All About Hummus – and a Recipe for Healthy, Oil-Free Hummus

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Hummus is a healthy, gluten-free, vegan dip that is amazingly versatile and wonderfully delicious.

Here are 10 reasons to eat hummus, 5 reasons to make your own (instead of buying it), 6 tips for making the best hummus, 3 ways to blend it, 3 reasons why oil-free hummus is a better option, and 1 fabulous recipe for oil-free hummus!

10 Reasons to Eat Hummus

1. It’s healthy.

Hummus is super high in fiber as well as vitamin B6, folate, and manganese.

2. It’s gluten-free.

Gluten-free packed lunches can be a challenge.  Hummus provides a solution. Replace the lunchbox sandwich with some hummus, veggies, and gluten-free crackers, and you have a delicious gluten-free lunch.

3. It’s vegan.

Naturally vegan (and gluten-free) hummus can please just about all dietary preferences.

4. It freezes nicely –

– which means you can have a healthy stash in the freezer to pull out on busy days or for last-minute get-togethers.

5. It’s a great lunchbox food.

Lunch doesn’t have to be boring or complicated. Pack some hummus to dip your favorite veggies in, or put some hummus in a wrap, or make a hummus sandwich.

6. It’s an easy picnic food.

Hummus packs well and is a great crowd pleaser.

7. It makes a perfect dip.

Most dips are quite fattening, but not only is hummus low in fat, but it also is high in fiber.

8. It makes a lovely sandwich spread

While hummus is best known as a dip, it also makes a great sandwich. Spread hummus on your bread, add cucumber and tomato slices, some lettuce and onion, and you have a delicious sandwich.

9. It makes a luscious filling for wraps.

Spread some hummus on your favorite wrap, add some veggies and voila! You have a yummy – and healthy – wrap.

10. It makes veggies taste better.

I once watched a 6-year-old who “didn’t like carrots” devour a snack-bag full of hummus-dipped carrots, all the while telling me that he didn’t like carrots.

5 Reasons to Make Your Own Hummus (Instead of Buying It)

1. You can eat more!

I don’t count calories, and I tell my clients to not count calories, (since there are many more significant factors when it comes to weight loss), but when oil-free hummus has 38 calories and store-bought hummus has 70 or 80 calories, you can enjoy twice as much oil-free hummus for the same number of calories.
2. It takes about 5 minutes to make.

Less time than it takes you to go through the drive-through.

3. It’s easy peasy.

Dump. Blend. Done.

4. It’s cheap.

At my local grocery store, hummus runs about $4.00 for 8 ounces. I can make the same amount at home for only 53 cents. (That’s only 6 cents per serving!)

5. It tastes better!

Since you can adjust ingredients to fine-tune the taste exactly to your preference, you’re more likely to like it better than your favorite store-bought brand.

6 Tips for Making Good Hummus

It’s really easy to make your own hummus. Here are a few tips:

1. Cook your own chickpeas.

Yes, you can use canned (tinned) chickpeas, but crock pot chickpeas make a more flavorful, richer, and creamier purée. And it is so easy to cook chickpeas in the crock pot, I think it is absolutely, without-a-doubt, worth the extra 5 minutes of time.

Here’s how to cook your own chickpeas using less than 5 minutes of your time.

a. Place chickpeas in a colander and remove any stones etc. (1 minute)
b. Rinse with plenty of water. (1 minute)
c. Transfer chickpeas into crock pot and add water to crock pot (1 minute)
d. Turn crock pot on (2 seconds)

The next morning (or by the end of the day, depending on when you start cooking them) you will have tender, delicious cooked chickpeas.

Dry chickpeas (garbanzos) are available at most grocery stores.

Bonus: Most people find crock pot beans easier to digest than canned beans.

2. Blend chickpeas while they are still hot.

Blending freshly-cooked beans results in a creamier hummus.

3. Use a good tahini to taste.

While tahini is pretty much one of the very basic ingredients for hummus, but if you don’t like tahini, you can reduce the amount significantly and still make a good hummus.

Be sure to use good-tasting tahini in your hummus.  My favorite brands of tahini are Pepperwood tahini and ThriveMarket tahini.

4. Don’t add too much liquid.

Hummus is supposed to be thick and creamy, so you don’t want to add too much liquid or you will have a sloppy, bland-tasting soup.

5. Use fresh lemon or frozen lemon.

Fresh tastes best, but if you don’t want to take the time to squeeze lemons, you can use frozen lemon juice. Avoid bottled/canned lemon juice here.

6. Use fresh garlic.

No garlic powder.

3 Ways to Puree Hummus

1. Blender

Most people like to use a blender to blend hummus as this makes the creamiest hummus.

2. Food processor

Hummus can also be made in a food processor. This results in a dip that isn’t as smooth and has a bit more texture – which some people prefer.

3. Mortar and pestle

I have also heard that some like to mash the chickpeas with a mortar and pestle. They claim this process gives hummus a more complex texture. I’ve never tried this, but it sounds like it would be really good. Have you tried this method?

Why Oil-Free Hummus?

1. Oil is a processed (refined) food. It is not a whole food. The less processed (refined) food we eat, the healthier we will be.

2. Oil is a major contributor to diabetes and heart disease.

3. Oil contains no fiber and fiber is very helpful for weight loss, so the less oil, the easier the weight loss.

The Amazing Versatile Hummus

Hummus is one of those great foods that can be adapted to everyone’s individual tastes.

Add more garlic if you like your hummus garlicky.

Reduce tahini amount if tahini isn’t your favorite.

Add fresh, chopped parsley for a lighter, fresh-tasting hummus.

Add a splash more lemon if you like yours a bit on the tart side.

Other delicious additions:
sun-dried tomato
beet
red pepper

The best hummus for weight loss is homemade, because you can control the ingredients that go into the dip.