Hummus Musabaha (Whole Chickpea Hummus)

YIELD: Makes about 5 cups, serving 8 to 10
ACTIVE TIME: 15 minutes
TOTAL TIME: 2 hours 15 minutes, plus overnight soak

Ingredients

1/2 pound dried chickpeas (about 1 1/4 level cups; 225g)
2 teaspoons (12g) baking soda, divided
Kosher salt
1 small onion, split in half
1 small stalk celery
1 small carrot
2 medium cloves garlic
2 bay leaves
1 sprig rosemary (optional)
1 to 1 1/2 cups (235 to 350ml) Tahini Sauce With Garlic and Lemon
1/3 cup (50g) minced flat-leaf parsley leaves and tender stems
Extra-virgin olive oil, for serving
Za'atar, paprika, toasted pine nuts, and/or chopped fresh parsley, for garnish (optional)
Warm pita bread, for serving

Directions

1. Combine chickpeas, 1 teaspoon (6g) baking soda, and 2 tablespoons (24g) salt in a large bowl. Cover with 6 cups (1.4L) cold water. Stir to dissolve salt and baking soda. Let stand at room temperature overnight. Drain and rinse chickpeas thoroughly.

2. Place chickpeas in a large Dutch oven or saucepan. Add remaining baking soda, 1 tablespoon (12g) salt, onion, celery, carrot, garlic, bay leaves, and rosemary, if using. Add 6 cups (1.4L) water and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce to a simmer, cover with lid slightly cracked, and cook until chickpeas are completely tender and nearly falling apart, about 1 hour 30 minutes. Check on chickpeas occasionally and top up with more water if necessary; they should be completely submerged at all times. Let cool slightly.

3. Discard onion, garlic, celery, carrot, bay leaves, and rosemary. Drain chickpeas, reserving their cooking water.

4. In a blender or food processor, combine 1 cup (235ml) tahini sauce with about one-quarter of the cooked chickpeas and blend until very smooth, with a thick but pourable milkshake-like consistency. Thin with a little of the reserved cooking liquid if necessary (but be careful not to thin too much at once; you can always thin more, but can't remove liquid once it's added). Season with salt.

5. In a mixing bowl, combine tahini mixture with remaining chickpeas and parsley. Stir until thoroughly mixed and chickpeas are coated in a creamy sauce. (If you prefer the sauce thinner, gently work in a little more of the reserved cooking liquid.) You can refrigerate the hummus at this point; it will become thicker in the refrigerator.

6. Spoon onto a serving dish, drizzle with olive oil, and top with garnishes of your choice. Serve with warm pita bread.