Indian Spiced Hummus

It’s no secret that hummus is one of my all time favorite snacks or appetizers. This is one of my new favorite variations, Indian Spiced. It’s based on the spices and flavors found in butter chicken.

But something about the name “butter chicken hummus” just didn’t quite appeal to me. If you love that kind of sauce though, you will for sure enjoy this hummus.

I also love that hummus is just about one of the easiest snacks to make because you just dump a bunch of things in a food processor and blend until smooth. That’s about all there is to it! So there’s really no reason to buy hummus unless you are away from your food processor for some reason.

Indian Spiced Hummus, makes around 2 cups

1 can (15 oz.) chickpeas
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1/4 teaspoon turmeric
1/2 teaspoon garam masala
1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds
1/4 teaspoon cayenne
1 teaspoon salt
2 cloves of garlic
1 teaspoon fresh ginger
1/3 cup + 1 tablespoon olive oil
lemon juice + cilantro for the top

First, combine the spices (turmeric, garam masala, cumin seeds, and cayenne) in a small, dry pan and toast over medium heat for about 45 seconds until very fragrant. Remove from the heat.

In a food processor, combine the chickpeas (drained and rinsed from the can), tomato paste, toasted spices, salt, garlic, and ginger. Blend while slowly adding the olive oil. If your processor doesn’t allow for adding oil while it is on, you can just add it in batches, scraping down the sides of the bowl in between.

Blend until very smooth. Top with a big squeeze of fresh lemon juice and about tablespoon or a little less of chopped cilantro.

More Hummus Recipes:

• Sun-Dried Tomato Cilantro Hummus
• Beet and Goat Cheese Hummus
• Cayenne and Flaxseed Hummus
• Power Hummus
• Date and Almond Hummus
• Black Eye Pea Hummus

Serve alongside fresh cut veggies like cucumber or bell peppers, crackers, or naan. I also love spreading hummus over toast for veggie sandwiches. And you can store any leftover hummus in an air tight container in the refrigerator or up to a week (maybe longer, but hummus doesn’t last long at our house).

Tips

• like to remove the thin skins around each chickpea before using in hummus. This isn’t 100% necessary, but I think it results in a smoother consistency, so I usually take the extra few minutes to do this.
• Speaking of an extra few minutes, you can skip toasting the spices if you are in a time crunch, but this does really bring out the flavors, especially for the cumin seeds. So, worth the time if you ask me, but not 100% necessary.
• Measuring fresh cut ginger is sort of tricky. For this, once I peeled off the darker brown peel, I simply cut roughly the same size of ginger as my garlic cloves. You don’t have to be super exact here, but I would recommend starting lighter and then adding more fresh ginger at the end if you are unsure so you don’t overwhelm the hummus with that one flavor.

Happy hummus making, you guys! xo. Emma

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5 from 1 vote

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Yield 2 cups

Ingredients

1x2x3x

• ▢ 1 can (15 oz. chickpeas)
• ▢ 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• ▢ ¼ teaspoon turmeric
• ▢ ½ teaspoon garam masala
• ▢ ½ teaspoon cumin seeds
• ▢ ¼ teaspoon cayenne
• ▢ 1 teaspoon salt
• ▢ 2 cloves of garlic
• ▢ 1 teaspoon fresh ginger
• ▢ ⅓ cup + 1 tablespoon olive oil
• ▢ lemon juice + cilantro for the top

Instructions

• First combine the spices (turmeric, garam masala, cumin seeds, and cayenne) in a small, dry pan and toast over medium heat for about 45 seconds until very fragrant. Remove from the heat.
• In a food processor, combine the chickpeas (drained and rinsed from the can), tomato paste, toasted spices, salt, garlic, and ginger. Blend while slowly adding the olive oil. If your processor doesn’t allow for adding oil while it is on, you can just add it in batches, scraping down the sides of the bowl in between.
• Blend until very smooth. Top with a big squeeze of fresh lemon juice and about tablespoon or a little less of chopped cilantro.

Credits // Author and Photography: Emma Chapman. Photos edited with the NEW A Beautiful Mess actions.