Fattet Hummus

About This Recipe

Fattet Hummus is Damascene comfort food at its grandest. The dish builds a landscape of contrasting textures and temperatures in a single bowl: shards of oven-toasted flatbread on the bottom, a ladle of hot braised chickpeas and their cooking liquid, a thick blanket of garlic-lemon yogurt, a confetti of toasted pine nuts, then a showering drizzle of crimson paprika butter. Every spoonful collapses through the layers in a different ratio, making each bite a new discovery. It is traditionally eaten at breakfast or brunch but is substantial enough for any meal.

Ingredients

Serves 4

• 2 canschickpeas (400 g each), drained, liquid reserved
• 2 largeflatbreads (khubz), torn into pieces
• 2 cupsfull-fat yogurt
• 2 tbsptahini
• 2 clovesgarlic, minced
• 3 tbsplemon juice
• 3 tbsppine nuts, toasted
• 2 tbspbutter
• 1 tspsweet paprika
• ¼ tspcayenne
• 1 tspcumin (for chickpeas)
• salt(to taste)
• 2 tbspfresh parsley, chopped

Instructions

1. 1

   Toast the bread

   Preheat oven to 190 °C. Spread flatbread pieces on a baking tray, drizzle lightly with oil, and bake 8–10 minutes until golden and crisp. Arrange in the base of a large wide bowl.

2. 2

   Warm the chickpeas

   In a small saucepan, heat chickpeas with ½ cup of their liquid, cumin, and a pinch of salt over medium heat until very hot, 5 minutes. Ladle over the toasted bread, adding enough liquid to just moisten the bread without making it soggy.

3. 3

   Make the yogurt sauce

   Whisk together yogurt, tahini, garlic, lemon juice, and ½ tsp salt until smooth and pourable. Spoon generously over the hot chickpeas.

4. 4

   Make the paprika butter

   Melt butter in a small pan over medium heat, stir in paprika and cayenne, cook 30 seconds until fragrant.

5. 5

   Assemble and serve

   Scatter toasted pine nuts over the yogurt. Drizzle the sizzling paprika butter across the surface and garnish with chopped parsley. Serve immediately.

Variations

• •

  Add a layer of fried aubergine between the chickpeas and yogurt.

• •

  Use crispy pita chips from a packet for a quicker version.

• •

  Swap pine nuts for pomegranate seeds for a festive look.

• •

  Vegetarian: swap the protein for roasted king oyster mushrooms, smoked tofu or cooked chickpeas — adjust seasoning slightly upward to compensate.

Storage

Best eaten fresh. Leftovers can be refrigerated separately (bread, chickpeas, yogurt) and assembled to order the next day.

Frequently Asked Questions