Hummus with Spiced Lamb (Hummus bil Lahme) is a creamy chickpea dip topped with seared spiced lamb. It’s an authentic Middle Eastern recipe that turns a plate of hummus into a spectacular meal.
hummus with spiced lamb is luscious and so easy to make!
what you’ll need for hummus with spiced lamb:
- lean lamb ~ you can also use beef. Some recipes use ground meat.
- Middle Eastern spice mix, I used ras el hanout, a blend of paprika, allspice, turmeric, rosemary, roses, cinnamon, and cumin
- olive oil
- lemon
- toasted almonds
- salt and pepper
- hummus
the process is simple and so quick
Rub the chopped lean lamb with your spices, then quickly sear in a hot pan, douse in lemon juice, and lay it all on top of the bed of creamy hummus. The plate gets showered with toasted almonds and olive oil. The meat takes just minutes, and the hummus can be made ahead or bought. Serve it with pita bread or grilled laffa bread.
this dish is all about the spice
We have a new spice stand at our farmer’s market. They set out all the spices in big bowls just like in a middle eastern souk, or open air market. The problem is that, until this week, health department regulations required that they surround the spices with an ungainly wall of plastic wrap. It made it hard to see and impossible to smell the many spices, kind of defeating the whole purpose. This week the plastic was gone; they compromised with the authorities, and pre-packaged all the spices in little bags beforehand, leaving the open bowls for display purposes only. Not quite as romantic, but it works. I picked up a packet of their tagine spice blend. It made this dish a snap to make, and you’ll find similar Middle Eastern spice mixes in the spice aisle of your supermarket.
the Mediterranean way with meat
This dish is a good example of how, when I do eat meat, I like to use it as an accent rather than as the centerpiece of my meals. Mediterranean cuisine is known for this, and that’s partly why it’s such a healthy diet.
make this recipe vegan
You can make this a vegan dish by using an earthy mix of mushrooms in place of the meat. Give them the same searing and spice treatment and you’ll hardly know the difference!
The spiced lemony juices run down into the hummus and make this really delicious. The contrast of temperatures, flavors, and textures is truly spectacular. Please try it!
more fun hummus recipes
- Lemon Artichoke Hummus
- Farmer’s Market Hummus
- Warm Hummus with Mushrooms
- 50 Ways to Hack Your Hummus
Hummus with Spiced Lamb
Ingredients
- 3/4 lb lean lamb, cut into small pieces
- 2 tsp Ras al hanout, *see notes
- salt and freshly cracked pepper
- olive oil
- 1 large lemon, juiced
- 1/3 cup toasted sliced almonds
- 6 servings homemade hummus, or store bought
Instructions
- Rub the pieces of lamb with the spices, salt and pepper, and set aside in the refrigerator for at least an hour.
- Prepare the hummus by spreading it out on a plate, making it thicker on the edges and shallower in the center to make a space for the meat.
- Heat a frying pan on medium high with a small amount of oil and sear the meat on all sides until browned and cooked through, this will only take a minute or two, but make sure the heat is high enough to sear the meat so that you get some good browning for flavor. Squeeze the lemon juice into the pan, swirl it around, and then put the meat directly on top of the hummus. making sure you get all the juices.
- Sprinkle the plate with the almonds and drizzle with olive oil. Serve with pita or laffa bread.
Absolutely fascinating! I adore hummus so this dish is calling to me. Love the idea, the presentation and the promise of incredible flavors. Wonderful!
The presentation makes it party worthy.
This looks absolutely delicious! YUM!
It was, Ellen, and now I’m not sure I’ll be able to go back to ‘plain’ hummus again, at least for a while. I need to try it with beef, chicken, mushrooms…
Sue, this looks so fantastic! I have about 10 different lebanese dishes I have written down that I want to make, and a lot of them have lamb. It’s definitely a meat I want to experiment with and I love how you have it hear with hummus and toasted almonds. It doesn’t get much better than that. Thanks for the inspiration!
I’d love to see what you do with your recipes. I have a couple more that look really good to me, and my daughter is actually spending the summer in the Middle East on a fellowship from college, so I am hoping to get some inspiration from her, too.
This looks so delicious! I usually serve spiced lamb over rice but I love this combination with humus!
Hey Pat, your ‘prizes’ were sent out today, enjoy!
Oh my, this looks absolutely incredible, I will be trying it for sure!
It was really delicious, and since it’s so easy I highly recommend trying it.
Looks delicious, I love hummus too! I only wish hubby liked lamb though, he keeps trying it, and he keeps turning his nose up . . . this may be one of those meals I make for myself when he’s not around! LOL!!!
Or use beef, I think a little filet would be great, and it’s nice that you only need a little. I can’t stand it when my husband doesn’t like something that I love…I keep trying to get him to see the light!
LOL, after 19 years of marriage, I finally raised the white flag on lamb and salmon . . . but it doesn’t deter me!
Wow. This dish is so beautiful, rustic and filled with flavors I love. Simply divine. Thanks for sharing! =]
Thanks you, and thanks for visiting!
First, these photos are terrific! Second, this dish looks terrific. I was just watching an A. Bourdain (I’m starting to sound like a broken record…) and he was in Istanbul. They served him a dish similar to this but instead of hummus , it was a bean puree. It looks so delicious. We just visited this place in Houston that caters to the Middle Eastern market here. It is ginormous and has all sorts of ingredients and spices.
The bean puree sounds interesting, I should branch out from chickpeas. I bet you’re having a blast exploring Houston, it’s so exciting to have a first child starting college, I wish I could re-live that year. My oldest will be in grad school in Madison Wisconsin this fall, so I hope to get there, it’s supposed to have a pretty vibrant food culture.
this looks divine 😉
Thanks Rebecca.
Sue, hummus and meat is my all time fave, we have it twice a week over here but I’v never made my hummus oh bout now that I have my five pound blender I must give it a go.
Really? I don’t know why, but I resisted it for a while, then all of a sudden realized it was a fantastic idea. I’d love to know how you make yours, what kind of meat, etc…