Hummus or houmous (/ˈhʊməs/, /ˈhʌmə

Hummus or houmous (/ˈhʊməs/, /ˈhʌməs/, or /ˈhuːməs/; Arabic: حُمُّص‎) is a Levantine and Egyptian food dip or spread made from cooked, mashed chickpeas blended with tahini, olive oil, lemon juice, salt and garlic.[1] Today, it is popular throughout the Middle East (including Turkey), North Africa (including Morocco), and in Middle Eastern cuisine around the globe.
In a 100-gram serving, home-prepared hummus provides 177 calories and is an excellent source (20% and higher of the Daily Value, DV) of vitamin B6, manganese and dietary fiber (table). It is a good source (10-19% DV) of protein, vitamin C, folate, phosphorus, iron, zinc, copper and sodium (table).[16]
As an appetizer and dip, hummus is scooped with flatbread, such as pita. It is also served as part of a meze or as an accompaniment to falafel, grilled chicken, fish or eggplant. Garnishes include chopped tomato, cucumber, coriander, parsley, caramelized onions, sautéed mushrooms, whole chickpeas, olive oil, hard-boiled eggs, paprika, sumac, ful, olives, pickles and pine nuts (as photographed in the "History" section). Outside the Middle East, it is sometimes served with tortilla chips or crackers.

Hummus ful (pronounced [ˈfuːl]) is topped with a paste made from fava beans boiled until soft and then crushed. Hummus masubha/mashawsha is a mixture of hummus paste, warm chickpeas and tahini.

Hummus is a popular dip in Egypt where it is eaten with pita bread,[17] and frequently flavored with cumin [18] or other spices.[17]

Hummus is a common part of everyday meals in Israel.[19] A significant reason for the popularity of hummus in Israel is that it is made from ingredients that, following Kashrut (Jewish dietary laws), can be combined with both meat and dairy meals. Few other foods can be combined with a wide variety of meals consistently with the dietary laws.[20] It is seen as almost equally popular amongst Israeli Jews and Israeli Arabs.[20] As a result of its popularity, Israelis elevated hummus to become a "national food symbol" and consume more than twice as much hummus as neighboring Arab countries.[21] Many restaurants run by Mizrahi Jews and Arab citizens of Israel are dedicated to hot hummus, which may be served as chick peas softened with baking soda along with garlic, olive oil, cumin and tahini. One of the fancier hummus versions available is hummus masabacha, made with lemon-spiked tahini garnished with whole chick peas, a sprinkling of paprika and a drizzle of olive oil.[22] Hummus is sold in restaurants, supermarkets and hummus-only shops (known in Hebrew as humusiot).[23]

For Palestinians and Jordanians, hummus has long been a staple food, often served warm, with bread for breakfast, lunch or dinner - usually on Friday mornings.[24] All of the ingredients in hummus are easily found in Palestinian gardens, farms and markets, thus adding to the availability and popularity of the dish. In Palestinian areas, hummus is usually garnished, with olive oil, "nana" mint leaves, paprika, parsley or cumin.[25] A related dish popular in the region of Palestine and Jordan is laban ma' hummus ("yogurt and chickpeas"), which uses yogurt in the place of tahini and butter in the place of olive oil and is topped with pieces of toasted bread.[24]

One author calls hummus, "One of the most popular and best-known of all Syrian dishes" and a "must on any mezzeh table."[26] Syrians in Canada's Arab diaspora prepare and consume hummus along with other dishes like falafel, kibbe and tabouleh, even among the third and fourth-generation offspring of the original immigrants.[27]

In Turkey, hummus is considered as a meze and usually oven-dried with pastırma which differs from the traditional serving.