The Best Ingredient To Spice Up Store-Bought Hummus

Hummus is a dip with a smooth and creamy texture, but since it's typically made with chickpeas, it also contains fiber and protein. Although it's a dip, you can also spread it on toast or pita chips and of course dunk vegetables into it. The added beauty of hummus is that it's a wonderful canvas for adding different flavors to create a totally different taste, if you choose to do so. There are a number of ingredients you can add to take your store-bought or homemade hummus from humdrum to exciting.

One way to add some zing is by including curry and turmeric, per Ambitious Kitchen. Or up the flavor and color of your hummus by mixing in some roasted red pepper, as noted by Sweetpeas and Saffron. If you're looking for spice, cayenne pepper is a simple addition for raising the heat. However, if you're looking for spiciness, there's an unexpected ingredient you can add to your hummus that can really step up the flavor profile.

Wasabi is something that we typically see in Japanese recipes, but it's also a versatile ingredient as noted in Spoon University, which recommends stirring a bit into your hummus to spice it up in a new way. If you're unfamiliar with wasabi, it's got a unique bit of heat and an effect that tends to clear your sinuses. That's because it comes from a plant that is part of the Brassicaceae family — horseradish, radish, and mustard belong to this family as well (via Taste of Home).

Surprisingly, this spicy addition pairs well with the creamy base of hummus. You can stir in some wasabi powder to your store-bought hummus or add it to a homemade batch. But if you really want to set off the spicy hit of wasabi, try adding a bit of ginger to your hummus, which will amplify the kick of wasabi, per Honest Cooking. Your tastebuds and sinuses will thank you.