, you like. You could either had 2-3 ice cubes while blending, or add a tbsp of water at a time, for desired consistency. Drizzle olive oil and dust some paprika, and serve (eat!)
Hummus with a twist
Boiled beet or hung curd or homemade mint chutney, orange or lime zezt, you could throw in any of these in the food processor along with your ingredients for hummus for a refreshing, flavourful dip.
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