Sticky Harissa Beef and Wild Garlic Hummus
I love a good hummus bowl! This one’s been zhuzhed up with seasonal wild garlic and topped with crispy fried mince, tossed in a delicious, sticky harissa glaze. For anyone unfamiliar with wild garlic, think of it as garlic’s mellow cousin – it’s garlicky in flavour without the harsh, punchy sting of raw garlic itself.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 4 1x
Ingredients
For the quick-pickled onions:
- ½ red onion, thinly sliced
- ½ lemon, juice
- 1 tsp sumac
For the hummus:
- 75g wild garlic, or more to taste, washed and patted dry
- 1 x 400g tin high-quality chickpeas, drained
- 2 heaped tbsp good-quality tahini (see Notes)
- 4 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
- 4 tbsp ice-cold water
- ½ lemon, juice only, or more to taste
For the sticky harissa beef:
- extra-virgin olive oil
- ½ red onion, finely chopped
- 250g beef mince or vegan mince
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 tbsp harissa paste
- 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 1 heaped tsp brown sugar
Toppings:
- small handful fresh parsley, finely chopped
- 2 tbsp natural yoghurt
- handful pomegranate seeds
- Warm flatbreads, to serve
Instructions
- Place the onion, lemon juice and sumac in a small bowl and season with a good pinch of salt. Scrunch everything together for about a minute then set aside to macerate.
- Roughly chop the wild garlic. Add it to a food processor, along with the chickpeas, tahini, extra-virgin olive oil, water and lemon juice. Season generously with salt and pepper and blitz until a smooth-ish, bright green hummus form. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.
- Heat a splash of extra-virgin olive oil in a non-stick frying pan set over a medium heat. Add the onion and cook until softened, around 5 minutes.
- Turn the heat up to medium-high and add the beef mince (or vegan mince alternative). Cook until beginning to brown and crisp, around 5 minutes, then add the garlic and cook, stirring almost constantly for 1 minute. Add the harissa paste, balsamic and sugar and cook for a further minute, or until sticky and nicely-glazed.
- To serve, spread the hummus onto a large plate and top with the sticky harissa mince. Top with the quick-pickled onions, some fresh parsley, a drizzle of yoghurt and a handful of pomegranate seeds and serve with warm flatbreads.
Notes
Not all tahini is created equal. Poor-quality tahini is thick, clumpy, gritty, and bitter. Good-quality tahini is smooth, pourable and balanced, not bitter. Where possible, I recommend avoiding supermarket own-brand tahini and opting for Middle-Eastern versions instead. Some of my favourite tahini brands are Baracke, Al Nakhil, Al Taj and Belazu.