How we’ve all gone dippy for houmous!
It’s 30 years since the first pot was sold in the UK. But what makes it so moreish – and is it REALLY good for you?
You’ll find it lurking on every buffet table and picnic blanket this summer, whether it’s with crunchy salad sticks, served warm with roasted meat or scooped onto chips.
It’s a children’s favourite, but turns up in sophisticated new flavours on supermarket shelves and on fancy restaurant menus, too. Houmous, the simple chickpea dip, has invaded almost every British meal (although we don’t yet eat bowls of it for breakfast, as many do in the Middle East).
Exactly 30 years ago, Waitrose sold its first pot of the beige stuff, sparking a food revolution — these days, the supermarket chain sells a pot every second. So, how did houmous achieve such domination?
HUMBLE BUT HOTLY DEBATED ORIGINS
EvEryonE agrees that houmous originated in the Middle East and spread to Europe along ottoman trade routes. But that’s where agreement ends, as the lebanese, Turks, Syrians and Israelis all insist their ancestors got there first.
‘Chickpeas were one of the first legumes ever cultivated by early humans,’ says Israeli-born chef yotam ottolenghi. ‘And houmous has since become the national dish of many Arab countries.’
The row reached a crescendo in 2008 with the Houmous Wars between Israel and lebanon. Thankfully, no shots were fired, but the two nations vied to create the largest plate of houmous.
lebanese chefs fired the first salvo with a 2,000 kg platter. Israel retaliated by pouring 3,629kg of houmous into a satellite dish. The lebanese counter-attacked with a 10,452kg plateful.
Mercifully that’s where the row ended. Israelis are still claiming houmous was first mentioned in the old Testament, though, where it is spelt ‘hometz’.
. . . AND A SQUABBLE OVER SPELLINGS
ConfuSIngly, dictionaries often list five spellings of the word — hummus, houmous, hommos, humos, hoummos. Most supermarkets spell it houmous.
But most authentic is probably the Arabic translation ‘hummus’. The first recorded recipe, in a 13th century Egyptian cookbook, calls it ‘hummus b’tahini’, literally a cold puree of chickpeas with tahini (sesame paste), vinegar, pickled lemon, herbs and spices.
The first houmous recipe in English came in 1950, courtesy of writer Elizabeth David. The story goes that, stranded in a ross-onWye hotel room during a storm, David decided to create her own cookbook, A Book of Mediterranean food, which contains a classic houmous recipe.
SO, HOW DID IT HIT THE BIG TIME?
‘BACk in 1988 when Waitrose introduced houmous, supermarkets were calling aubergines and green peppers exotic vegetables,’ says Dr Sue Bailey, senior lecturer in food science at london Metropolitan university. ‘But people had started to travel far more. They ate delicious things on holiday and wanted to enjoy them at home, too.’
looking around for something unusual, Waitrose buyers hit on the idea of houmous, which had become known among foodies. M&S caught on in 1990, and the other supermarkets followed.
‘Houmous hit the spot,’ says Sue. ‘It wasn’t too scarily full of garlic and chimed with the dietary craze for fibre at the time — Audrey Eyton’s f-Plan Diet had been published in 1983.’
‘It’s wonderfully versatile,’ says Dr Bailey. ‘you can use it as a healthy dip, slap it on a salad or have it as a sandwich.’
What’s more, it now has a grip on the nation’s tastebuds. ‘Children raised on houmous in the nineties are now adults. They regard it as a staple.’
not surprising, then, that houmous was the first dip to have its own facebook page — and there’s even a film about it, 2015’s Hummus The Movie.
AND ISN’T IT A SUPERFOOD, TOO?
onCE marketed as a healthy snack, houmous typically contains chickpeas, sesame paste, garlic, olive oil and lemon.
It’s true that, in addition to protein and fibre, chickpeas are high in iron, folate, phosphorus and B vitamins. They also count towards your five-a-day.
‘It’s filling and sustaining, but still has a healthy image, which is justified in many ways,’ says ottolenghi. ‘Chickpeas have lots of protein, and tahini is a better source of oil than many others.’
However, there’s a great deal of oil in some houmous — and many supermarket pots contain extra sugar and salt, too. A quarter of a standard tub usually contains a hefty 150 calories. In Israel, where 95 per cent of households eat houmous, it’s even been blamed for a national obesity problem.
BUT IT COULD BE ADDICTIVE!
ConSuMEr consultant Philip graves, says houmous has one huge advantage over other dips. It’s just so moreish.
‘Certain foods become a hit because of their particular balance of fats and salts or fats and sugars. Physiologically they’re moreish and houmous fits this pattern,’ he says. no wonder you can’t stop dipping!
on the other hand, a growing number of people in the West are allergic to sesame — meaning the tahini (sesame oil) in houmous could cause asthma, red eyes, itching and stomach problems.
ICELANDIC KINGS OF PRODUCTION
rETAIlErS love houmous as it’s bland enough that they can produce it in endless flavours.
Tesco has 37 different lines of houmous, including Beetroot, Jalapeno and roasted Pepper, while Sainsbury’s has 17.
yet nearly all those flavours are made by a single company. london-based Bakkavor, the uk’s biggest houmous manufacturer, was founded in 1986 by Icelandic brothers lydur and Agust gudmundsson.
Americans, who spend $725million a year on houmous, have taken things one step further by experimenting with sweet flavours. Created by the company Delighted by Hummus, it comes in brownie batter, choc- o-mint, Snickerdoodle and vanilla bean flavours. Where America leads, can it be long before we follow?