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This easy homemade hummus has the BEST zesty flavor and creamy texture: and it’s much cheaper and tastier than store bought!
There are so many delicious store-bought brands of hummus out there. But why not make this healthy snack at home? It’s loads cheaper and WAY tastier. Alex and I do buy hummus, but when we have time, it’s homemade all the way. This is our best homemade hummus recipe that we make on the regular. It takes just 5 minutes to make! Here’s how to do it.
Homemade hummus ingredients
What makes this homemade hummus the best one out there? This one is easy and flavorful, with just the right creamy texture. What is hummus made of? It’s got a simple list of ingredients:
- Chickpeas (& aquafaba)
- Garlic
- Lemon
- Tahini
- Salt
Canned chickpeas vs. dried
There are lots of hummus recipes that call for dried chickpeas. But this easy homemade hummus recipe calls for canned chickpeas because, let’s face it, cooking dried chickpeas takes time! It also uses some of the liquid in the chickpea can, called aquafaba.
Yep, aquafaba is just the liquid in a can of chickpeas! There are lots of creative uses for it in vegan cuisine; it’s used as a thickener or a binder. In fact, you can even whip it to make whipped cream! This hummus uses a few tablespoons of the aquafaba to make it super creamy. (Here are a few more tasty chickpea recipes while we’re at it.)
Tahini gives it just the right texture!
The other ingredient of note in homemade hummus is tahini. What is tahini? It’s a paste made of sesame seeds, typically used in Middle Eastern or Mediterranean dishes. Tahini is vegan, vegetarian, gluten free, Paleo, keto, and Whole 30 friendly, so it works for many diets. It’s purely sesame seeds and salt. Tahini is another way to make hummus extremely creamy. (Here’s how to use leftover tahini!)
Can you make hummus without tahini?
Actually…you can. Don’t have tahini? No problem! We’ve got a special variation just for you. This Hummus without Tahini is weirdly delicious spin with a secret ingredient in place of tahini.
How to make hummus
This easy homemade hummus takes just minutes to whip up. Here are the basic steps for making this hummus recipe (see the recipe below for quantities):
- Drain: Drain the chickpeas into a liquid measuring cup, saving the aquafaba.
- Blend: Add peeled garlic to the bowl of a food processor and process until finely chopped. Then add chickpeas, lemon juice, tahini, kosher salt, and a few tablespoons of the aquafaba. Puree until it becomes a creamy consistency.
- Garnish: Top the hummus with cilantro leaves, a sprinkle of paprika, a drizzle of olive oil, and toasted pine nuts. Serve with veggies, pita bread, homemade pita chips, or crackers!
How does hummus taste? It’s creamy, rich, savory, and salty all at once, with a little tang from the lemon and a garlicky aftertaste.
What to eat with hummus
The better question is, what can’t you eat with hummus? Here are a few ideas outside of the standard:
- Use it in place of mayo on a sandwich—spread hummus onto sandwiches for a more flavorful bite, like in this Easy Chickpea Salad Sandwich.
- Dip pita chips—these homemade pita chips perfect for dipping.
- Enjoy it with falafel—the more chickpeas, the better! Shake things up a bit by dipping falafel into hummus, or slather it onto our falafel patties.
- Make hummus deviled eggs—instead of fussing around with mayo and mustard in deviled eggs, mix the egg yolks with hummus and dollop the mixture back into the egg whites. (And here’s how to hard boil eggs.)
- Make homemade salad dressing—blend hummus with a little hot water, olive oil, and lemon juice for a simple homemade salad dressing.
4 unique hummus flavors!
Lastly, looking for some more inventive hummus flavors? There are lots of ways to change up this hummus recipe into a new flavor and color: and it looks beautiful too! Here are 4 unique hummus flavors to make.
Creamy Beet Hummus
This shocking pink beet hummus is a colorful healthy snack recipe! Serve it with veggie sticks and pita bread for dipping.
Best Chocolate Hummus Recipe
As dip for fruit and pretzels, this dark chocolate hummus is a hit with everyone who tastes it. Perfect for entertaining!
Easy Pumpkin Hummus
This easy pumpkin hummus takes only 10 minutes to whip up! It's creamy and savory with just the right pumpkin undertone.
