Hummus


 * ''For the biological matter in soil, see Humus; for the band, see Humus (band).

Hummus or hummus bi tahini (حُمُّص; חוּמוּס; Armenian համոս) also spelled hamos, houmous, hommos, hommus, hummos, hummous or humus) is a dip or spread made of ground chickpeas, sesame tahini, lemon juice, and garlic.

In Arabic the word hummus is used to describe the dish or just chickpeas by themselves. The full name of the dish is hummus bi tahina (حُمُّص بطحينة) 'chickpeas with tahini'. Hummus is popular in various local forms throughout the Middle Eastern world. Its origins are unknown, and are hotly debated  throughout the Middle East.



Serving methods
As an appetizer and dip, hummus is traditionally scooped with flatbread (such as pita) but it is increasingly eaten with chips and crackers of various kinds outside the Middle East. Hummus is also used as as part of a meze, as a sandwich filling and as a dressing (for such things as falafel, salad, grilled chicken, or eggplant).

Hummus can be garnished in numerous ways. Some popular garnishes include parsley, paprika, cumin (traditional in Egypt), pine nuts (traditional Palestine ), chopped or thinly-sliced tomato, cucumber, pickled turnips (traditional in Lebanon), cilantro, sautéed mushrooms, whole chickpeas and olive oil.

Nutritional information
Hummus contains large amounts of the nutrients iron, vitamin C, and is a good source of protein and dietary fiber thanks to its primary ingredient. Depending on the recipe, it contains varying amounts of monounsaturated fat.

Hummus is especially suitable for vegetarian and vegan diets. When eaten with pita bread, the combination provides all essential amino acids for humans.

Popular variations

 * Hummus Ful (pronounced /fuːl/), which is hummus topped with a paste made from fava beans boiled until soft and then crushed into a mush.
 * Hummus Masubha/Mashawsha, a mixture of hummus paste, warm chickpeas and tahini.
 * Hummus mahluta, which is hummus paste covered with a combination of ful paste and warm chick peas. Also known as Kudshiya at Jordan

Product recall
Some brands of commercially-prepared hummus have been the subjects of recalls by the Food Standards Agency of Britain and the Food and Drug Administration of the United States. In 1997 the FDA of the United States issued a recall for 'Tribe of Two Sheiks' hummus and Baba Ganouj products possibly contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes In February 2007 some UK supermarkets recalled certain hummus brands after the Marks and Spencer company found traces of salmonella in a number of their products.