Creamy Hummus
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Published Aug 31, 2021, Updated Oct 03, 2023
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Here’s how to make perfectly smooth and creamy hummus at home! It’s super easy to whip up — no peeling of chickpeas required. Serve with fresh veggies and pita for a delicious appetizer or snack.
I’ve always loved hummus, but since visiting Israel I have a new-found obsession with making it at home. I buy store-bought all the time, but I have to admit that homemade hummus is definitely better and is actually super easy to whip up.
There are a ton of different hummus variations out there, but the recipe I’m sharing today is your traditional creamy hummus that requires just eight simple ingredients (plus water). It’s mellow in flavor, light, smooth and oh, so creamy!
If you’ve never made your own hummus before, get excited because this recipe makes smooth and creamy hummus, just like store-bought, but better. You’re going to love it!
Canned Chickpeas vs. Dry Chickpeas
I’ve made this recipe with both canned and freshly cooked chickpeas and I will say that dry chickpeas give hummus a tad more flavor. That said, I don’t always have time to soak and boil dry chickpeas, so I tend to gravitate towards canned chickpeas more often as it’s easier and the hummus still turns out tasting delicious!
Here’s What You Need
- chickpeas – I prefer to use canned chickpeas for ease, but you can definitely cook your chickpeas from scratch. I share instructions below for how to do this. When using canned, you simply rinse, drain and add them to your food processor.
- baking soda – this helps to break down the chickpea skins while boiling so there’s no need to individually peel the chickpeas for this recipe!
- tahini – tahini is made by grinding sesame seeds into a smooth paste. It can be found by other nut and seed butters in most grocery stores or you can make it yourself (here’s a homemade tahini recipe). Tahini is a key ingredient in classic hummus recipes so I highly recommend using a good high-quality brand when making this recipe. Here are some brands to look out for: Soom, Seed + Mill, Once Again, 365 by Whole Foods and Trader Joe’s.
- lemon juice – freshly squeezed lemon juice is best!
- extra virgin olive oil – the liquid that helps everything process together smoothly. I also love drizzling extra on top for serving.
- garlic – adds the perfect amount of savory flavor to the hummus. I like using 1 clove but if you love garlic you can add more.
- cumin – a common spice found in hummus that adds a nice, subtle flavor.
- salt – to bring all of the flavors together.
- cold water – using ice cold water is a game-changer when it comes to the texture of your hummus and helps result in light and fluffy hummus. If your hummus is too thick and not smoothing out, just add in some additional water.
How to Make Hummus
The process for making hummus is quite easy, but there are a couple steps if you want your hummus really smooth and creamy.
- Place 1 can of chickpeas and baking soda in a medium saucepan and cover with water. You want 1-2 inches of water above the chickpeas. Bring the mixture to a boil over high heat. Note: If you’re using dry chickpeas see my note section of the recipe.
- Boil chickpeas, reducing heat if necessary to prevent the saucepan from overflowing, for about 20 minutes, or until the chickpeas have expanded and the skins are falling off. You want the chickpeas soft, but not mushy. While the chickpeas boil, skim off any foam and/or skins that float to the surface. After 20 minutes, drain the chickpeas in a colander and run cool water over them. Set aside.
- In a food processor, add lemon juice and tahini. Process for 1 minute. This will add volume and make the hummus extra fluffy. Scrape down the sides of your food processor bowl and add chickpeas, olive oil, garlic, cumin and salt.
- Process until smooth (about 2-3 minutes more) gradually adding cold water as desired to thin the dip and scraping down sides of the processor bowl as needed. Once the hummus is completely smooth, taste and season as needed. You may want to add a little more salt and/or lemon juice.
- Transfer hummus to a bowl for serving. Top with a drizzle of olive oil, fresh herbs, za’atar, cayenne pepper and/or paprika. Serve with chopped veggies or pita chips for dipping.
Do You Need to Peel The Chickpeas?
