There is something a bit 80s about the word “dip”. It makes me think of my parents’ dinner parties, Mum in her turquoise-and-silver lapeled jumpsuit, passing round what we called “The Dip” and tortilla chips.
But a dip, spread or hummus is a very useful thing to have in your fridge. I make up a batch of some kind at least once a week. It means I have something on hand to dip a carrot in to fill the gap before dinner, or something flavourful to spoon into a bowl of greens and grains or to spread into a sandwich with a sprinkling of feta and some peppery leaves.
The dips I make fall into two camps – hummus-style (made from a base of buttery pulses) or veg-centred – and are rarely ever the same. I use beans as a base, to which I add something rich and buttery, something deep and flavourful (think smoky cumin or miso) and some brightness from citrus, with a finishing flurry of herbs. Have a look at the flavour map (below) for some suggestions.
The two dips that follow – together with a stack of these fluffy, blistered flatbreads and a plate of colourful, crunchy summer veg – make for a social dinner best eaten outside. Or at least with the windows thrown open.
Golden beetroot borani
This Iranian dip is usually made with aubergine, but its flavours work with lots of different vegetables. This week, my veg-centered dip is all about golden beetroots. The warmer days seem to suit its slightly sweeter, more subtle notes, though the deep purple ones will work just as well and will turn your borani a vivid, fuchsia pink.
Serves 4
500g golden or red beetroot (about 600g raw weight), cooked and peeled
1 small garlic clove, finely chopped
4 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
4 tbsp Greek yoghurt
A small bunch of dill, chopped
2 tbsp red wine vinegar
2 dates, mashed to a paste with a splash of hot water
A pinch of salt
100g feta cheese, crumbled
A small handful of walnuts
½ tsp black onion seeds
1 If you are cooking your beetroot, wash them, leaving the skins on, then cover with boiling water and simmer for about 40 minutes, or until they are tender to the tip of a knife. Top up the water when needed. Drain the beetroot, then leave them to cool.
2 Peel the beetroot and blend in a food processor until you have a rough puree with a bit of texture.
3 Transfer to a bowl, add the chopped garlic, olive oil, yoghurt, chopped dill, vinegar, mashed dates and a pinch of salt.
4 Sprinkle with the feta, walnuts, black onion seeds and extra sprigs of dill, then drizzle with a little olive oil. Serve with yoghurt flatbreads and crisp vegetables, for dipping.
Frying pan yoghurt flatbreads
There is a corner shop about 100 paces from my house but I still find myself making these in a fix: they are pleasingly simple and also work brilliantly on a barbecue.
Makes 4
200g white flour, plus extra for dusting (I use spelt)
1 tsp baking powder
200g Greek yoghurt, or 150ml warm water
1 Put all the flatbread ingredients into the bowl of your food processor and pulse until the mixture forms a ball. If you don’t have a food processor, this can be done in a bowl using a fork to begin with, followed by your hands, but it will take a little longer.
2 Tip the dough out on to a clean work surface dusted with flour. Knead for a minute or so, to bring it all together. Put the dough into a flour-dusted bowl and cover with a plate. Put to one side to rise a little for 10–15 minutes. Don’t expect it to rise like normal dough, but it may puff up a tiny bit.
3 Dust a clean work surface and rolling pin with flour, then divide the dough into four equal pieces. Using your hands, pat and flatten out the dough, then use the rolling pin to roll each piece into a disc roughly 20cm in diameter and 2–3mm thick.
4 Warm a frying pan or griddle pan that’s a bit larger than your flatbreads over a medium heat. Once your pan is nicely hot, cook each flatbread for 1–2 minutes on each side, until nicely puffed up, turning with tongs.
Butterbean, roast lemon and caramelised onion hummus-style dip
This is my favourite version of hummus, using plump butterbeans instead of chickpeas. Pan-roasted lemons add a spike of mellow acidity, which is nicely balanced out by sweet, slow‑cooked onions.
Serves 4
Olive oil, for frying
4 onions, finely sliced
2 lemons, halved
2 x 400g tins or a 660g jar of cooked butterbeans (about 450g drained weight)
1 tbsp tahini
A pinch of salt
Extra virgin olive oil, for drizzling
1 tsp coriander seeds
1 Heat a medium frying pan with a little olive oil; once hot, add the sliced onions and cook on a medium heat for 10-15 minutes until browned and beginning to crisp a little. Push to one side of the pan. Put the lemons, cut-side down, on one half of the pan. Cook for 4-5 minutes until softened, sticky and brown on the underneath, all the while stirring the onions. Transfer the onions and lemons to a bowl to cool a little.
2 Put the coriander seeds into the pan and toast for a few minutes until they are starting to brown and smell toasty. Scrape them into a pestle and mortar with all the goodness from the bottom of the pan and bash until quite fine.
3 Drain the beans and put into a food processor with the tahini, salt and extra virgin olive oil. Blitz well, until you have a cloudy, creamy dip.
4 Squeeze in the juice of all the lemon halves and scrape in some of the roasted middles, taking care to pick out any seeds. Add half the onions and pulse a couple of times – try to keep a bit of texture here.
5 Serve piled on to flatbreads, baby vegetables or next to some warm cooked grains and veg for a simple dinner.
- Anna Jones is a chef, writer and author of A Modern Way to Eat and A Modern Way to Cook (Fourth Estate); annajones.co.uk; @we_are_food
