Israeli Ghosh beats Guinness record for largest hummos

ABU GHOSH: Fifty chefs in the Arab-Israeli village of Abu Ghosh on Friday (January 08) broke a Guinness World Record for the largest hummos bowl, weighing over four tonnes - beating the record set in Lebanon just two months ago.

Lebanon's record weighed nearly half as much as this newest record.

Neighbouring Lebanon, Israeli's political rival, has become its culinary one as well, in this gastronomic warfare which was waged some two years ago.

Both Lebanon and Israel have vied for the various titles of world's best and largest hummus dishes.

Hummus, a regional delicacy, made of mashed chickpeas, sesame paste, olive oil, lemon juice and garlic - is loved equally by Palestinians: Christians and Muslims, and, Jews living in the Middle East.

In spite of the shared appreciation, the origin of the dish is a source of heated debate with both Arabs and Jews claiming ownership.

This latest salvo in the culinary war has brought about a Guinness World Record made up of 2.5 tons of chickpeas, 1.5 tons of sesame paste, hundreds of freshly squeezed lemons and a tub of crushed garlic.

Jack Brookbank, a Guinness official who attended the event was seen observing and sampling the hummos.

"We have over 4,000 kilograms of hummos here, it's the largest serving I've ever seen certainly. I was a little bit worried initially that they would sacrifice the quality for the quantity, but having tried it just now: it is some of the best hummos I've ever tasted in my life," he said.

The only "bowl" able to hold the hummos was a satellite dish six meters in diameter, provided by a local telecommunications company.

Jawadat Ibrahim, who organised the event, said that the day was an important day in hummos history.

"Today is the big day of hummos history. Today we broke the Guinness Record with 4,000 kilos of hummos in one plate. Today Abu Ghosh restaurant is the capital of the hummos in the whole world," he proudly said.

Ibrahim says that Abu Ghosh Restaurant in the Arab-Israeli village of the same name, every weekends attracts hordes of hungry visitors, most in search of the perfect hummus.

Regarding the Israeli-Lebanese rivalry, Ibrahim adds that this is not a war, but rather, a competition.

"This is not a war, this is a competition and it's a good thing to do. I'm happy for it, I'm very very happy. It's the best thing happening in the whole Middle East," Ibrahim said with a smile.

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