I used to think that in order to make the creamiest homemade hummus you had to peel the chickpeas… until I realized that boiling them with baking soda does the trick. The baking soda helps to break down the chickpea skins, which means there is no need to peel off the skins individually. Who has time for that anyways?! Because I sure don’t!
Once you boil your chickpeas, drain and rinse them with cool water before adding to your food processor. This cools your chickpeas, rinses off the baking soda flavor and removes the majority of the skins.
Can I Make Hummus Without Tahini?
Tahini is a key ingredient in classic hummus recipes, so I don’t recommend skipping it! That said, I do know tahini is a more expensive ingredient to buy and not everyone has it on hand.
I haven’t tested this, but to make hummus without tahini you can simply skip it all together or sub in Greek yogurt or another nut or seed butter like sunflower seed butter. If using yogurt or another nut butter the flavor won’t be the same, but you should still end up with a tasty chickpea dip.
If you do end up buying a jar of tahini for this recipe, I have plenty of other ways for you to use it! Try my fave garlic tahini dressing with this kale salad, this easy tahini sauce, and these amazing chocolate chip tahini cookies.
Hummus Variations
Like I mentioned above there are a ton of different hummus variations out there. I love this classic version because it’s a great base recipe that you can customize. Feel free to get creative and experiment with different flavor variations! Here are some ideas:
- Spice it up – add in some crushed red pepper flakes for a spicy variation.
- Roasted garlic – skip the fresh garlic and use a few cloves of roasted garlic instead! I love the mild flavor that roasted garlic gives hummus.
- Sun-dried tomato – add a 1/2 cup of sun-dried tomatoes to your food processor to make a sun-dried tomato hummus.
- Roasted red pepper – add a smoky sweetness to your hummus by adding 1 roasted red bell pepper (or about 3/4 cup chopped jarred roasted red peppers) to your food processor. Save some extra for topping!
- Roasted pine nuts – roast about 4 Tablespoons of pine nuts. Blend half into the hummus and use the remaining pine nuts for topping.
- Cooked beets – check out my beet hummus recipe.
How to Serve Hummus
- With pita chips or fresh veggies – I love enjoying hummus as a snack with pita chips or fresh veggies! It’s also a great addition to any mezze platter!
- As a spread – hummus is delicious used as a spread on pretty much anything! Some ideas: vegan tortilla pizzas, egg, spinach and feta breakfast wrap and hummus avocado toast.
- Falafel – the perfect dip for baked falafel!
- Israeli Salad – if you’ve never added hummus to a salad, you’re missing out! I like to spread hummus across the bottom of my bowl and then top with this Israeli salad for deliciousness in every bite.
- Za’atar Chicken Bake – make this simple sheet pan meal and serve it with hummus!
- Quinoa Tabbouleh or Traditional Tabbouleh Salad– another salad that’s delicious paired with hummus.
- As a dessert – if you’re a hummus lover you could use this hummus to make my peanut butter hummus brownies! Just skip the garlic and reduce the tahini to 1 Tablespoon if you’re going to use it to make these brownies.
How to Store Hummus
This creamy hummus stores really well in the fridge so I always love making a batch over the weekend to have on hand for snacks or meals throughout the week. Store any leftover hummus in an airtight container in the fridge for 4-7 days.
Popular Chickpea Recipes
- S’mores Dip
- Protein Cookie Dough
- Sheet Pan Dinner with Tofu, Chickpeas and Butternut Squash
- Curried Chickpea Salad
- Sriracha Cauliflower and Chickpea Sheet Pan Meal
- Chickpea Quinoa Salad
- Air Fryer Chickpeas (5 Ways)
More Dips and Spreads
- Everything Bagel Dip
- 7-Layer Dip
- Almond Pesto Dip
- Healthy Guacamole
- Black Bean Dip
- Lima Bean Hummus
- Healthy Spinach Artichoke Dip
- Sweet Potato Hummus
- Whipped Feta Dip
- Whipped Cottage Cheese
- Hot Honey Whipped Cottage Cheese
Be sure to check out all of the appetizers here on EBF as well as my collection of healthy game day recipes!
