May 13th is International Hummus Day, and it’s a day for people who are fans of this thick, healthy paste. Hummus is made out of a number of ingredients that come together to make something truly special. These ingredients include garbanzo beans, garlic, lemon juice, and tahini.

It’s a food that’s readily available in supermarkets all around the world, or if it’s not available in a person’s area, it can be made with relative ease—as long as people have access to the required ingredients.

Hummus is great as a veggie dip or a dip for bread products. It can even be used in recipes. The versatility of this dip is probably why a whole holiday has been created around it—a holiday that we plan on celebrating.

The History Of International Hummus Day

At this time, no one really knows who invented hummus. While there are multiple theories that attempt to pinpoint this product’s origin, none of them have yielded sufficient evidence to be considered a viable explanation.

It is known that the basic ingredients of hummus—chickpeas, garlic, lemon, and sesame—have been combined and enjoyed in Egypt for hundreds of years. And Egypt is where people will find the earliest written recipe for a hummus-like dish.

This was a cold chickpea puree recipe that was mixed with vinegar, herbs, spices, oil, and pickled lemons that was originally published in Cairo. Regardless of where hummus originated, it’s now enjoyed all over the world.

Although it got somewhat of a late start in the United States, once it was introduced to the public, it rapidly began to rise in popularity as a snack. In 2006, only 12% of American households had hummus, and that number rose by 5% to 17% in 2009. It was also in 2009 that American farmers increased their production of chickpeas by 400%.

Since then, the popularity of hummus has increased so much that some tobacco farmers have switched to growing chickpeas to take advantage of the increased demand. International Hummus Day was invented by Innovation Israel—a community for startups, investors, and entrepreneurs founded by Ben Lang and Miriam Young—in 2012.

This holiday was created after it was discovered that there was a holiday dedicated to Nutella called World Nutella Day. They felt that hummus also deserved its own holiday, so they created it.

Observing International Hummus Day

International Hummus Day is a holiday that can be enjoyed by eating and sharing some hummus with friends and family members. This can be a nice hummus that’s made at home, or one of the many commercial hummus dips currently available.

Hummus comes in a wide variety of different flavors and styles, including Roasted Red Pepper, Roasted Garlic, Lemon Garlic Dill, Roasted Pine Nut, Honey Jalapeño, and even hummus with pretzels.

There are also delicious dessert hummus dips that are perfect for dipping fruits such as strawberries. Anyone and everyone can share their favorites online using the hashtag #InternationalHummusDay.