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HUMMUS - a reprise

If you think we’ve done hummus before - we have. But you can never have too much hummus!

This is a blog post from 2 years ago, which I am re-posting since a few people have asked me for the recipe after seeing the photos on social media. And I mean - they are gorgeous, right? Abu Hassan does it perfectly every time.

Am re-posting with one or two small changes, in fact, additions, because we went back to Jaffa and tried out a couple of new cafes.

Yes, we wrung one last beach holiday out of this summer - and have returned to Jerusalem just in time for the rain. And the first cold mornings.

A midweek long weekend here turned out to be a wonderful break from the descending winter and, you know, reality.

JAFFA

It’s only 20 minutes from Tel Aviv, and officially part of that city, but it feels a world away.

Jaffa (Yafo in Hebrew, Yafa in Arabic) has narrow streets, with old Ottoman buildings, Arabic food and of course residents. The co-existence is part of its appeal. Jaffa somehow feels like Morocco with Israeli street names. Some parts of the town are new, some ancient. Many of the sandstone buildings feature arched windows and ceilings.

Palm trees and bougainvillea bushes are everywhere. Sometimes there are columns in the middle of a residential street. The sea is reassuringly close, a splash of blue when you round a corner.

FLEA MARKET

One section of Jaffa is dominated by a flea market - an irresistible mix of shops, cafes and street art. If you didn’t have to go to the beach you could spend all your days there!

COFFEE

Coffee comes the old fashioned way, sweet, black and flavoured with cardamom, prepared in a finjan; and also at a range of new cafes, where the coffee is made in la bella machina, in the Italian, now international, style. A new entry as you head into the flea market from the west is also a ‘micro roastery’ called Ada. It’s named Ada Khanina, after the 2 streets it sits on the corner of, and the coffee there is strong and good.

They will let you sit for hours over a coffee, to have a meeting, or to write your novel. The morning we were there children were selling old coins on the corner, there were water bowls set out for dogs and the whole atmosphere was very chilled.

Ada Khanina Coffee Roasters - Rabi Ada St 2, Rabi Khanina St 9, Yafo

FOOD

There are also new eateries everywhere. In the last post from Jaffa, we focussed on fish. Now it’s coffee and deli cafes.

We liked Nisso deli cafe for brunch and especially creative sandwiches. The one with sheeps cheese, roasted zucchini, greens and red pepper puree was a winner. There’s seats indoors and out, and as it’s a quiet street, you can sit outside without taking in car fumes. The service is a bit slow, but when it’s busy people spill over across the road and sit on benches there, giving it the feel of a street party.

Nisso’s No'am St 5, Yafo

art

There are art galleries and museums everywhere, but none as grand as the private museum operated by Israeli artist Ilana Goor.

Goor houses her own work – sculpture and now furniture in different metals - and the works of other artists as well.

There are many African pieces. Goor is affected by colour, enjoying the part that it plays in art works across genres, from furniture and sculpture to embroidery. It's also a whimsical collection, showing Ilana Goor’s sense of humour. 

Goor has a great collection of kitchen utensils, outdone only by the view from the kitchen window. Who wouldn't love to cook with a view like that?

Ilana Goor lives between Manhattan and Jaffa. She was ‘in’ when I was there and I was lucky enough to sit and talk with her. She is like her museum: multi-faceted, eclectic, provocative, unusual. She is also clever, well-connected and adventurous, and great fun.

At a restaurant called Saint George, just opposite Ilana Goor’s museum, the food was local ie the Arab kitchen and excellent. Everything was fresh and tasty and I had one of the best and freshest grilled fish I’ve ever eaten, anywhere.

Other customers had come all the way from Haifa in Israel's north just for dinner here. 

SUN AND SAND

If you’re going on a beach holiday, bottom line is the beach. Luckily, Jaffa’s southernmost beach is clean, beautiful, and quiet. At this time of year the water is very warm. The other great thing is the beach cafe there. The decor is laidback and lovely at Cassis cafe and the food is good, especially the breakfast, and the chips :-). That’s French fries for Americans. But its selling point is its setting right on the beach. Location, location, location.

The funny thing this time round was seeing cats nesting in the rocks on the seawall. Never seen that before! Cat #1 is easy to see. Can you see Cat #2?

HUMmUS

There are many disputes about Hummus, including proper spelling (Chummus? Humus? Homus?) as well as whose is best.

Abu Hassan in Jaffa is definitely a front runner.

Our apartment was 1 minute’s walk from their original restaurant in Dolphin street. (What a great address!) 

Hummus is traditionally a breakfast food, which means they make one big batch, and close when the pot is empty, usually just after lunchtime. Abu Hassan opens at 8.00 am and closes at 3.00 after they’ve set the next day’s chickpeas to soak.

On Fridays, it’s PACKED, as the people demand Hummus. It’s great to see Muslims and Jews lining up for hummus - together.

ABU HASSAN

Ali Karavan, aka Abu Hassan, started out in 1959 with a small stand with two pots on Dolphin Street. That grew into this restaurant, and by 1972, due to popular demand, he opened another restaurant downtown, which quickly became so popular he had to open a third place directly across the street! He passed away in 2007, leaving a glorious hummus legacy.  