Creamy Hummus
Ingredients
- 1 can (15 ounces) chickpeas, rinsed and drained or 1 ½ cup cooked chickpeas
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 3 Tablespoons tahini
- 3 Tablespoons lemon juice
- 3 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 clove garlic
- ½ teaspoon cumin
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2-4 Tablespoons cold water, or more if needed for thinning.
- For topping: olive oil, fresh herbs, za’atar, cayenne pepper and/or paprika
- For serving: pita chips and/or fresh veggies
Instructions
- If using canned chickpeas, place cooked chickpeas and baking soda in a medium saucepan and cover with water. You want 1-2 inches of water above the chickpeas. Bring the mixture to a boil over high heat. If using dry chickpeas, see my note below.
- Boil chickpeas, reducing heat if necessary to prevent the pan from overflowing, for about 20 minutes, or until the chickpeas have expanded, the skins are falling off and they're soft, but not mushy. While the chickpeas boil, skim off any foam and/or skins that float to the surface. After 20 minutes, drain the chickpeas in a colander and run under cool water. Set aside.
- In a food processor, add lemon juice and tahini. Process for 1 minute. Scrape down the sides of your food processor bowl and add chickpeas, olive oil, garlic, cumin and salt.
- Process until smooth (about 2-3 minutes more) gradually adding cold water as desired to thin dip and scraping down sides of the processor bowl as needed. Once the hummus is completely smooth, taste and season as needed.
- Transfer to a bowl for serving. Top with a drizzle of olive oil, fresh herbs, za'atar, cayenne pepper and/or paprika. Serve with chopped veggies or pita chips for dipping.
- Store any leftovers in the fridge in an airtight container for 4-7 days.
Video
Notes
- For dry chickpeas: If you’re using dried chickpeas, you’ll want to start with 1/2 cup of dried chickpeas, soak them overnight in cold water. Discard the soaking liquid and add to a large pot with 6 cups of water and 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda. Bring the mixture to a boil, reduce to a simmer and cook for 40-60 minutes or until chickpeas are very tender, but not mushy. Remove any chickpea skins that have floated to the top. Drain, rinse with cold water and follow steps above for processing starting with step 3.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I had no idea that was the secret, but it totally makes sense! Let’s see if I have the patience to do it now…
Wow, I had no idea that was the key to smooth hummus. I’ll be honest, I probably will never do this because it just seems too time consuming but I am so glad I now know! 🙂
Love to you sweetheart! 🙂
who knew! thanks for the insiders tip 🙂
Now that’s hummus dedication! Never would have thought that was how to get it smooth?? Great tip! Love the twss joke haha 😉
That’s a great tip. I can see how de-skinning chickpeas takes extra time, but they come off so easily that I don’t think I’d mind.
GENIUS! …And this is why I want to have kids someday. To make them to my tedious food prep.
Shoot! I actually talk about this mehod in the book. Here I thought I was the only one who knew 😉
Ha! Me too, Mama Pea! So I guess none of us have secret insider knowledge. Boo.
Sorry to spill the beans. 😉
wow, that is so interesting! maybe i’ll endeavor to do that one day! probably not though – i dont mind chunky hummus! i dont discriminate haha. and i think the skins look like annie’s mac and cheese shells!!
That totally makes sense, and it looks a lot easier than I thought it would be, albeit time consuming! Thanks for the tip 🙂
YOU – young lady, are EXTEREMLY brilliant!!! Love this idea – I always wondered how Sabra did it! 🙂
I’ve never thought of that, but it makes so much sense!
That bowl of chickpea skin kind of grosses me out too — something about the texture and color–ew!
Yay – great discovery! I’m going to try this out.
Hi! I stumbled on your blog. I am a fellow veg-head, CSAer, runner, etc, loving your site! Anyway, I HAVE wondered about how Sabra does it. My hubby and I typically make a month’s worth of hummus at a time and freeze it in 4s. We start with dried beans, the point being, it is already a process. A lazier option: last month we used white northern beans and they had a creamier consistency than the chic peas.
Thanks for solving the mystery!
