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This lemon hummus recipe is a slight tweak on the hummus I learned to make from Chef Tom Valenti when I worked under him at Ouest in Manhattan. With a little more citrus that most hummus recipes, it's very well balanced, rich and perfectly creamy. You are about to learn to make legendary hummus from either dried or canned chickpeas from someone who has made thousands of batches of the stuff.
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When I first started working in restaurants as a teenager, I landed in the prep kitchen at Ouest, a kinda fancy restaurant on the Upper West Side of Manhattan that hadn't even opened yet. Tom Valenti, the first chef I ever worked under, put me on hummus duty, the batch that went out with the bread basket to every table, every single day.
I had almost zero experience, so it caught me off guard that he trusted me to make it with no written recipe at all. He showed me the process once, we tasted along the way, and that was it. Almost. The main instruction was to taste and tweak until I had found balance.
Sweetness from the tahini balancing acidity from the lemon. Richness from the olive oil, balancing the protein from the chickpeas. The balance if the musky backbone of the cumin accentuating the sharpness of hot pepper. Once those elements align, he taught me, none of them stand out on their own anymore. They disappear into something bigger than any single part, and that's the whole trick. Of hummus, but also of cooking in general.
Also- there a sneaky little trick happening with the ice cubes that most people skip and absolutely shouldn't. Dropping ice cubes in while the processor runs creates this incredibly creamy, fluffy, almost whipped texture that regular room temperature water simply cannot achieve. It's the kind of detail that separates "pretty good hummus" and "wait, did you buy this" hummus, and honestly, you are about to be so proud of that distinction.
Smoky paprika, warm cumin, a hit of garlic, and a finish of cracked black pepper round the whole thing out, and the result is a downright heavenly dip that's destined to make fresh baked kuboos (Arabic whole wheat pita bread), or bolani (a potato, sumac, and leek stuffed bread) disappear ASAP.
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🥰 Why you'll adore thislemon garlic hummus recipe
✊Vegan AF & GF: Nothing in this bowl had a mother, a face, or a nervous system, and it's one of the best gluten-free vegan recipes without even having to try.
🛒 Your Grocery List Is Hilariously Short: Dried chickpeas, tahini, a couple of lemons, garlic, olive oil, cumin, smoked paprika. That's it. You could practically buy everything at a gas station if that gas station had tahini, which, fair point, it probably doesn't. But a normal grocery store? You're golden.
✅Tested and Approved Worldwide: Like all my vegan Middle Eastern recipes, this one was perfected with feedback from over 1,000 recipe testers from all around the world.
🤘Learn to make killer vegan Middle Eastern food
This guide to my most popular plant-based Middle Eastern recipes is 100% FREE, & you'll love the actual heck out of it 🥰
🍋 Dried Chickpea Hummus Ingredients
The Chickpeas
Cooking dried chickpeas from scratch gives you a nuttier, richer flavor and a significantly creamier texture than anything you'll get from a can. Simmering them with baking soda breaks down the skins. The same method I use for making Israeli hummus.
If you want to forgo the waiting time, you can swap the dried chickpeas for 2 ¾ cups drained canned chickpeas instead, and just get blending (no baking soda needed either).
Baking Soda
Baking soda is doing critical behind-the-scenes work here, raising the pH of the cooking water so the chickpea skins break down faster and the beans get way softer than they would on their own. It's the reason the finished hummus comes out creamy instead of grainy.
Ground Cumin
Great cumin and just-fine cumin are worlds apart. I like to lightly toast the slender, extra-aromatic wild mountain cumin seeds from Burlap & Barrel before grinding them in a spice grinder. Sure, you can use the age-old jar of cumin that's been hanging around in the back of your cabinet and the recipe will still work. But since you asked what I use, this is it!
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Tahini
Tahini paste (not tahini sauce AKA tarator) is ground sesame seed paste and the non-negotiable backbone of any hummus worth eating. Mess with a brand that's smooth and pourable, not clumpy and dry like 2,000 year old peanut butter.
Lemonsssss
For a lemony tahini, you can't mess with bottled lemon juice. We are gonna want the fresh stuff, because then we can get our hands on all the fantastic oils found in the zest. Use a microplane to zest the lemon before you cut and juice the lemon, because that's a heck of a lot easier and less messy.
Ice Cubes
Dropping ice cubes into the running food processor aerates the hummus and whips it into a fluffy, almost cloud-like texture that regular room temperature water simply cannot replicate, it also helps cool the chickpeas a bit if they are still hot.
*See the recipe card at the bottom of the page for exact quantities, nutritional info, and detailed cooking directions.
🤯Variations
Harissa Hummus
Harissa hummus brings a gentle smokiness, a little warmth, and just enough spice to keep things fun without sending anyone (the lame people you know…) scrambling for water. I make mine with homemade harissa paste, but if you already have a jar in the fridge, by all means put it to work.
Beet Hummus
This roasted beet hummus leans fully into its lovely pink color while still tasting like hummus first and foremost and not a bowl of borscht. It's got roasted garlic cloves blended into it too, so there's that.
Roasted Red Pepper Hummus
My red pepper hummus is a family fave. I do it with freshly charred peppers and plenty of tahini and lemon to balance off the sweetness of the peppers.
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📖 How to make lemon hummus
Your chickpeas have been soaking all night, your lemons are sitting on the counter looking hella lonely, and it's time to turn all of that into the best hummus you've ever made. Follow these step-by-step instructions with tips below, or scroll to the printable recipe card if you've done this before and just need the numbers.
