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A hummus bowl is the easiest no-cook meal you can make: just layer hummus with crisp Mediterranean veggies and pita for a 5-minute lunch or dinner!
Hello and welcome to the easiest quick lunch or healthy easy dinner concept: a Hummus Bowl! It’s for those nights when you have time for no cooking at all: just layer a dollop of hummus with crunchy veggies and serve with pita wedges.
I love how it’s easily customizable and you can make it super basic or fancier with easy additions of ingredients. It takes just 5 minutes to make this Mediterranean-style meal that’s full of creamy, tangy, crunchy, fresh, and savory flavors.
5 Star Reader Review
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ “I made this last night just as pictured and it was refreshing and delicious. 100% recommend.: -N
What Goes in a Hummus Bowl
This concept is so simple for easy lunches and dinners where you don’t even have to think. It’s great for filler days of the week where you don’t want to cook, or you want to use up veggies in the fridge. There are a few elements that are required, and then lots of fancy toppings that can step it up from basic to beautiful. Here are the required elements in a hummus bowl:
The Essentials
- Hummus: find the best purchased brand you can, or make your own (see below)
- English cucumber: An English cucumber is long and thin with no tough skin, no seeds and a milder flavor than standard cucumber. Look for it in the produce section!
- Cherry tomatoes or red bell pepper: It’s nice to have a red element
- Olives: Kalamata olives add a satiating salty pop; try Castelvetrano olives as a milder option
- Red onion: or use shallot for a milder option
- Pita bread or gluten free crackers: It’s nice to have a bread item for dipping: use whatever fits your diet
Optional But Recommended
- Baby greens or chopped lettuce (optional): Baby greens add texture and nutrients
- Feta cheese (optional): A sprinkle adds another savory element; omit or try vegan feta for dairy-free
- Rice or another grain (optional): This makes the hummus bowl more filling, so it’s nice to include as a dinner option. We like using the microwavable pre-cooked rice packages for quick meals, or using leftover cooked rice or quinoa, farro, or even pastas like couscous or orzo.
How to Build a Hummus Bowl
Step 1: If you’re adding greens and a grain, start with those as your base layer. Season rice or couscous with a pinch of salt and a drizzle of olive oil.
Step 2: Spoon on a generous dollop of hummus and spread it out toward the edges of the bowl.
Step 3: Arrange your toppings: sliced cucumber, cherry tomatoes, red onion, olives, and a crumble of feta if using.
Step 4: Tuck in your pita wedges or crackers at the edge.
Hummus Bowl Toppings: Level It Up
The great thing about the hummus bowl concept is you can make it as fancy or plain as you like. You can use leftover veggies from the fridge, or fancier pantry items to give it unexpected flavors. Or top it with a protein to make it into dinner! Here are some ideas:
- Jarred roasted red peppers
- Harissa paste add some heat
- Jarred Calabrian chilis are very spicy (use caution when adding them!)
- Capers or caper berries
- Falafel: try frozen packaged, homemade raw falafel balls, or baked falafel
- Shrimp: Try sauteed shrimp or baked shrimp
- Cooked chicken like pan seared chicken or air fryer chicken thighs
Which Hummus Should You Use?
It’s easiest to pick up purchased hummus for this recipe: there are so many options at the grocery store these days! Look for a great quality brand with creamy, balanced flavor (for example to us, Sabra brand has an overly salty, artificial flavor). Or, you can make your own! Meal prep it over the weekend, then enjoy it for meals throughout the week. Here are some of our top homemade hummus recipes:
- Homemade Hummus: The one I make most often
- Glowing Green Hummus or Creamy Beet Hummus: These are a fun bright color
- Spicy Hummus: for when you want a little heat built right in
- Hummus Without Tahini: If you’ve run out of the good stuff
Serving Suggestions
A hummus bowl works at almost any time of day — here’s how I like to round it out:
- Serve alongside Greek Salad for a Mediterranean spread
- Add Baked Falafel on top and call it a full dinner
- Serve as part of a mezze spread with dense bean salad and pita
- Try it with 30 Mediterranean Diet Snacks for more no-cook ideas
Storage
The assembled bowl doesn’t store well — the vegetables will release liquid onto the hummus. Store the components separately and assemble fresh when you’re ready to eat. Most of the components should stay good refrigerated for 3 to 4 days.