I had no idea! That sounds totally worth it. I’m always up for spending a little time to make something super awesome. The next time I’m making hummus I’m going this route for sure. Thanks for the hot tip 🙂
I lovvvve Lundberg rice chips – they are one of the few “junk” items that make it to the pantry. I highly recommend the trying Honey Dijion flavor – they are my favorite! Nacho and Sante Fe deserve honorable mention, Wasabi …eh….
Tehehe – I think I know what you think those skins look like. 😉
Anyway…GREAT insight! I would have never known and as we got our first food processor last weekend, now I will know exactly what to make first. Your final product looks creamy and delicious. Thanks, Britt!
Great trick. I would have never thought of that! I actually think it doesn’t sound that bad. If I cook beans from scratch the skins tend to come off anyway when I soak them.
wow, so cool. definitely trying that!! and that is quite the interesting picture of skins 😉
Yum yum yum…what a great idea. You can tell how creamy it is in the photos!! 🙂
So now I have a new trick to show my hubby, who thinks he is the hummus making king! This makes so much sense, and I appreciate you sharing it with us!
I love those rice chips! I tried them for the first time at the rinky-dink airport in St. Lucia of all places. They didn’t have much there in terms of food (and our flight was delayed by three hours) so those chips were life saving. Have you tried the BBQ flavor? I’m not sure what the ingredients were like but they were yummy.
Thanks so much for the tip! Next time I make hummus (and when I have some time), I will have to try this. I like my hummus more creamy, but my last attempt at making it was not very successful at all.
I actually had to do an assignment a few weeks ago about hummus and learned that it is traditional to remove the skins. However, I kinda like the skins (and the extra fiber) so I usually just leave them on:)
Great tip, I wonder if pushing the chickpea puree through a chinois accomplishes straining out the shell as well. I can’t see myself peeling the chickpeas on a regular basis. (maybe just for guests!)
Hmmm…it seems like such a pain in the ass to take off all those skins, but at the same time, so much more economical than buying tubs of Sabra. I might need to do me some hummus making this weekend!
I don’t know why, but you just blew me away with that tip. I was always wondering why the heck my hummus isn’t as smooth as theirs. I have to try this, I mean it’s certainly easier to have chunkier hummus, but I need this in my life! Thanks for sharing! And, how did you figure this out??
omg sounds so obvious but i had no idea! genius!
I never would have thought!! I’m still not sure I have the patience to peel each skin off my chickpeas, but at least I’ll know why my homemade hummus isn’t as smooth! Ha ha. 😉
My husband and I have been removing the skins on chick peas to make hummus for a while (well, that’s my job since he does all the actual cooking) and I got tired of doing it, so we decided to make a batch with skins and one without and do a taste test, and apparently nobody can tell the difference, so now we just leave the skins on.
By the way, where in town can you buy Sabra hummus besides Costco? We had a membership and let it expire, and plus I hate to drive all the way out to Glen Allen anyway (he he, the entire 15 minute trip from the Near West End, that is… living in Richmond has totally skewed my perception of what a long drive is).
Hi Courtney – I buy my Sabra hummus at Kroger – it’s in the fresh cheese section near the deli.
Thanks, you just made my day! : )
Brittany! You are amazing, great post! So here I am, thinking I am a hummus whiz….umm not so much. 🙂 I did not ever think about the skins…I will be playing with this for sure. Sometimes I do like it chunky, sometimes I like it smooth, so Good to know! It will come down to my patience….lol! Thanks. 🙂
What a great tip! Hummus will be perfect football game fare! Thank you for sharing. 🙂
I still haven’t made my own hummus yet. I should really start because it seems much economical!
Thanks for the tip! I can’t wait to try smoooooth hummus!
WOW- really!!! This is amazing- I can’t wait to try it this weekend!
What a cool tip! I’ve never made homemade hummus before, but thanks to your yummy photos and helpful instructions, I really want to give it a try!
Amazing! I’ve been making hummus for years and never knew this. I must now make this today. Thank you!
