Hummus, Tahini and Panic
Two weeks ago, a series of packaged Hummus products were recalled from supermarkets all over the UK. A routine check found them to be contaminated with salmonella. No illnesses were reported, but there was panic on the streets of London. Or so we heard.
This story brought to attention the growing popularity of hummus in Britain. The UK today is a fast growing market for hummus, and so is the US.
Just think of the consequences of such a contamination if it happened in one of the Arab countries, such as Saudi Arabia. Well, it didn’t. But 26 million Saudis thought it had.
At the same time the Brits got panicked about their hummus, the Saudi newspapers reported that most of the Tahini products in the country contain a carcinogenic ingredient called “tio2″.
Tahini - in case you didn’t know - is a sesame seed paste, which is the second most important ingredient of hummus, after chickpeas. Saudis eat lots of both. It took the SFDA (Saudi Food & Drug Authority) some time until they posted this formal announcement which confirmed their initial claim: the suspicious substance does not cause cancer.
Tio2 (Titanium dioxide), also known as E171, is a perfectly safe color additive, commonly used in drugs (all kinds of white pills), cosmetics and foods. There is a good chance of finding it in your toothpaste, your shampoo (if it’s white), and your coffee whitener as well.
The American FDA, for example, lists it with the safest sources for pigments, alongside some fruits. Studies had found it to be safe in dosages 300 times greater than those used in Tehini.
So of course this was a hoax - and not a new one, by the way. I once got a SPAM massage with a warning about Tio2. I wonder if the Saudis got it too.
Hummus instead of Prozac
A recent research conducted by Israeli scientists, has interesting findings concerning the popularity of Hummus. It’s all about mood they say - chickpeas are the ancestors of Prozac.
It is a known fact that Chickpeas, as well as other legumes, contain a large dosage of Tryptophan, an amino acid which is an important building block of serotonin. The latter, is a neurotransmitter, the lack of which modern biochemistry and psychiatry agree is strongly connected with “mood disorders” such as anxiety and minor depression.
Nowdays, the lack of serotonin is treated with SSRI (Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors. Medicines such as Prozac, Seroxat, Cipralex etc.) which increases the amount of serotonin in the brain. A Tryptophan rich diet has a similar effect.
The Cicer Arietinum (a.k.a chickpea) is the richest in Tryptophan specie throughout it’s genus of plants.
What the researchers (Professor Avi Gopher, Dr. Zohar Kerem, Professor Simcha Lev-Yadun, Dr. Shachar Abbo.) say, is that the chickpea was probably cultivated due to its’ rich Tryptophan content. Ancient men were better skilled than us in recognizing healthy foods and getting their nutritional needs from foods - very much like we can see in animals.
Thousands of years better, hummus is a common dish in a growing number of countries because it tastes good - but also for it’s nutritional value. Ironically, in both cases, people tend to say eating hummus makes them “feel good”…
The A-Z of Hummus in Israel
Ask any Israeli to point out one thing that embodies “Israeliness.” Chances are that nine out ten will say “hummus.” What is it about that pale chickpea paste that is eaten everywhere, anytime, that evokes passionate discussions, fan-clubs and embodies Israel? Ynet presents the (almost) complete guide to hummus
Hummus is the common denominator for all Israelis. Ask an expatriate what he misses most, watch two Israelis argue for hours about where the best hummus is served, or try driving through the hummus-eateries filled streets of Jaffa on a Saturday and you’ll understand: Israelis simply love their hummus. That is understandable considering the fact that an average Israeli consumes about 10 kg (about 22 lbs.) of hummus a year.
A Hummus to die for
How did Salmonella germs got into the Icelandic Hummus from M&S?
Salmonella germs found last Wednesday in two Hummus products, led to a bit of a Hummus-panic across the UK. Marks & Spencer was the first to announce a recall of the products, manufactured by the Icelandic Bakkavor Group and distributed in Britain by Katsouris.
Marks & Spencer says they discovered the salmonella contamination during a routine check, and that there are no reports of illness from customers. However, Katsouris has officially announced that they are taking the products off the shelves of several supermarkets, including Sainsbury’s, Somerfield, Tesco, Waitrose and the Co-op.
For further coverage of the story:
Hummus food scare widens [Gardian Unlimited]
M&S withdraws houmous after salmonella threat [EarthTimes.com]
Bakkavör Group product recall in the UK [Bakkavör website]
Updated statement regarding the recall [Bakkavör website]
What puzzles me, is Bakkavor’s declaration that “The cause is related to a raw material” of the dish. Salmonella, a pretty nasty germ causing everything from digestion problems to death, is usually distributed through animal protein tissues. It’s main sources in human foods are poultry and eggs.
The common ingredients of Hummus are chick-pea grains, tehina or “tahini” (sesame paste), garlic and some spices. So what was this mysterious ingredient used by Bakkavor that could be contaminated with Salmonella?
Real Hummus recipe
Making hummus isn’t too hard, but it’s not all about having the right recipe. Our simple recipe for traditional homemade hummus, comes with a little of our hummus-philosophy.
