The Hummus Wars
By Meagan Dashcund
Lebanon breaks the world record
2009
Lebanon breaks the world record for making 4,532 pounds of hummus - the largest tub of hummus in the world. After the Guinness Book of Records awards Lebanon the prize, the Minister of Tourism declares that hummus and tabbouli are Lebanese
Israel Weighs In
01.2010
Israel enters the gastronomic war by making hummus served on a satellite dish in the Israeli town, Abu Gosh. The hummus weighs in at four tons or 8,000 pounds
Lebanon Bites Back
05.2010
About 300 Lebanese chefs contribute to the creation of 23,042 pounds or 11.5 tons of hummus in the Lebanese village of al-Fanar. Lebanon also attempts to get the EU to ban any other country from calling their dishes hummus in a "Hands Off Our Dishes" campaign
Many other countries also lay claim to the dish
Palestinians, Syrians, Turks, and Egyptians also have reason to believe that the dish originated in their country. Turkey has been cultivating chickpeas for over the past 10,000 years. The Book of Ruth in the Hebrew Bible also mentioned a dish called, 'hometz.' Hummus made with tahini is also mentioned in a 13th-Century cookbook from Cairo,Egypt.
The importance of hummus
When you walk into most restaurants in the Levant, you will see all types of people from all walks of life enjoying hummus, falafel, and tabbouli without any debate on who owns the dishes. While some enjoy the back and forth of this type of Levantine conflict where no one gets hurt, hummus still remains a symbol of cultural appropriation and occupation. And even though this dish can be a source of conflict for the region, it also unites. Hummus is a Middle Eastern dish made with love, and on that point, no one is arguing.