I’m so glad I found this! I’ve been wanting to make SMOOTH hummus, but mine always comes out chunky!
I almost made hummus yesterday, but now I’m glad that I waited! This is such a helpful post – and so timely!
1- I’m so glad I know this now (I found you through Janetha) and 2- Maybe it’s because I work in PR but I think that article is fascinating too. I watched a video where they gave a choice of a plain cupcake or a banana decorated with Dora stickers to preschoolers, and they ALWAYS chose the decorated treat, whether it was the banana or the cupcake. Reminds me of that concept.
Finally! I made my first batch of skinless chickpeas hummus today and, after years, I have finally achieved the ideal texture. Thank you!
That said, there has to be an easier way to skin a chickpea. I haven’t tried this method yet, but my next batch will attempt this technique: http://www.vegetarian-cooking-recipes-tips.com/how-to-skin-chickpeas.html.
Hi! I found your site yesterday when I was looking for a solution to the smooth hummus challenge. I just had to share the answer that I found on another website with you. It’s certainly a lot less labor intensive than removing skins from beans! Here goes…the secret is to cook your garbanzos with a teaspoon of Baking Soda!! It softens the skins to almost mush, and I can tell you that the finished product looked EXACTLY like the hummus I eat at my favorite Lebanese restaurant. (And like Sabra, too!)
So, give it a try and see if you don’t have fantastic results like I did. Hope this helps!
Cheers!
I love this recipe! You’re such a lifesaver–I had to make this for a party over the weekend, and I’ve always had trouble with smoothing my recipe out…thanks for sharing! I’ve even blogged about your recipe @ my blog (http://fouronethreesayshello.blogspot.com/). Come stop by!
Ps- love the blog! I look forward to reading daily!
Lindsay
So glad you liked the smooth hummus trick Lindsay! Thanks for reading. 🙂
Thank you thank you thank you for posting this! Removing the skins and boiling the canned chickpeas make SUCH a difference! My my hummus before was sorta rough lol 😛 I love how smooth it is now!!! 😀 Have a great week! 🙂 Jesus loves you!
just made this- AMAZING. cant even believe the money i will save not buying samba anymore. thanks!
This is SO exciting! I am obsessed with smooth hummus and always end up with the exact opposite when I make it … then end up in the hummus aisle 10 minutes later. 🙂 Cannot wait to try this!
– Channing (blogging in summer 2012 on Hot Bod Brigade: A fitness-ish pop up blog)
Thank you. That made all the difference. Requires patience but well worth it in my opinion. Much better than the store bought stuff or making it with the skins on and it being gritty. Thanks again!
I don’t know about you but I refuse to sit there and peal every garbanzo beans. Throw all the ingrediants into a food processor and add water while its mixing and bam smooth hummus.
It’s worth it!
hahahaha “middle eastern” is reading my mind….we arabs are exremly lazy in such things, that’s why they sell already mixed chickpeas all over the arabic countries. 7ommous made with these ready mixed chickpeas will lead to smooth 7ommous as well….with less effort 🙂
I keep the skins on for the added health benefit.. fiber.
I make mine creamy by soaking from scratch, always with a bay leaf or two.
once soaked, I boil for a few minutes then add about 1/2-1 tsp of baking soda. some say it creates an off flavor, but it doesn’t if you use the right amount. this significantly reduces the boiling time as well, when you see skins floating to the top, test a chick pea from the bottom of the pot… it should basically fall apart in your mouth. at this point, quickly drain, rinse under cold water, and add to your food processor. blend until creamy. I add about 1/4 cup of salted water, then put in the fridge overnight which allows you to gauge how thick your end product will be. use this creamy paste in making your batch of hummus. Mine’s always creamy and delicious and you don’t have to remove the healthy fiber benefit.
hope this helps everyone!!
I’ve been making hummus since I was 20, so about 6 years, and the baking soda addition was a revelation in terms of its creamyness!!
