Our hummus taste test of grocery store hummus revealed a range, from buttery to bold, and even subtle citrus notes. Which hummus is the best? Lisa McManus and Becky Hays reveal their favorites and least favorites.
Read our full Hummus review:
Get exclusive access to every recipe, review, and more:
Sign up for our free newsletters to receive more delicious recipes, cooking tips, and exclusive content:
ABOUT US: The mission of America’s Test Kitchen (ATK) is to empower and inspire confidence, community, and creativity in the kitchen. Founded in 1992, the company is the leading multimedia cooking resource serving millions of fans with TV shows (America’s Test Kitchen, Cook’s Country, and America’s Test Kitchen: The Next Generation), magazines (Cook’s Illustrated and Cook’s Country), cookbooks, a podcast (Proof), FAST channels, short-form video series, and the ATK All-Access subscription for digital content. Based in a state-of-the-art 15,000-square-foot test kitchen in Boston’s Seaport District, ATK has earned the trust of home cooks and culinary experts alike thanks to its one-of-a-kind processes and best-in-class techniques. Fifty full-time (admittedly very meticulous) test cooks, editors, and product testers spend their days tweaking every variable to find the very best recipes, equipment, ingredients, and techniques. Learn more at
If you like us, follow us:
0:00 – Introduction
0:26 – What Hummus do you buy?
1:10 – Hummus #1 – Trader Joe’s
2:45 – Hummus #2 – Esti Original
3:39 – Hummus #3 – Sabra Classic
5:10 – Hummus #4 – Tribe Classic
6:39 – Hummus #5 – Cedar’s The Original
8:25 – Hummus #6 – Fresh Cravings
10:01 – Hummus #7 – Boar’s Head
11:01 – Hummus #8 – Ithaca Classic
12:52 – Hummus #9 – Joseph’s Original
14:15 – Becky and Lisa’s Favorite Hummus
14:51 – Official Results
source
44 Comments
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.
Sabra Classic is the closest American hummus to what one gets in Israel.
I’m very surprised and disappointed to not see Little Sesame in this trial. I first came across it about two years ago. I used to jump around trying different brands, but now I ONLY buy this brand. Made in small batches. No preservatives. Mostly organic ingredients. Rich and full of flavor. I found it at Whole Foods but also local markets — haven’t looked for it at other large supermarkets. On the website they have a store locator. I usually buy the “herby jalapeño“ but the regular is very good also. Everyone I’ve shared it with has agreed it’s incredible, and they usually text me for the name a few days later. I’ve seen it in Massachusetts, Ohio, and Florida, so I’m guessing East Coast distribution.
I really love the Lantana hummus (formerly Eat Well Enjoy/Embrace Life) but seems nobody carries the brand anymore. Really liked the twists on hummus they did.
So funny – as soon as I saw the Tribe brand I said “That looks like the kind I make at home – and sure enough Becky said the same thing! 🙂
Sabras, my favorite always!
The Esti line is horrible.
Fresh cravings is amazing! They have a lot of amazing new flavors!
Tastes tests these days are of little value and a waste of time because the testers seem to be clueless about how the excitotoxin additives, which are essentially MSG, like "natural flavors, yeast extract, guar gum, pea protein, spices (without their names listed)" will make you think you like the taste and make you want more. Dr. Katherine Reid's work who is a biochemist bears this out. She has done multiple TedX talks and has videos on hidden MSG in food. She even cured her daughter of Autism after changing her diet to a strictly WHOLE FOOD diet which proved the dangerous toxic impact the additives were having on her daughter's neurological system.
Notice their “Fav” was NOT Hummus. It was HOMMUS. Is that so they don’t get sued?
Very interesting! I make my own hummus, but sometimes buy hummus at the supermarket. Tribe has been one of my favorite store-bought, but for some reason it's recently been harder to find. I will definitely try Trader Joe's. My least-favorite store-bought hummus is Wegman's (which surprised me).
Becky rocks
The way my colon rumbled watching them eat all these garbanzo beans.
Becky is great for a taste test! She takes it seriously, is honest and easy to read. Love it!