At Dolphin street, they serve hummus, in the traditional manner, with pita and chilli, and also ful - broad bean paste - and labne. That's it. 

Said has been working as a waiter here for 30 years – half the 6 decades the store has been open.

“We make the best M’sabaha, the best in the country,” Said says proudly referring to the morning mix of humus, tahina, and chilli sauce, which is served warm.

When I ask what made it the best, Said smiles.

“Well, we can’t give away our secrets, but our cooks know exactly the right amount of ingredients to add – and when to stop.”

There's a life lesson in there for all of us. 

Abu Hassan, 1 Hadolfin st, Yafo

RECIPE

Hummus is a simple dish, so it’s funny how much competition and grandstanding there is. I am not going to give you Abu Hassan’s recipe, I don't know it and it’s a trade secret, obviously.

But I am going to give you the recipe of a cousin of mine, Elly Mekler, which he gave me more than 20 years ago. I didn't know I had it, and since he has passed away in the intervening time, I was very happy to find it! 

I discovered Elly’s recipe in my battered hand-written cookbook, the one that has accompanied me from London to Sydney to Moscow to Jerusalem. I don’t consult it all that often, since I rarely write down recipes by hand anymore. I’ve become lazy and clip them from the internet like everyone else.

But I like the feel of this old cookbook, with some recipes sent by friends, and others cut out from newspapers. It gives me a sense of continuity. When I checked it after returning from Jaffa last time, I found 2 significant things.

First was a baby photo of one of my best friend’s children. Michael is the grandson of Food is Love grandmother Eva Grinston, the son of my friend Elizabeth, and is now in his twenties! How did the photo get there? How did it survive all this time, without falling out? I can’t imagine how, actually, as I carted this cookbook all over the world, but it was lovely to see it.

And behind Michael’s baby photo, there was Elly’s hummus recipe.

family

It turned out that Elly's daughters, Michelle and Simone didn't have this recipe written down, although it was Elly's signature dish, which he made often. If they had boys over while he was in the kitchen, Elly would demand they come to "learn how to make hummus." Preparing hummus is obviously men's work! 

They were thrilled to learn I had this recipe, and almost in tears with excitement.

INGREDIENTS

Here’s the obvious thing. The better the chickpeas and tahina paste are, the better the hummus will be. Also I have become a huge fan of the super-smooth local version, so the smoother you can process it, the better too. Some people remove the 'skins' from the chickpeas after boiling, but I don't find that’s necessary. You can remove those that float off, but to do it for each grain is too time-consuming for not much difference in result. 

Elly’s Hummus

Makes 1 large batch

INGREDIENTS

• 500 g chickpeas, raw

• ¾ cup tahina paste ie not made up; you may add ¼ cup more, depending on taste

• 1 cup chickpea cooking water (can top up with ordinary water if there is not enough)

• 1 heaped teaspoon salt - may need more

• ¾ cup lemon juice OR ¾ teaspoon lemon salt mixed into ¾ cup water

METHOD

1.    Soak chickpeas overnight; 24 hours if possible. Cook in a large pot with plenty of water to cover. When it boils, turn down to moderate and cook for 50 minutes, removing any scum that forms on the surface. They are ready when they are soft, in fact almost falling apart. It may take longer depending on the chickpeas. Drain. If there is one cup of water left over, you can use this as the liquid in this recipe.

2.    Reserve 1 cup of chickpeas for decoration. The best time to process the chickpeas is when they are warm. Let them cool a little, pick off any skins that have become detached, then tip in the food processor. Add the tahina paste, lemon juice (or lemon salt plus water), chickpea cooking water and salt. 

3.    When it’s smooth, taste it, and adjust for salt or lemon. If it's too thick, add some more water. If it's too thin, add some more tahina paste. Since Elly's oral recipe indicated  "this much salt" which was what he could fit in his cupped palm, you may have to play with it a bit!

4.    Serve on a flat plate, smoothed out and topped in the centre with remaining whole chickpeas, olive oil and sumac or paprika. Some green chili hot sauce is also a good addition. Scoop up with pita or chopped vegetables.

5.  It's best served the day you make it, though any leftovers can be stored in the fridge for 3-4 days. 

6. Suggestions. This is the classic version. You could add to the mix: 2 tablespoons olive oil; 2 cloves garlic or 4 cloves roasted garlic; 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin or 1/2 teaspoon ground paprika.

TIP: Use a lot of water when cooking the chickpeas, as it’s easy to burn them!

TEST KITCHEN

Back home in Jerusalem, I made half the quantity, using lemon salt and water, and it worked well. It’s not quick, since you have to pre-soak, but it’s super easy for such a great quality home cooked product.

Advice: I’ve learned the hard way that this is not something you should make in a blender. The mix quickly becomes too gluggy for a blender, so you have to do lots of stopping, starting and tamping down, and adding more liquid than the recipe calls for just to get it moving. So back to the food processor for this dish in future.