If you're a fan of Chef Earl's Giardiniera Hummus, you're going to swoon over this hot & spicy giardiniera hummus. Chickpeas, tahini, lemon juice, garlic, salt + pepper are blended into smooth and creamy hummus perfection. Then, hot (or mild, if you prefer) giardiniera is folded in to create a creamy hummus with a crunchy, tangy, and spicy kick!
I have an obsession-confession to make: I'm completely, utterly, head-over-heels addicted to pickled vegetables.
Like crazy addicted.
Let's just say that if a jar of pearl onions, pickles, and I were locked in a room for 15 minutes, only one of us would make it out of there.
From kimchi to hot cherry peppers, I don't discriminate, and I've yet to meet a pickle I didn't like. I can't trust myself to ration out pickled things appropriately, so they're reserved for special occasions. Special occasions like "It's a Friday, I finished a week of work. I should treat myself to something pickled."
One of my absolute favorite pickled-veggie-containing treats is giardiniera hummus. I also love spicy things, so when heat + pickled come together, I melt. On my routine grocery shopping trip last Friday, I eagerly pushed my cart towards the stack of hummus at Whole Foods; however, to my complete disappointment, there wasn't a container of giardiniera hummus in sight. Since I had been toying with the idea of making it from scratch for quite some time, I figured the empty shelf was a sign that the time had come.
So, here we have it: Hot + Spicy Giardiniera Hummus, and it's every bit as good as the store-bought kind... maybe even better. Plus, it's incredibly easy to make, and two batches of the homemade kind will cost you less than one container of the store bought stuff. It's a win-win.
To make the hummus, you'll simply toss peeled chickpeas (see recipe notes), tahini, lemon juice, garlic, salt + black pepper into a food processor, and process everything for 2-3 minutes until it's completely smooth. Then, you'll transfer the hummus to a bowl, pour in a ½ cup of hot (or mild if you prefer) giardiniera and mix everything together. It comes together in under 10 minutes and will be gone in about the same amount of time if your household is anything like ours. The amount you see in the photos is about two-thirds of the recipe because I couldn't stop eating it.
📖 Recipe
Hot & Spicy Giardiniera Hummus
Ingredients
- 1 (15-ounce) can of chickpeas, drained and rinsed
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 1 ½ tablespoons tahini
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt
- Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- ½ cup hot or mild giardiniera
Suggested Pairings
- Tortilla chips
- Root vegetable chips
- Fresh vegetable sticks (e.g., cucumbers, carrots, celery, etc.)
Instructions
- If you want extra-creamy hummus, remove the skins from the chickpeas by "popping" them between your pointer finger and thumb. Discard the skins.
- Add the chickpeas, lemon juice, tahini, garlic, sea salt, and black pepper to a food processor or high-powered blender. Process for 2-3 minutes or until completely smooth.
- Transfer the hummus to a small bowl, add the giardiniera to the bowl, and stir to incorporate.
- Serve alongside a snack pairing of your choice, and refrigerate leftovers.