I would have liked to see where Aldi’s hummus compared to the others. I have tried a lot of brands and even make homemade but Aldi is the best I’ve found
I buy Sabra. Not a lot of choice at my grocery store, but I do like it. Homemade I add a couple shakes of cumin.
Most store bought hummus contains oil which is a no-go for me. Hummus should be just chickpeas, tahini, salt and maybe lemon or spice. There are a few brands the Whole Foods carries which meets this. If you want oil just top it before serving
Ithaca is my favorite BECAUSE of the acidity and spices! I’ve thrown zatar on top and just omgggggg 😩🫶🏻💕
Sabra tastes nothing like real hummus. Soybean oil? No!
It's funny – we love Ithaca because of the lemon and vinegar forward flavor. Enjoy what you love!
This was definitely AMERICA'S test kitchen. Hummus is very different in the Middle East
How is it that you ranked Joseph’s as your favorite when, in your comments while tasting, you said it was bland, dense, grainy, very standard, it wasn’t your favorite, nothing special and it wasn’t blowing you over at all?
All hummus is vegan.
I've tried the Albertson's brand, Signature Select hummus (regular and red pepper) and they are ok. lately I prefer the Target brand, Good and Gather hummus (particularly in the snack pack) because it tastes a little creamier. the pretzels in the snack pack are a bit too salty but the pack size is really convenient for a midday snack on the go or pick me up snack at work. ritz crackers with the Good and Gather hummus is really good but I fear kind of fatty.
Happy St Paddy's, Boston.
Sabra is nasty. Always bitter and awful. Best hummus is Aldi's brand (Park Street Deli?). Conveniently, the Aldi pita chips are also the best.
Can confirm that both Sabra and Boar's head are terrible. Don't know why a deli meat company would try making hummus.
The best hummus ever is trader's joes crunchy chili onion hummus. Anything else would be uncivilized.
Don't buy from a grocery store, find a Mediterranean/Levant restaurant or deli.
10:30 "I didn't know they made hummus,"… "They should probably not." lol Just the description sounded gross, and didn't BH have a listeria outbreak? Yikes…….
Store bought hummus is fine as a spread in a sandwitch. If you want proper hummus to dip your pita in, either make it at home or go to a hummusia.
They should have brought Refika over to test these.
Great seeing Becky outside of a cooking video 🙂
There is a great roasted red pepper Hummus at Sam's Club. It is there Members Mark brand it is 4.95 for 32oz. it is a great value.
When I was at Harvard, many seminar courses had snacks on the last day of class. The very first one I attended I brought carrots and hummus; as did five other students. It became a running joke and a great tradition.
I liked supermarket hummus until I went to my local Palestinian/Israeli restaurant and wow…I get a stomach ache eating Sabra, the aftertaste slightly sour bitter. Homemade I can eat a gallon no problem.
My favorite is Little Sesame! They're sold at most stores in CA
Sabra isn’t BDS compliant so I’ve never purchased their brand ever again. Nothing beats homemade but we have a local brand called Steve’s and it’s delicious!
Tip: Learned this from a Palestinian chef— when making homemade hummus, add in citric acid and ice cubes! Arabs use citric acid in a lot of dishes and it’s known as “Lemon Salt” for them. It definitely gives it that balance when paired with the olive oil. Still need fresh lemon juice tho! And the ice cubes help with the texture.
As soon as you started describing Esti, I guessed which brand you were tasting! Unfortunately it's the only thing my local store carries (in Europe). But yeah, it has a strange sweetness for sure, some of their flavors have added sugar.
Why do so many of these store bought brands have sunflower oil added? Bruh.
Who in their right mind buys supermarket hummus, are you really too lazy to make this simple and easy product?
Which brand to buy? The real answer is NONE. Nothing beats home made.
If you are desperate or perhaps don’t have a blender or food processor then, sure, maybe. Probably not even though. 😒
Been a while since Becky has appeared. I’ve missed her sense of fun!
❤
I've only tried Sabra and I find it to be very good. That brand inspired me to step out and make my own. I really do enjoy making my own hummus.