Lemon Basil Hummus is creamy, smooth and bright with the flavor of lemon juice and fresh basil leaves. Use the three tricks I share to get the smoothest hummus you've ever made. Use this flavorful hummus recipe for dipping chips or pitas into, as a base for sandwiches, toast or wraps or toss some with hot pasta.
I love hummus and I've tested a lot of recipes (like my Avocado Cilantro Lime Hummus) and done a lot of research to perfect my recipes so that I can share my tips and tricks with you. I've learned three tricks to making the perfect, smoothest hummus.
The first trick is to pass on the canned chickpeas and instead cook chickpeas from dried. I have an easy recipe for No Soak Instant Pot Chickpeas. I make them every Sunday for use in recipes throughout the week, usually hummus or a curry.
Once the chickpeas are cooked the skins slide off easily. Find someone with a lot of patience or just accept that this is a boring task, and peel off all of the skins. If you swirl the chickpeas around in cool water, most of the skins will float to the top for easy removal.
For the rest of the chickpeas, I just slide the skins off in a sort of pinching motion. It takes a bit of time and is boring, but it is so worth it!
The second trick is to let your blender or food processor do its job and make sure you blend the hummus long enough! I blend the ingredients for about 5-6 minutes, scraping down the sides quite often, until it's pretty smooth.
And finally, the third trick is to add ice to the hummus instead of water. The tahini will react to the ice and won't want to emulsify with it. It'll clump up in the hummus and thicken but only until it all finally emulsifies. Then it'll start to thin out again and the hummus will be super smooth and kind of light in texture and color. It's interesting to watch happen. The process of adding ice and blending will also take about 5 minutes. Take your time.
Let me know if you try my three tricks for making smooth hummus.
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Did you know? Chickpeas are also commonly called garbanzo beans.
Ingredients
About the ingredients for this recipe. See the recipe card below for exact amounts.
- Chickpeas - I prefer using chickpeas that I've cooked from dried for hummus. This is one of the three tricks to the smoothest hummus. You can of course use canned chickpeas if you prefer. To make your own chickpeas use my Instant Pot Chickpeas recipe (no soaking required!), and if you're feeling up to it, take the skins off of the chickpeas. If you use fresh cooked chickpeas and take their skins off, your hummus will be incredibly smooth (especially when combined with the other two tricks!).
- Tahini - Use your favorite tahini.
- Lemon juice - Fresh lemon juice is the best but sometimes I use bottled lemon juice.
- Garlic - A couple of fresh garlic cloves give hummus a great flavor. Roasted garlic cloves are even better.
- Olive oil - I like extra virgin olive oil for the flavor.
- Fresh basil leaves - Use a bunch of leaves, like a cup of them if you have. Sometimes my grocery store only has smaller packs so I can make do with that too, but the more basil the better in my opinion (it's my favorite herb).
- Ice cubes - Yes, ice cubes instead of water for thinning! This makes the creamiest whipped hummus, don't skip it!
- Salt and pepper - to taste
Equipment
I use my Ninja Kitchen System to make hummus and I prefer to use the blender jar instead of the food processor. I feel like it can blend hummus better.
Instructions
The process for this lemon basil hummus recipes is very simple, but it does require a lot of watching it blend in the food processor.
To start, add the chickpeas, tahini, lemon juice, salt, garlic, olive oil, and fresh basil leaves to the bowl of the food processor or blender. (Photo 1) I find my blender attachment for my Ninja makes hummus easier than the food processor sometimes.
Blend all of the ingredients together. The chickpeas and basil will start to get chopped up. Keep blending until the hummus is quite smooth. This will take about 5 minutes, maybe more. (Photo 2)
Make sure to stop and scrape down the sides often to incorporate the ingredients that slide up the wall of the food processor or blender. Give this time and blend everything well, it's important to get it quite smooth in this step.
TIP: Adding cold water (or ice) to tahini will initially cause it to seize up and go clumpy. As you add more and blend, the tahini will emulsify with the water and get smooth and thin out again.
The second step is where the hummus goes from blended to super creamy. Add ice cubes to the food processor one at a time. (Photo 3) Blend each ice cube in well before adding another. The hummus will get smooth and a bit lighter in texture and in color. Keep adding ice and blending until you reach your desired consistency. (Photo 4) I usually add 4 or 5 large ice cubes.
Make sure to season to taste with salt and black pepper.
Serve right away or refrigerate. To garnish, use the back of a spoon to swirl little grooves into the surface of the hummus. Drizzle over some extra virgin olive oil. Crack over fresh black pepper and sprinkle with red pepper flakes for a bit of spice. Add a few small fresh basil leaves.
HUMMUS TIPS: The 3 secrets to making the smoothest hummus are: 1. Fresh cooked chickpeas with the skins removed (not canned chickpeas) 2. Blending the hummus long enough. 3. Adding ice cubes instead of water, as the last step.
Substitutions
✔ This hummus recipe is vegetarian + vegan.
> You can use canned chickpeas if you prefer and the recipe will still taste great, it just won't get quite as smooth.
Storage
Store this hummus in a container with a lid or with plastic wrap over top. Store in the fridge for 5-6 days.
More hummus recipes
Recipe
Lemon Basil Hummus
Ingredients
Instructions
- Add the chickpeas, tahini, lemon juice, salt, garlic, olive oil and basil leaves to the bowl of a food processor.
- Blend well for about 4-5 minutes, stopping to scrape down the edges a few times. The hummus should already look pretty smooth.
- Add ice cubes one at a time, blending after each addition. The hummus will start to look even smoother and will turn a lighter shade as the tahini reacts with the cold ice. Keep adding ice cubes and blending to desired consistency. This can take about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Serve or store covered in the fridge until needed.
Equipment
Notes
Nutritional information is an estimate. Values vary based on products used. Read our full Nutrition Disclaimer.
Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links, meaning I get a commission if you decide to purchase through my link, at no extra cost to you.
Recipes FAQs
Chickpeas and garbanzo beans are the same bean. Chickpea derives from Latin and garbanzo from Spanish.
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