See also:
Quick Tahini Recipe
Arbis chickpea snack
the Real Falafel recipe
[These three are all far less intellectually challenging]
.There’s nothing like good, healthy, homemade hummus, and there’s no reason for you not to try making it. Making good Hummus isn’t just about having a good recipe, though. True, there are quantities to keep and procedures to follow, but in order to make a really good hummus you must you should go into a cerain state of mind (and preferably practice it for years).
You shouldn’t, and can’t, compete with people who have been making hummus all their lives. On the other hand, you can still make a very tasty hummus the first time you try. It will taste 10 times better than any packaged hummus you can buy, and be 10 times healthier as well (read more here). With time, you will get the touch and become a hummus expert.
A hummus made right, will not make you feel heavy or bloated after you eat it. It will not make you - excuse my French - fart like crazy, either. It should go down smoothly, leaving you light and happy, and in a cheerful mood.
To solve the gas problem, BTW, you should soak the chickpeas in clean water for 10-15 hours, switch them at list once, and take off the foam that appears over the boiling water during the cooking. That’s all (and if you’re extra sensitive, put one bay leave into the cooking pot).
Also, washing the chickpeas well between every two steps of the making, will help you leave out the aftertastes.
There are lots of different hummus recipes. I came across dozens of hummus recipes, and practically tried them all. The recipe before you, is the best in my opinion. Accurate and well tested - although you should feel free to experiment. Good luck!
Ingredients
[4 extra-large bowls of Hummus]
1 cups dried chickpeas (the smallest you can find)
1/2 cup tahini
juice from 1 squeezed lemons
1-2 garlic cloves
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1 tablespoon + 1/8-1/4 teaspoon baking soda
salt
olive oil
parsley
How do I make that into Hummus? (Directions)
[Brut: 10-20 hours. Net: 30 minutes]
1. Poor the chickpeas over a large plate. Go over them and look for damaged grains small stones, or any other thing you would rather leave out of the plate.
2. Wash the chickpeas several times, until the water is transparent. Soak them in clean water over night with 1 tablespoon of baking soda. Then, wash it, and soak again in tap water for a few more hours. The grains should absorb most of the water and almost double their volume.
3. Wash the chickpeas well and put them in a large pot. Cover with water, add the rest baking soda and NO salt. Cook until the grains are very easily smashed when pressed between two fingers. It should take around 1-1.5 hours, during which it is advised to switch the water once again, and remove the peels and foam which float over the cooking water. When done, sieve the grains and keep the cooking water.
4. Put the chickpeas into a food processor and grind well. Leave it to chill a little while before you continue.
5. Add the tahini and the rest of the ingredients and go on with the food processor until you get the desired texture. If the Humus is too thick, add some of the cooking water. It should be thinner than the actual desired texture.
Serve with some good olive oil and chopped parsley.
Humus in the Bible
The first documented use of chick-pees to make humus in the middle-east, is from the age of the crusaders. What few people know is that humus was also mentioned in the old testament.
On the first time Ruth and Boaz had met in Bethlehem, he offered her some humus: “And at meal-time Boaz said unto her, Come hither, and eat of the bread, and dip thy morsel in the vinegar” (Ruth 2-14).
This is a mistranslation of course. The original word in ancient Hebrew, is “Hometz”. Which not only sounds a bit like “Humus”, but also resembles the word “Himtza”. The Hebrew name of chick-pees.
True, “Hometz” in modern Hebrew is vinegar. But you don’t really think Boaz was so rude as to offer Ruth to dip her bread in vinegar, do you? Got to admit it’s more reasonable to think it was Humus (the credit for this idea belongs to the Israeli writer Meir Shalev).
Hummus or Humus?
This seems like the right place to start our journey: how should I spell my favourite dish: Humus or Hummus? Wiki says it’s Humus for the soil and Hummus for the food. Google finds many more occurrences of Humus though, which may suggest people prefer the single m form. But than again - there’s a popular rock band called humus, and I’m not sure if hummus is more popular in this point of time. Yet, I’m sure it’s going to.
And well, the spelling issues are irrelevant now that I’ve already registered humus101.com. That’s a self explanitory domain, I think, but in case you wondered: yes, this is a 101 blog for Humus lovers.
English, as you might have already guessed, isn’t my mother tongue. And I guess some of the people who will get here will be non-native English readers too. But what are language barriers when it comes to the love for Humus (or Hummus). Especially in the era of globalization.
Humus, in case you didn’t know, is the Arabic word for chickpeas. It is also the name of a dish, made of chickpeas, tahini (aka thina, a sesame seeds paste) and a few other ingredients (the full recipe).
In future posts, I’ll discuss the history, sociology and culinary of Humus. In this point I will only note that it is a very ancient dish, that is being eaten for at list 1000 years, and even 3000 accorsing to some (who claim it was actually mentioned in the bible).
But my main interest will be in current status of Humus on the planet. Such as places around the globe where you can eat good Humus - a subject in which those of you living outside the middle east might have more helpful information than I do.
Well, Humus is about sharing - so please share the information with the rest of us.
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