Step One
Bath Time:
The night before, add the dried chickpeas to a jar or large bowl and cover with cold water by at least 3 inches. Let them soak overnight, or for a minimum of 8 hours.
Step Two
Forrest Dump:
Drain and rinse the soaked chickpeas.
Step Three
Tweak the PH:
Put the drained chickpeas into a large pot. Add fresh cold water until the chickpeas are covered by at least 3 inches and stir in the baking soda.
Step Four
Skim Skimmer, Who's Got The Keys To My Bimmer:
Bring to a boil over high heat, skimming off any foam that collects on the surface. Lower the heat to medium-low and let them simmer for 50-60 minutes until they're very soft and beginning to break apart at the edges.
Step Five
Garbanzonly the Lonely:
Drain well and allow to cool completely.
Step Six
Blend it Like Beckham:
Add the cooled chickpeas to a food processor along with the cumin, smoked paprika, garlic, tahini, lemon juice, lemon zest, ice cubes, olive oil, and salt.
Run the processor for 2-3 minutes until completely smooth, stopping as needed to scrape the sides of the pitcher down with a rubber spatula.
Step Seven
When Life Gives You Lemons:
Spread into a serving bowl, top with lemon slices, a drizzle of olive oil, some chopped parsley and some coarse, freshly cracked black pepper.
💡Serving Ideas
This lemon hummus is basically begging you on its citrusy hands and garbanzo knees to be the center of a big mezze spread.
For more dips on the table, muhammara and Lebanese baba ganoush pr its close cousin mutabal both bring enough personality to hold their own. Maybe some shirazi salad, kisir, zaalouk, or tabbouleh could be the salad of your dreams here?
Why not?
This hummus is amazing to serve vegan shawarma or vegan kofta with. And it's pretty bomb to spread on a sabich sandwich too of course.
👉Top tips
- Cook the Chickpeas Until They're Just About Falling Apart: You want these way softer than you think. If they still fight back at all when you squeeze one between your fingers, they need more time. Chickpeas that are practically mushy and have just started splitting at the edges are what give you that absurdly smooth, no-grain texture that separates homemade hummus from the sad stuff in a tub. Just make sure they aren't falling apart to the point they are waterlogged, and you are good.
- Skim the Foam While Simmering: That foamy stuff that rises to the surface while the chickpeas cook isn't just cosmetic, it can make your hummus taste slightly bitter and affect the final texture, because it's basically bits of skin that are falling off the beans. Skim it off as it appears and your finished dip will way better.
🤷♀️ Recipe FAQs
You sure "can" (see what I did there?)😉. Just swap the dried chickpeas out for 2 ¾ cups drained canned chickpeas and you are good to go. You can skip the baking soda too if you do that.
What are you, on glue? I mean, can you make a car without a steering wheel? Get outta here. No.
🧊 Refrigerating
Transfer to an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 5 days.
❄️Freezing
Lemon hummus freezes OK for up to 3 months in a freezer-safe airtight container. Leave a little room at the top for expansion and drizzle a thin layer of olive oil over the surface before sealing to help preserve the texture.
🌡️ Thawing
Transfer to the fridge and let it thaw overnight. Once thawed, give it a good reblend, and add a tiny bit of extra water or olive oil if it needs it.
✌️You'll also love these vegan Middle Eastern recipes:
Learn the secrets to perfect falafel in this fun cooking class with Chef Adam Sobel!
Lemon Hummus Recipe
Equipment
- mason jar
- blender (optional)
Ingredients
For cooking the chickpeas:
- 1 cup dried chickpeas
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
For the Hummus:
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- ½ teaspoon smoked paprika
- 2 teaspoons garlic minced
- ½ cup tahini
- ¾ cup lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest
- 4 ice cubes
- ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 3 tablespoons water (or up to ¼ cup for a looser hummus)
- 1 ¼ teaspoons salt or to taste
To Garnish and Serve:
- Lemon wedges
- 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil or to taste
- Coarse cracked black pepper
Instructions
- The night before, place the dried chickpeas in a large bowl and cover with cold water by at least 3 inches. Let soak overnight, or for at least 8 hours.
- Drain and rinse the soaked chickpeas, then transfer to a large pot. Cover with fresh cold water by 3 inches and stir in the baking soda. Bring to a boil over high heat, skimming off any foam that rises to the surface. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for 60-90 minutes until the chickpeas are very soft and starting to fall apart at the edges. Drain well and let cool completely.
- Transfer the cooled chickpeas to a food processor along with the cumin, smoked paprika, garlic, tahini, lemon juice, lemon zest ice cubes olive oil, water and salt. Process for 2-3 minutes until completely, insanely smooth. *If you use a blender instead of a food processor, it will need slightly less time, but possible a small amount of extra water. Use your judgment and common sense here.
- Transfer to a serving bowl, garnish with thin needles lemon slices, drizzle with olive oil, a little parsley, and finish with coarse, freshly cracked black pepper.
Notes
Cook the chickpeas until they're way softer than feels right, practically mushy with the edges just starting to split. If one still fights back when you squeeze it, give it more time. 🫧 Skim City:
The foam that rises to the surface while the chickpeas simmer is mostly bits of skin flaking off the beans, and it's worth skimming off as it appears. Leave it in the pot and it can make the finished hummus taste slightly bitter and sucky.
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