Can you freeze hummus?

Hummus is an emulsion of chickpea purée, tahini and oil, and freezing splits it. It is safe and the flavour is unaffected, but it thaws grainy with oil sitting on top. Whisking or blending after thawing, with a tablespoon of olive oil or a little water, restores most of the texture. Leaving a layer of olive oil on top before freezing also protects the surface from drying out.

How to do it properly

1. Portion into small containers with 2 cm of headspace
2. Pour a thin layer of olive oil over the surface before sealing
3. Thaw overnight in the fridge, never at room temperature
4. Stir hard, or blend, with an extra spoonful of oil or water

What goes wrong

• The emulsion splits and looks grainy
• Shop-bought hummus with less oil recovers less well than homemade
• Thawing on the counter leaves it in the danger zone for hours

Other "can you freeze" questions

• Can you freeze cheese? It depends — Yes, and it stays safe indefinitely — but hard cheese comes out crumbly and soft cheese comes out wet.
• Can you freeze milk? Yes — Yes — leave headspace for expansion and shake it hard after thawing.
• Can you freeze eggs? It depends — Not in the shell. Beat them first, or freeze whites on their own.
• Can you freeze bread? Yes — Yes — freezing is the best way to store bread, far better than the fridge.
• Can you freeze bananas? Yes — Yes — peel and slice them first, because the peel turns black and welds itself on.
• Can you freeze cooked rice? Yes — Yes, and freezing quickly is the safest way to keep leftover rice.
• Can you freeze raw chicken twice? It depends — Only if it thawed in the fridge and never got above 4 °C (40 °F).
• Can you freeze breast milk? Yes — Yes — freeze it flat in bags, and use within six months for best quality.
• Can you freeze avocado? It depends — Yes, but only as a purée — frozen slices go grey and watery.
• Can you freeze soup? It depends — Yes for most soups; cream, milk and potato-based ones separate or go grainy.
• Can you freeze butter? Yes — Yes — butter freezes better than almost anything else in the fridge.
• Can you freeze cooked pasta? Yes — Yes — undercook it slightly and toss it in oil first, or it thaws into a solid block.