Food Storage Recipe: Hummus (even if you hate beans)

Mom with a PREP | I confess - I hate beans. How can any self-respecting, self-reliant seeking person hate beans? I do. But man, I can eat this stuff ALL DAY LONG! If your family is like mine, they hate beans. For some of us it’s a texture issue, for some of us it’s just the taste. That can put a real damper on your Food Storage plans if you can’t rely on a super cheap form of protein for your family. It’s hard to pass 13 bean stew off as ‘chunks of meat like product that look remarkably like beans but really aren’t” with your fingers crossed behind your back and hoping that no one calls you on it. Growing up, my folks loved beans, and they would fix pinto beans regularly. Not only did it stink up the house to high heaven while they were cooking it (blech), I just couldn’t stand the taste. And when Mom served Lima Beans for a meal, we were required to eat a serving, no matter what. We had black eyed peas on New Year’s (and no amount of chow-chow could cover up how awful they tasted). I got to where I would just take one or two and swallow them hole as to not to have to chew them. My palette really hasn’t changed towards beans all these years. I still hate them, for the most part, but I have found a way to trick my brain!!! HUMMUS! The Middle Eastern staple made with chickpeas (aka garbanzo beans) has turned out to be something I adore and can eat everyday. And what makes it so cool is that you can doctor it up any way you’d like, use other beans or even boiled peanuts or sweet potatoes to make a non-traditional hummus. I’m going to share 3 of our favorite recipes with you, and link you to a couple of alternatives. This is a really versatile dish that can serve you well.

SIMPLE HUMMUS

  • One 15-ounce can chickpeas, also called garbanzo beans
  • 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice (it’s about 1 large lemon)
  • 1/4 cup Tahini (ground sesame seed paste available everywhere)
  • Half of a large garlic clove, minced
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for serving
  • 1/2 to 1 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 2 to 3 tablespoons water (or reserved liquid from can)

Chop garlic fine. I prefer to do it by hand because it lends to a finer texture in the end, but you can do it in your blender/food processor. Add beans and liquid and blend until you reach a smooth texture. Then add the rest of your ingredients and continue to blend until you’ve reached the consistency of a paste. Then add olive oil and process until you’ve got something like mayonnaise (smooth and thick but not runny).

ALTON BROWN ‘s Turbo Hummus

Courtesy of Alton Brown & The Food Network

  • 2 to 3 cloves garlic
  • 1 can garbanzo beans (chickpeas), drained and liquid reserved
  • 2 to 3 tablespoons smooth peanut butter
  • A handful fresh parsley leaves (or try cilantro)
  • 1 lemon, zested and juiced
  • Pinch freshly ground black pepper
  • Pinch kosher salt or sea salt
  • 1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil

Chop garlic fine. I prefer to do it by hand because it lends to a finer texture in the end, but you can do it in your blender/food processor. Add beans and liquid and blend until you reach a smooth texture. Then add the rest of your ingredients and continue to blend until you’ve reached the consistency of a paste. Then add olive oil and process until you’ve got something like mayonnaise (smooth and thick but not runny).

LEMON HUMMUS

This is for our little guy who still isn’t convinced by most hummus recipes, but for some reason loves this one.

  • 1 15oz can of garbanzo beans
  • 5 TB lemon juice
  • 1 1/2 TB of tahini
  • 4 cloves of garlic
  • pinch of salt
  • 1/3 C olive oil

Chop garlic fine. I prefer to do it by hand because it lends to a finer texture in the end, but you can do it in your blender/food processor. Add beans and liquid and blend until you reach a smooth texture. Then add the rest of your ingredients and continue to blend until you’ve reached the consistency of a paste. Then add olive oil and process until you’ve got something like mayonnaise (smooth and thick but not runny). TIPS:

  • Serve as a dip with cut vegetables, toasted pita bread or tortilla chips, use as a sandwich spread, or as salad dressing when thinned with a bit more olive oil.
  • Don’t have tahini? Use peanut butter or sesame oil. Maybe try a different nut butter with an extra punch of garlic.
  • Dehydrate lemon zest to store in your food pantry and have it year round, no matter where you live. You can also freeze cubes of lemon juice in the same fashion.
  • Store both canned chickpeas and dried. I can always soak my beans overnight to prepare them for the dish, but if I’ve forgotten, I have cans to open at the ready. This also makes your food storage more versatile for emergencies.
  • You can substitute any white bean to make a different version of this.
  • If you live in a climate where lemons/limes will not be something available to you should there be an extended grid-down situation, it can be left out. Or you can use a dash of vinegar to add the acidic punch. You can also leave out the oil and just use water, but I would recommend punching up the herbs/spices a bit and making sure you blend everything VERY well to get it truly smooth.
  • You can store hummus in the fridge for a long while in an airtight container, or you can freeze it for longer storage. I would not recommend dehydrating hummus, but you can dehydrate the cooked garbanzo beans for easier storage.
  • Let your kids make this. If you throw everything into the blender, they don’t even have to use a knife. It’s something that will get them interested in the kitchen!

Here are some varieties of hummus you can experiment with: Sweet Potato Hummus, Black Bean Hummus, Greek Hummus,  Southwestern Hummus, 13 Varieties of Hummus If you’ve never tried hummus, you can usually purchase it at the deli/cheese counter of most grocery stores. Give it a try! Once you’ve found that you love it like we do (and we HATE beans), you’ll make it a food storage staple for your family, too!

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Becky is a wildlife enthusiast and pet and livestock care expert with a diploma in canine nutrition. With over a decade of experience in animal welfare, Becky lends her expertise to Simple Family Preparedness through insightful info about pets, livestock, bee keeping, and the practicalities of homesteading.

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