Is Hummus Vegan?

Going vegan is an exciting process when you learn about new foods available to you to maintain a healthy diet. Hummus is considered a staple food for vegans because it's incredibly healthy, easy to make and super versatile. When you are a beginner vegan, chances are, hummus is the first thing you buy from the local supermarket. There are also many flavours to enhance your hummus and it also works with bread, vegetables, as a spread or as a dip. Hummus is an incredibly popular food and we eat it every single day.

It's difficult to be vegan in the first few months, but we are here to simplify things for you and answer important, valid questions you may have. Is hummus vegan is one of the most frequent questions we get. The quick answer is yes, traditional hummus is vegan. It's also gluten free, but it can be high in oil content. That's why we make our hummus tahini free.

What is hummus

Hummus is a paste made from cooked chickpeas, usually mixed with a little oil, tahini, lemon, garlic and salt. Tahini is a condiment made from sesame, a bit like a runny sesame paste if you want. Because tahini is high in oil content, we tend to skip it when we make our hummus.

Hummus has different consistencies too, it can be thinner or thicker. We like it a little thicker, but smooth. To thin your hummus simply add a little more olive oil.

Some hummus recipes call for sundried tomatoes or roasted red peppers. There are many varieties of hummus you can try and as long as the recipient says the hummus is vegan, then you are good to go.

A brief history of hummus

Hummus originated in the Middle East. In fact, in Arabic, hummus means chickpeas. We don't have enough evidence to state the precise location of where hummus originates or who exactly invented this delicious dish.

We do know that the earliest know recipe that resembles hummus is recorded in a cookbook from the 13th century, in Cairo. This recipe contains no tahini or garlic and the lemon is replaced by vinegar.

Is hummus vegan or raw?

Hummus is vegan but it is not raw. Chickpeas or garbanzo as some call them, are legumes and in order for us to eat legumes, we must first cook them. To make hummus we need to boil the chickpeas first and only then we can turn them into delicious hummus. If you're seeking raw dishes, hummus in its classic form wouldn't qualify due to the cooking process involved with the chickpeas.

We recommend, when possible, making your own hummus at home. You can either buy dried chickpeas or canned chickpeas. We prefer buying canned chickpeas because we can also use the liquid from them called aquafaba, to create beautiful desserts. Aquafaba can replace egg whites in a recipe.

Why vegans love hummus

There are so many reasons why vegans love hummus. The cost of making hummus is very low. Making hummus is also effortless as it takes less than 5 minutes to make it in a blender. It's delicious for breakfast on crusty bread or as a dip with carrots. Hummus is incredibly healthy and is high in protein and fibre too.

Hummus is super easy to eat and it's ideal for sandwiches when you go on a road trip or you hike in the mountains. Hummus comes in various flavours and you can spice it up yourself by adding sundried tomatoes, roasted peppers and even a little wasabi if you want. You can make it spicy by adding cayenne pepper or more flavoursome by adding a tad bit of turmeric to it. It's versatility makes it a hero in any vegan diet.

How to make hummus

To make the perfect hummus we recommend experimenting with flavours first. For example, try making two batches: one with and without tahini and see which one you prefer.

We make hummus almost every morning and we use: chickpeas, a little olive oil, salt, pepper, paprika and a little lemon juice. We don't add garlic to our hummus and no tahini. We developed this preference by trial and error.

When I want to have a bit of fun, I like to add a har of sundried tomatoes to my hummus simply because I fancy a different flavour.

To make hummus you will need a good food processor like this one.