I add way more garlic I also roast the garlic and I make a topping like the store bought stuff with sautéed garlick roasted red pepper lemon olive oil and white wine. I also peel and use a juicer to juice my lemons. Fresh lemon juice and olive oil also makes a wonderful salad dressing.
Wow! Thanks for the tip. I always assumed that store bought hummus just used more fat to make it smooth (and they probably do), but there is more to it than that. I am making a big batch of hummus for a party – let’s see if I have the patience to *groan* peel every single chickpea!
I just tried this hummus recipe and I think the toasted sesame oil I used made the hummus taste rather bitter so I added more tahini which helped to balance the flavors. I think next time I will add 1 teaspoon of toasted sesame oil, rather than half tablespoon and see how that tastes or perhaps I just have some bad toasted sesame oil and should go find some of better quality. Anyway, I love this recipe because it is so smooth and I didn’t mind peeling the chick peas at all.
Thanks so much for the feedback! I think I’ll update the recipe to 1 teaspoon of sesame oil instead of the 1/2 Tablespoon.
It’s the garlic that makes it bitter. If you press it into the lemon juice let it sit while the chick peas cook the bitter taste will disappear
After trying this, I’ll never go back to making hummus the other way again. The only thing I do differently is I don’t add any of the sesame oil and sometimes I throw in a some green onions and just a little more olive oil.
This looks really good. I love smooth and creamy hummus, too. I am sure that I would love this. Thanks for sharing. 🙂
I just actually peeled them without boiling and was fine, let them soak a couple minutes, however it was still raw tasting and might prefer them boiled
This is my new favorite! My old self would have more mocked the whole pealing the chickpeas thing but it worked like a charm. Smooth and tasty. I accidentally put in more lemon juice which made it taste like Happy Hummus. Thanks!
I practically have this recipe memorized! I make it almost every week with slight variations in seasonings, like paprika and cayenne pepper. We love dipping carrots, cucumbers, and pita chips in this. Definitely recommend!
I just made hummus for the first time this weekend. It’s SSOO easy and delicious. I like using it in place of Mayo on a cold cut sandwich. Thanks for the extra recipes that use tahini!!
Yay!! So glad this hummus has been such a hit, Anne-Mary! Thanks so much for the review :).
What a Fantastic Post!! Love your work.
I’m a little confused. So if you’re using canned chickpeas you still need to boil them with water and baking soda? Or can I just put them in the food processor after rinsing and draining them from the can?
Boiling them with baking soda helps to soften the skin so you don’t have to peel the chickpeas. It’s the secret to making hummus extra creamy and smooth. 🙂
use chana dal alternative
Followed the recipe to the letter and it came out great! Much better than the recipe I’ve used in the past. Tough thing is it makes so much! I’m one person and no way will I finish it in a week.
Ah yay! So happy to hear this hummus turned out great for you. Thanks so much for the review, Rachel! It means so much to me :).
Have you ever made hummus without the olive oil? I’ve seen some recipes for oil-free hummus and am wondering how good it would taste without the olive oil or be as creamy.
Hi Tanya – I have not made hummus without olive oil as it does help with the consistency and creaminess of the hummus. If you try this recipe, I would love to know how you enjoy it!
Have you ever tried to substitute the lemon juice for vinegar?
Hi Jimmy – I have not and I am not sure if that would work. The lemon adds a freshness and I think the acidity from the vinegar might be too overpowering. Let me know if you give this recipe a try!
I went right by the recipe but did double it. I was making it for a party. Currently, it just tastes bitter. I have it in the refrigerator and am hoping miraculously the bitterness goes away but am allowing time for a stop at a Greek restaurant for a backup. I committed to homemade hummus without ever having made it because so far Brittany’s recipes I have tried have been totally dependable and delicious.
I saw the comment about letting the garlic soak in lemon juice after the fact. Is the garlic what it making it bitter? It was fresh garlic I just bought last week. I bought the tahini and got the Once Again brand. I used canned chickpeas that I boiled as Brittany instructed.
Hi Pam! So sorry for the late response, how did the hummus end up turning out? I am not sure why it might have been bitter, what brand of tahini did you use?