Name: Bar Saracen’s hummus bi calamari
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 100 min
Total time: 120 min
Yield: 6 - 8
Ingredients: 250 gm calamari, cleaned and scored, tentacles reserved; 1 tsp olive oil; 50 gm butter, melted; 1½ tbsp thinly sliced flat-leaf parsley; Sweet paprika, to serve; Turkish bread, to serve; Hummus; 250 gm dried chickpeas; Large pinch of bicarbonate of soda; 80 ml (⅓ cup) lemon juice; 100 gm hulled tahini; 1 garlic clove, coarsely chopped

Bar Saracen’s hummus bi calamari

The Middle Eastern favourite of hummus and minced lamb gets a makeover that's all about light and fresh flavours.

Serves 6 - 8

Prep

20M

Cook

1H 40M

Total

“This is a take on the traditional Lebanese dish of hummus topped with minced lamb,” says Joseph Abboud. “Hummus is a recipe that can be prepared with little effort, but can take years to make it special.” Begin this recipe a day ahead to soak the chickpeas.

Ingredients

250 gm calamari, cleaned and scored, tentacles reserved

1 tsp olive oil

50 gm butter, melted

1½ tbsp thinly sliced flat-leaf parsley

Sweet paprika, to serve

Turkish bread, to serve

Hummus

250 gm dried chickpeas

Large pinch of bicarbonate of soda

80 ml (⅓ cup) lemon juice

100 gm hulled tahini

1 garlic clove, coarsely chopped

Method

1.For hummus, soak chickpeas with bicarbonate of soda in 2.5 litres water overnight. Drain, place in a large saucepan with 2.5 litres water, bring to the boil, then reduce heat to low-medium and simmer until almost falling apart (1-2 hours). Add 2 tsp salt, stir and set aside to soak for 5 minutes. Drain well, reserving 125ml cooking liquid and set 50gm chickpeas aside to garnish. Process remaining chickpeas in a food processor until very smooth (3-5 minutes). Add lemon juice, tahini and garlic, season to taste and process until combined, adding reserved cooking liquid 1 tbsp at a time until smooth. Cool.

2.Preheat a barbecue to high or a char-grill pan over high heat. Toss calamari with oil in a bowl and grill until just cooked (1-2 minutes per side), then cut into small pieces.

3.Top hummus with calamari and reserved chickpeas, drizzle with butter, scatter with parsley and sweet paprika and serve with warm Turkish bread.