Glowing Green Hummus
This green hummus is bright and flavorful healthy snack, featuring spinach, cilantro and lime. Snacking just got more fun!
This homemade hummus recipe is…
Vegetarian, gluten-free, vegan, plant-based, and dairy-free.
Print
Homemade Hummus
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 0 minutes
- Total Time: 5 minutes
- Yield: 1 ½ cups (12 ounces) 1x
Description
This easy homemade hummus recipe is delicious with warm pita bread or fresh vegetables. Here’s our best hummus recipe and how to make homemade hummus!
Ingredients
For the hummus
- 1 medium garlic clove
- 1 15-ounce can chickpeas (or 1 ½ cups cooked or Instant Pot chickpeas)
- 1 large lemon (¼ cup lemon juice)
- ¼ cup tahini
- ¾ teaspoon kosher salt
For the garnish (optional)
- Fresh cilantro leaves
- Paprika
- Olive oil
- Toasted pinenuts (see below)
Instructions
- Peel the garlic. Drain the chickpeas into a liquid measuring cup. Juice the lemon.
- Add the garlic to the bowl of a food processor and process until finely chopped. Add chickpeas, lemon juice, tahini, kosher salt, and 2 tablespoons water from the chickpea can (aquafaba). Puree for 30 seconds, then scrape down the bowl. Taste. If necessary, add 1 to 2 tablespoons aquafaba. Puree for 1 to 2 minutes to come to a creamy consistency. Store refrigerated for 7 to 10 days.
- If desired, make the garnish: toast the pinenuts in a dry skillet for a few minutes, stirring frequently, until golden brown (or bake in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet for 6 to 8 minutes at 350F).
- Top the hummus with cilantro leaves, a sprinkle of paprika, a drizzle of olive oil, and toasted pinenuts. Serve with veggies, pita bread, or crackers (like these homemade crackers!)
- Category: Appetizer
- Method: Blended
- Cuisine: Mediterranean
Keywords: Homemade Hummus Recipe, Best hummus recipe, easy hummus recipe, how to make homemade hummus, Party Appetizers, Vegetarian Appetizer Recipe
Hummus recipe FAQ
Got a question about this creamy dip? We got answers.
Yes, hummus is healthy! Hummus is a great plant-based protein to add to your diet, and it’s full of vitamins and minerals. See the full nutrition facts in the recipe below.
Yes, you can. Simply freeze in an airtight container, leaving room for the hummus to expand. Defrost in the refrigerator overnight, and stir back in any liquid that may have separated (or pour it off).
Yes, homemade hummus is gluten free and vegan.
A serving of ¼ cup of hummus is 162 calories.
Absolutely! Store hummus in a sealed container in the refrigerator.
Hummus lasts for up to 5 days refrigerated. Hummus does go bad; it can become moldy if stored longer than 5 days.
Yes, hummus is a great source of plant-based protein! A ¼ cup serving of hummus has 7 grams of protein or 14% of your daily protein intake.
No, hummus is not keto friendly.
No one knows for sure, but it likely originated from ancient Egypt.
It’s different in every grocery store, but hummus is in the refrigerated section, usually near the produce.
Looking for healthy snacks?
Here are a few of our favorite healthy snacks and dip recipes:
- Vegetable Hummus Tortilla Rollups (use this recipe!)
- Cherry Cacao Nib Snack Bars
- Very Verde 3-Ingredient Dip
- Carrot Cake Breakfast Cookies
- Garlic and Rosemary White Bean Dip
- Cinnamon Yogurt Fruit Dip
- Whipped Feta Dip
- Healthy Greek Yogurt Ranch Dip
- Easy Mango Salsa
- Epic Baba Ganoush
- Creamy Labneh Dip
- All Healthy Snack Recipes
Last updated: January 2020
hmmm…seems like this is one I had better prepare when Leah comes to town next week!
You gotta give that food processor some love!
Yes, hummus sounds easy to make, but it does take a little trial and error, I love this recipe, and yes, the fresh lemon is important! Lovely photos too
This is pretty close to the recipe that I use and I agree, BEST HUMMUS EVER! It has the best texture, best zing (from the lemon) and just the right amount of “nutty” from the tahini. I could eat buckets of the stuff!
Haha…the best Italian food I’ve had was in Mexico. Funny how that goes! I LOVE hummus and I think your recipe sounds wonderful!
