Caramelized Onion Hummus

4.93 from 14 votes

There's so many different variations of Hummus, but Caramelized Onion Hummus truly is the god among them. Better still, it couldn't be easier to make!

Prep Time10

Cook Time35

Total Time45

Course: Appetizer, Dip

Cuisine: Middle Eastern

Servings:

Author: Chris Collins

Cost: £1.50 / $2

Equipment

Food Processor
Fry Pan
Serving Bowl
Spatula
Colander (to drain chickpeas)
Small Pot (to catch chickpea brine)

Ingredients

Hummus

1x 14oz / 400g can of Chickpeas (Don't drain away liquid!)
1/3 cup / 80ml Chickpea Brine from the can, or as needed
3 tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil, plus extra for serving
2 tbsp Tahini
1 Lemon, juice only
1 clove of Garlic
1/2 tsp Cumin
1/2 tsp Salt, or to taste
1/4 tsp Black Pepper, or to taste
Fresh Thyme Leaves, to serve

Caramelized Onions

14oz / 400g Red Onion, finely diced (approx 6 small onions)
1 tbsp Butter
1 tbsp Brown Sugar
1 tbsp Balsamic Vinegar
Salt & Black Pepper, to taste

Instructions

Melt 1 tbsp butter in a non-stick pan over medium heat and add your onions. Sauté until they start to soften and become sticky (10-15mins). Add 1 tbsp brown sugar, 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar and seasoning (to taste), then turn down heat to a low. Fry until deep golden and sticky (around 15mins longer). Don’t let them go crispy, if they start to char then lower the heat. The aim of the game is to cook them low and slow so they release their natural sugars and caramelize. (see notes)
Add all of chickpeas, lemon juice, extra virgin olive oil, tahini, cumin, garlic, approx 1/4cup chickpea brine, salt & pepper to a food processor and pulse until completely smooth. Test for seasoning then add in your caramelized onions, saving some to garnish. Pulse again until the onions blend in. Add the last splash of chickpea brine to thin out if needed.
Serve with an extra drizzle of extra virgin olive oil, a sprinkle of fresh thyme leaves and some caramelized onions. Serve at room temp with pita chips, tortilla chips and veg of choice!

Video

Notes

a) Caramelized Onions - For truly caramelized onions you actually want to start on a low heat and keep it low the whole way through. This will give the onions the best chance of releasing their natural sugars to caramelize. I go through this in a bit more detail in my Perfect Caramelized Onions. However, for this recipe the above timings work perfectly.

b) Non-stick pan - You never want your onions to catch on the pan as they caramelize. Give them the best chance of not doing so by using a non-stick pan.

c) Smooth Hummus - You can of course peel the chickpeas, but in my opinion it's too much fuss. For a smooth hummus I simply blitz it for a good 5 minutes. I'll also stop it a few times in between to scrape around the edge so no lump goes uncovered.

d) Room temp - always serve hummus at room temp, never straight out the fridge. To store, cover right away and pop in the fridge, then allow it to come to room temp before serving.

e) Calories - per serving (6 servings):

Nutrition