Levantine cuisine · Salads & Mezze

Beirut-Style Hummus

Chunkier chickpea purée Beirut style, laced with plenty of parsley, cumin and finely chopped pickles.

Ingredients · for 4 servings

• 2 cans of chickpeas (400 g each)
• 4 tbsp tahini
• 2 cloves of garlic
• 1 lemon
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1/2 bunch flat-leaf parsley
• 2 pickles
• 1 green chili
• 5 tbsp olive oil
• 1 handful ice cubes
• Salt, pepper

Instructions

1. Drain the chickpeas, rinse thoroughly under cold water and set aside a good third of them – this part stays whole later and makes the difference from smooth hummus.
2. Purée the remaining chickpeas with the tahini, the finely grated garlic, the lemon juice, the cumin and 1 tsp salt in a blender for 2 min.
3. With the blender running, add two or three ice cubes one at a time and blend for another 2–3 min. until the mixture is pale and airy and has visibly increased in volume.
4. Finely chop the parsley, cut the pickles into small cubes and slice the deseeded chili into thin rings.
5. Roughly crush the reserved chickpeas with a fork and fold them by hand into the cream together with the parsley, pickle cubes and chili; season with pepper and lemon.
6. Spread the cream in a shallow dish, pressing a hollow with the back of a spoon, pour in plenty of olive oil and serve with warm flatbread.