Hummus is a Middle-Eastern dip, made out of cooked chickpeas, combined with toasted sesame seeds, olive oil and spices to make an aromatic, flavorful, and extremely versatile dish, that pairs well with breads, vegetable sticks, salads, and wraps!
Ingredients (makes 1 cup of hummus):
- Chickpeas (a.k.a garbanzo beans) (3/4th cup soaked)
- White Sesame Seeds (1 tbsp)
- Garlic (1 small pod)
- Olive Oil (1 tbsp)
- Red chilly (1 whole) (I use byadige red chillies)
- Sea salt (to taste)
- Cumin powder (1 tsp)
- Lemon juice (1/2 tbsp or per taste)
Method:
- Soak 1/2 cup chickpeas overnight in enough water.
- In the morning, pressure cook the chickpeas with salt and water (I usually cook it in the pressure cooker for 3 whistles and 8 minutes on simmer).
- Toast the sesame seeds on medium flame, until they turn slightly golden brown in color.
- When the chickpeas have cooled down for the most part, grind all the ingredients. I like a smooth consistency, but you can choose to grind it to whatever consistency works for you.
Tastes (Rasa):
Sweet (chickpeas, oil, sesame), sour (lemon), salty (sea salt), bitter (cumin, sesame), pungent (garlic, chilly), astringent (none).
Doshic Influence:
Chickpeas are heavy, nourishing, nutritionally dense and earthy – all naturally kapha qualities. They also have a tendency to aggravate vata and cause flatulence in some individuals since they are difficult to digest. Care should be taken to ensure that the chickpeas are soaked for at least 8 hours and cooked well. To offset the kapha qualities and increase digestibility, we add pungent, light, digestive spices like cumin, lemon, and garlic. Sesame seeds are great for vata. They are warming and moisturizing in nature – good for vata season/fall/autumn. In general, try to avoid including chickpea preparations for dinner, and aim to eat them earlier in the day to give them body more time to digest them completely.
Effects on the Mind (Gunas):
Even with the presence of chickpeas, hummus can be made sattvically, mindfully and fresh. Care should be taken to soak and cook the chickpeas well, and to include digestive spices. Make it with love, care and attention and increase the sattva even more :)!