Everybody around the world is obsessed with hummus. If you're not, then I don't know what's wrong with you. But, really an Arab food gathering is just not complete without hummus. It's what makes mezze so special. We've even come to a point where we judge restaurants by how good their hummus is. But, how much do you really know about the food you're eating? Here are 12 things you may have not known about hummus, but will only make you want to eat it more:
1. Hummus is rich in Vitamin-B which helps prevent threat of birth defects commonly known as " spina bifida " in babies
2. The earliest mention of hummus dates back to the 13th century in Cairo where cookbooks with hummus recipes were published
3. Hummus combines two iron-rich source, chickpeas and tahini, which helps in combating anemia
4. Although chickpeas were eaten widely in the region, hummus in particular did not appear before the Abbasid period in Egypt and Levant
5. Hummus can aid with digestion
6. In May 2010, Lebanon broke the Guinness World Record for the largest dish of hummus in the world weighing 10450 kg
7. Hummus can help lower cholesterol levels
8. There are 3 types of chickpeas: Desi, Kabuli, Ceci Neri
9. India is by far the world's largest producer of chickpeas
10. Iran and Turkey are among the top 10 chickpea producing countries
11. Ancient people believed chickpeas increased sperm and milk production in humans and helped with treatment of kidney stones
12. In 1973, a German writer noted that ground-roast chickpeas were seen as substitute for coffee in Europe
