I’ve been wanting to make a butter bean hummus for a while but I needed to find a way to make it different from the traditional chickpea one. As butter beans have slightly less flavour than chickpeas, it leaves more room to get creative with flavours. In this recipe, I’ve gone for deep smoky vibes, though it would also work well with an infused oil on top – like dill (watch this space!).
If you’ve made my chickpea hummus, you’ll know I peel my chickpeas for a smoother blend. Well, I wasn’t going to peel these but then, as I began removing them from the tin, some of the shells started to fall off and I realised just how thick the skins were… so yes, I peeled them. But they are much larger than chickpeas and took no time at all. So do it.
This recipe calls for the smokiest paprika you can find. I got mine from an Asian food shop in Tooting (it’s a lot smokier than the supermarkets and a lot more vibrant in colour) but standard stuff will do if that’s all you have, you just may like to add a little more. I have also recently been experimenting with liquid smoke, using it in my baked beans and meat dishes. I’ve even added a few drops to salmon fillets before cooking them in tin foil – eating them cold, it has a resemblance to hot smoked salmon. I’m using one I purchased from Sous Chef, and it works brilliantly in this recipe.
Ways I like to eat this:
- In a sandwich, with rocket, grilled aubergine, peppers and rocket (maybe a little pesto & mozzarella too)
- With crudites and crisps
- With warm flatbreads
- Open sandwich, with hot roast chicken and rocket
Ingredients:
1 x 400g tin of butter beans (shells removed)
50ml butter bean tin liquid
2 cloves of garlic (if they are very big, just use one)
2 tbsp tahini
1/2 juice of a large lemon (this gives me a 2-3 tbsp, use a whole one if there’s not enough juice)
1/2 tsp smoked paprika
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp liquid smoke – if you don’t have this, add in a full tsp of smoked paprika
3 x pinch of Maldon Sea Salt
Method:
- Drain the butter beans, keeping the liquid they’re in and set aside
- De-shell the butter beans
- Add all of the ingredients to a blender and blend until you reach a smooth consistency. If it’s slightly too thick, add either a little more lemon juice or butter bean water
- Serve topped with a little extra smoked paprika on top, and a drizzle of olive oil
Fuel your body happy 