In a week that started and ended with wintry storms, a taste of test of houmous brought a much needed taste of the Mediterranean to my desk.
A popular school lunchbox option for kids - often for dipping with slices of carrot or red pepper - houmous is essentially a blend of chickpeas, tahini, garlic, water, lemon juice and oil.
Simple to make yourself at home if you have all the ingredients and a decent blender, it’s also a fridge staple in all supermarkets.
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I compared supermarket own-brand houmous from seven supermarkets - Co-Op, Aldi, Sainsbury’s, Tesco, Asda, M&S and Waitrose.
Six out of the seven pots were 200g - the only reason I had to buy the larger 310g Asda houmous was simply because the huge Bedminster branch had sold out of the smaller pots. They clearly like their houmous in BS3.
The key things I was looking for was a decent texture - not too thick and not too runny - and a good depth of flavour, by which I mean a nutty taste with hints of lemon and garlic.
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Ask most chefs or home cooks who make authentic houmous and they will mostly say good olive oil is an essential component.
Interestingly, all seven supermarket own-brand houmous pots I tried all used rapeseed oil rather than olive oil, presumably to keep costs down, but it has an impact on flavour.
It’s worth noting that prices will also differ between branches of each supermarket.
Here is what I thought of each of the supermarket’s own brands of houmous.
Tesco
£1.00 for 200g
Simply called ‘Houmous’ on the packet, this Tesco dip is described as ‘Mediterranean inspired’ and lists ingredients as cooked chickpeas (55%), water, rapeseed oil, tahini sesame seed paste, concentrated lemon juice, garlic and salt.
It tasted mostly of chickpea and sesame and I couldn’t really detect the lemon juice.
The texture was very grainy and bits of blitzed chickpeas stuck in my teeth. I wouldn’t rush out and buy it again.
Score: 2/5
M&S
£1.20 for 200g
M&S calls it ‘Classic Houmous’ and ‘an authentic dip of cooked chickpeas with tahini, garlic and lemon’.
It had a smooth texture - maybe because it was 40% cooked chickpeas compared to the versions with a higher chickpea content - and noticeable lemon tang. It was a perfectly respectable houmous and I’d happily eat it again.
Score: 3/5
Sainsbury’s
£1.10 for 200g
This is another ‘Classic Houmous’ according to the packaging but I would beg to differ.
It has 51% cooked chickpeas, which is good, but the texture was quite loose and almost gritty. It did have a hefty garlic edge though.
Score: 2/5
Aldi
69p for 200g
At 69p, the Aldi ‘Houmous’ (no flowery descriptions here) is half the price of many competitors so great if you are watching the pennies.
Sadly, it also tasted cheap - weirdly sweet and with the greasy flavour of rapeseed oil rather than the main ingredients. A hapless, inedible houmous and one to avoid.
Score: 1/5
Asda
£1.25 for 310g
The label boasts ‘a twist of lemon for a zesty kick’ but I couldn’t taste it.
Although it claims 52% chickpeas, this is a bland dip with the gritty texture reminiscent of getting sand in your sandwiches on Weston-super-Mare beach.
Score: 2/5
Waitrose
£1.55 for 200g
At £1.55, this was the most expensive of the lot, but that might be because I bought it at the smaller branch in Clifton which is rarely the cheap option.
Still, it’s the ‘Essential’ houmous and only has 46% chickpeas but it was thicker than the other ones I tried. Not bad, but I expected more punch for the price.
Score: 3/5
Co-Op
£1.40 for 200g
Like the Waitrose version, the Co-Op houmous only has 46% chickpeas and it’s also thicker.
But it has a pronounced chickpea, sesame and garlic flavour with a zip of lemon to lighten it.
Score: 4/5
Verdict
All seven pots of houmous looked similar and, who knows, some of them may well be produced by the same factories before being packaged for various supermarkets.
They varied hugely in price and, unsurprisingly, the more expensive versions tended to score higher in terms of texture and flavour.
But, like all contests, there can only be one winner, and the humous I would happily slather on a flatbread or dip a carrot stick into is the Co-Op version.
It was thicker and had the best flavour of the lot. I’d certainly make a detour to buy it again over the others.
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