Irresistible Roasted Red Pepper Hummus Recipe
When we first figured out how to make our own hummus, we were shocked at how easy and fast it is. With just a few simple tricks, you really can make creamy smooth hummus at home. Plus, since it really is so easy, we love adding extra flavor like sweet roasted red peppers. Two things here. First, we use canned chickpeas, which is much quicker than using dried. Some swear by soaking and cooking their own dried chickpeas, but we are just not that organized and love that canned chickpeas means we can enjoy our hummus in 10 minutes. Second, our recipe calls for tahini, a creamy paste made from sesame seeds. You can usually find tahini in larger grocery stores or specialty markets, or you can actually make it at home.
When we first figured out how to make our own hummus, we were shocked at how easy and fast it is. With just a few simple tricks, you really can make creamy smooth hummus at home. Plus, since it really is so easy, we love adding extra flavor like sweet roasted red peppers. Two things here. First, we use canned chickpeas, which is much quicker than using dried. Some swear by soaking and cooking their own dried chickpeas, but we are just not that organized and love that canned chickpeas means we can enjoy our hummus in 10 minutes. Second, our recipe calls for tahini, a creamy paste made from sesame seeds. You can usually find tahini in larger grocery stores or specialty markets, or you can actually make it at home.
- salt to taste
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 small garlic clove minced
- 1/4 cup (60 ml) tahini see our homemade tahini recipe
- pinch cayenne pepper (optional)
- 2 whole red bell peppers (substitute about 3/4 cup choppe
- 1 can chickpeas or 1 1/2 cups (250 grams) cooked chickp
- 1/4 cup (60 ml) fresh lemon juice about 1 large lemon
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil plus more for serving
- Carbohydrate 0.24272 g
- Cholesterol 0 mg
- Fat 2.1914725 g
- Fiber 0.0288749995231628 g
- Protein 0.0629675 g
- Saturated Fat 0.30000325 g
- Serving Size 1 1 Serving (4g)
- Sodium 581.792 mg
- Sugar 0.213845000476837 g
- Trans Fat 0.0649549999999999 g
- Calories 20 calories
Step-by-step
- Move an oven rack so that it is about 5 inches from the broiler. Turn oven broiler on.
- Remove core of peppers then cut into large flat pieces. Arrange pepper pieces, skin-side up, on a baking sheet. Broil 5 to 10 minutes until the peppers skin has charred.
- Add peppers to a resealable plastic bag, seal then wait 10 to 15 minutes until cool enough to handle. Or, add peppers to a bowl then cover with plastic wrap and wait 10 to 15 minutes. Gently peel away the charred pepper skin and discard. Reserve 1 to 2 pieces of the peeled roasted pepper pieces to use as a garnish when serving then roughly chop the rest.
- In the bowl of a food processor, combine the tahini and lemon juice and process for 1 minute, scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl then process for 30 seconds more. This extra time helps whip or cream the tahini, making the hummus smooth and creamy.
- Add the olive oil, minced garlic, cumin, and a 1/2 teaspoon of salt to the whipped tahini and lemon juice. Process for 30 seconds, scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl then process another 30 seconds or until well blended.
- Open, drain, and rinse the chickpeas. Add half of the chickpeas to the food processor and process for 1 minute. Scrape sides and bottom of the bowl, then add remaining chickpeas and process until thick and quite smooth; 1 to 2 minutes.
- Add the roasted peppers and continue to process for 1 to 2 minutes or until smooth. If the hummus is too thick or still has tiny bits of chickpea, with the food processor turned on, slowly add 1 to 3 tablespoons of water until you are happy with the consistency.
- Taste for salt and adjust as needed. Finely chop the reserved peppers. Spoon hummus into a bowl, make a small well in the middle and add the chopped peppers. Store homemade hummus in an airtight container and refrigerate up to one week.
Tahini does the heaviest lifting in any smooth chickpea spread. Processing the sesame paste and lemon juice together for a full minute before introducing any other ingredients changes the emulsion fundamentally. Air incorporates into the fats, creating a pale, whipped base rather than a heavy paste. Skipping this mechanical aeration step guarantees grainy results.
Broiling whole red bell peppers skin-side up five inches from the heating element for up to ten minutes achieves the required char. Trapping the hot peppers in a sealed plastic bag for fifteen minutes loosens the skins through steam action, allowing them to slip off easily under running water. Canned chickpeas bypass soaking requirements entirely, meaning this entire process takes roughly thirty minutes from start to finish.
Adding ice-cold water one tablespoon at a time through the feed tube while the motor runs adjusts the final viscosity if the mixture remains too thick. Store finished batches in airtight containers inside the refrigerator for up to seven days. Freezing is not recommended because emulsions separate upon thawing, yielding a gritty texture.
