Hummus — silky chickpea dip

Ingredients

• 250 g dried chickpeas (or 2 tins, drained)
• 1 tsp baking soda (only for dried)
• 4 tbsp tahini (good quality, stir well)
• Juice of 1-2 lemons
• 2 garlic cloves, crushed
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• Salt to taste
• 4 tbsp cold water (or more as needed)
• Olive oil, paprika and parsley to serve

Method

1. If using dried: soak the chickpeas overnight in plenty of cold water with 1 tsp baking soda. Drain, rinse, then simmer in fresh water for 1 hour until very soft. Drain.
2. If using tinned: drain, rinse well.
3. Tip the warm chickpeas into a food processor with the tahini, lemon juice, garlic, cumin and salt.
4. Blitz until smooth, drizzling in the cold water until you have a soft, pillowy consistency.
5. Taste — should be bright and balanced. More lemon? More salt?
6. Spread on a plate, make a swirl with the back of a spoon. Drizzle generously with olive oil, dust with paprika, scatter parsley.

Tip: Warm chickpeas blend smoother than cold ones. If using tinned, warm them in their water for 5 minutes first.