I love hummus! I have a recipe I’ve made that’s a little different, but I want to try yours–it sounds really good!
yes yes! this is how a good hummus is to be made. I really feel sad for people who get it wrong because its so easy and its human right to get right hummus in life :-) You might be interested in soemthing called Fatteh hummus on my blog – Its like the father of basic hummus
P.S. Love the picture
This Hummus is SO GOOD! I make it all the time!! It’s high in Manganese as well as yummy so I always have some in my fridge along with some carrots which I dip into it and snack all day!
I’m a big fan of hummus – made from scratch, it’s always better than store-bought. What an adorable blog you have! I’ll be back.
I love hummus! Yours looks amazing and so much better than anything you could buy in a store.
I’d love for your to submit them to Vegolicious, a vegetarian food photo gallery where readers can browse beautiful photos to discover new recipes and wonderful blogs. If you would like to share this recipe with our readers please submit a photo along with a link to this post.
love it. making it this weekend. thx for sharing!
This seriously looks delicious! I have only ever bought hummus from the store, but I think after reading this I will definitely have to try making it! :) I love your photos! They are beautiful!
Oh, that’s more lemon than I used last time. Maybe that’s why mine isn’t has good as I’d like it to be. Is there any certain brand of tahini you like?
We don’t have a favorite brand of tahini (haven’t tried too many yet since they go a long way)! Do you have any to recommend?
I just tried this, and it is the best hummus ever! So super easy too!
This recipe is great. I’ve made it twice now and it is delicious.
Chef Ronen Skinezjes (of Manta Ray restaurant) in Tel Aviv uses ice cubes when making hummus to add air and volume.
How interesting — we may have to try it out! Thanks for the recommendation :)
I looove Hummus; its the best! And you definitely chose a very tasty way of serving it.
This is a wonderful hummus. I love to add juice from my olive jar for part of the water, and after its finished processing I add whole stuffed olives or kalamata olives — takes this over the top as a spread for toasted homemade whole wheat pita chips or veggies!! :-)
Perfect recipe! I was missing tahini so I used sesame oil and pine nuts. Also added fresh rosemary and basil since I had that laying around and I just cant leave a recipe well enough alone. Thanks for the inspiration!
I have a problem whenever I make hummus….I usually just wing it without actually measuring anything (I’m not sure if that’s my problem or not) but my hummus always has this…really bitter taste. Like I put too much olive oil in, BUT, I’m just trying to get it to the right texture. Should I add water instead? I’m lost on what to do. I love the hummus from the store, but I’m having the hardest time making it at home!!!
Hmm! Yes, you might want to try measuring out the ingredients if you are getting a bitter taste. You can definitely add water or lemon juice to get it to a lighter consistency. We also like adding tahini — though we used to make it without it, we found that helps to add to a creamy texture. Let us know if you get it to work out!
I made this hummus, and think it is a good base. I think it turned out waaay too lemony for me. I used one of those ceramic lemon squeezers though, and that thing basically pulverizes the lemon to get all the juice out. I tried the recipe a second time, and doubled the cayenne, and halved the lemon, and added about 4x as much garlic. Love it!
I’m going to try this today. But I think I’ll just use my blender instead of food processor; my processor is cheap and weak. Hummus is like kimchi in one important respect: make it yourself and you can have it for 1/8 the price of buying it ready-made. Thanks for the lovely recipe and photo!
Absolutely delicious! Thank you!
Question, is the garnish topping paprika and cilantro?
I worked in an Egyptian restaurant for years. This recipe is very close to what the owners used. (They were famous for their hummus) I would just substitute the water for white vinager. It’s an AMAZING differance!! I also use natural peanut butter instead of Tahini, cause it’s such a pain to work with once its seperated.
Thanks for the tips!
These are great tips! Thanks, Lindsay!
Looks delicious! You can’t beat hummus with everything.
This is BY FAR…….and there are many ‘versions of recipes’ out there…. ‘THE BEST’ tasting hummus with the correct portion size of each ingredient!!! I LOVE this hummus and make it ALL THE TIME! Thank you so so much!!
Haha! I’m so glad you enjoy it!
This was so quick to make and it’s delicious! Will be my go to from now on.
★★★★★