China Daily recently published my column titled Cracking the ‘hummus code’ in a healthy tradition at home. Here’s an excerpt:
As a longtime vegan enamored with many meat-free Middle Eastern dishes, which are much harder to find in restaurants in China, I made a powerful discovery in my own kitchen recently: I had finally cracked the “hummus code”.
Made of chickpeas, tahini sesame paste, olive oil, lemon juice and minced garlic, hummus is like a kind of high-protein manna from heaven to many vegans, including me. While most people serve it as a dip, often with soft pita bread and raw veggies, you can also add it to your favorite sandwich, dab it on your salad, or even smear it on your morning toast in place of butter. And speaking of butter, some of the best hummus I’ve ever sampled evoked the flavors of this classic spread in a lusciously creamy texture that will have you hooked.
So naturally, as I had been spending more time indoors due to the coronavirus, preferring to cook at home, it was only a matter of time before I started craving what was to me a vegan comfort food.
I just never expected that this time around, I would produce a hummus so smooth and buttery that even my husband Jun, a notoriously finicky eater, would be ooh-ing and aah-ing with every bite.No doubt I owe some of my success to using a superior recipe this time around (from the blog Cookie and Kate, deservedly dubbed “best hummus recipe”), as well as my kitchen gadgets (pressure cooker and food processor both played pivotal supporting roles in the process). But regardless, the hummus proved a tasty revelation－that with my very own hands, I could actually whip up a version of the dish recalling restaurant offerings.
In this sense, I’m reminded of my mother-in-law in rural Zhejiang, who has over the years created on her own a repertoire of dishes so mouthwatering that I had jokingly christened her dinner table the best restaurant in China.
Read the full column here. And if you like it, share it!