Dietary Notes
This hummus bowl recipe is vegetarian, vegan, plant-based, dairy-free and gluten-free.
Quick Hummus Bowls
A hummus bowl makes the best easy lunch or dinner: no cooking required! Layer a dollop with crunchy veggie toppings.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 0 minutes
- Total Time: 5 minutes
- Yield: 1 1x
- Category: Main Dish
- Method: No Cook
- Cuisine: Mediterranean
- Diet: Vegan
Ingredients
- ⅓ cup hummus
- 8 English cucumber slices (or standard cucumber, peeled)
- 1 handful red onion slices (or shallot)
- 1 handful cherry tomatoes, sliced
- 1 handful Kalamata olives
- 2 tablespoons feta cheese, to sprinkle (optional or use vegan feta for vegan)
- 1 handful baby greens or chopped lettuce (optional)
- ½ cup cooked rice or packaged pre-cooked rice (optional) or Easy Couscous or Easy Orzo
- 1 pita bread, pita chips, or gluten free crackers
- Optional toppings: Jarred Calabrian chilis or roasted red peppers, caper berries, fresh herbs, frozen or homemade falafel, etc.
Instructions
- Place greens and rice in the bowl, if using (try packaged pre-cooked rice for a quick shortcut). If using rice, season it with salt and a drizzle of olive oil.
- Top with hummus, sliced cucumber, sliced red onions, sliced tomatoes, olives and feta cheese. Eat with pita wedges, using the hummus as a dip / dressing for the veggies.
More Mediterranean Recipes To Try
This hummus bowl is an ideal easy Mediterranean diet recipe that makes healthy eating fun! Here are a few more easy Mediterranean-style recipes to liven up your diet:
- Go for Mediterranean Tuna Salad
- Try Mediterranean Couscous Bowls Recipe
- Opt for 5-minute Simple Chickpea Salad
- Mix up a Greek Salad
I made this last night just as pictured and it was refreshing and delicious. 100% recommend.
So glad to hear this! Thank you for making it :)
Have you ever cooked with preserved lemon? I would like to make a hummus with preserved lemon haven’t found a recipe yet.
We don’t use this ingredient much, sorry!
Delicious lunch! So refreshing & satisfying! However, was so surprised it had 552 calories per serving!
The above review was for the hummus bowl!
Hello,
I made the vegetarian fried rice. So yummy. The part I liked the most was learning that cooking the rice a day before was the key to Successful fried rice.
Thank you
I’m a Lebanese-American and prepare several types of Mid-Eastern meals. Make Hummus (actually Hummus in Arabic means chickpeas, the paste is known is Humsiyyah! However, Americans love abbreviations, so, we accept Hummus as the name of the paste.
In Lebanon, chickpeas are roasted, sometimes first bleached, then roasted; and are also coated with sugar. Sold at shops that deal with roasted peanuts, almonds, walnuts, hazelnuts, and pistachio.
Do you have a recipe for roasted hoummos?
Keep u- your good work, Sonja & Alex
Bassam
We love Lebanese food: what a rich culinary tradition you’re part of! Those roasted chickpeas sound incredible — we’ve never had them coated with sugar! We do have a crispy roasted chickpeas recipe, but that one is with savory spices (https://www.acouplecooks.com/spiced-crispy-chickpeas/) and sounds much different from roasted hoummos. We love to know if you have a recipe! Thanks for writing.
We just started eating Mediterranean, and this was one of the first recipes we tried from this site. This is a MUST try! It was SO good, filling and a great dinner for two! I can’t wait to try more recipes!
So glad you enjoyed! Thanks for making it :)