Butter Bean Hummus (Ultra Easy & Creamy)

JUMP TO RECIPE PIN

This butter bean hummus is super simple (4 ingredients!), quick and easy and loaded with amazing flavors. Perfect served as a dip for pita bread and raw veggies, but you can also use it as a nutritious spread for sandwiches. Great for meal-prep, vegan and naturally gluten-free.

View on a platter made with butter bean hummus, raw veggies and pita bread.

We must go through two or three containers of traditional hummus each week in our house. It's so nutritious and perfect to make speedy sandwiches to-go or to dip in veggies for a quick healthy snack.

We mostly buy hummus at the store since it is more convenient, but it is actually super easy and quick to make at home too. We love this homemade broccoli hummus to boost the traditional chickpea hummus with more nutrients: it is so tasty and its whipped texture is unbelievable!

But this time, I wanted to make a different kind of creamy hummus that's not made using chickpeas just to change things up a bit and to explore different types of beans. So I made butter bean hummus!

Butter beans are already super soft and tender, even more than chickpeas, which makes them very easy to blend to a super smooth and creamy texture. I was amazed at how those white beans turned light and fluffy after only a few pulses in my food processor, even more than when using chickpeas!

Also, butter beans are mild in taste with a nice buttery flavor, which works amazingly to make a hummus that feels super-rich. I flavored this butter bean dip simply with garlic and lemon, but this is a perfect versatile recipe to experiment by adding more ingredients to it, such as cooked beets, herbs, spices, etc.

This butter bean hummus is done within minutes: all you have to do is blend all the ingredients using a food processor and adjust the texture to your taste with cold water. You will get a light, velvety and smooth healthy white bean dip within 5-10 minutes!

Let me know if you gave it a try! ❤️

Front angle view on a bowl of homemade butter bean hummus topped with paprika and served with veggies and pita bread.

Highlights of this recipe

This recipe will give you the creamiest hummus you will ever see!
Quick and easy
Comes together in 5 minutes!
Highly customizable
Makes for a healthy and delicious snack that's high-fiber and rich in plant-based protein
Great for meal-prep
Made using only 4 simple ingredients
Made without olive-oil
Perfect for veggie-dipping, spread in sandwiches and to top grain bowls
Vegan, dairy-free and gluten-free

What are butter beans

Butter beans, also called lima beans, are a large and flat type of white beans.

Butter beans can be sold at different stages of maturity, which can make them look different depending on packaging and storing (for example: canned (mature lima beans) = very white and soft vs frozen (not completely mature) = greener and more sturdy).

Canned butter beans have a great soft, but hearty texture, that makes them perfect to add to tomato stews or soups.

They also are very delicate, making them also a good choice to blend to a smooth texture for dips or to include in blended soups to help thicken them.

Butter beans are a very healthy source of nutrients, such as fiber, plant-based protein, vitamins and minerals. They are especially rich in folate, magnesium and potassium and they are also pretty much completely fat-free!

Ingredients you'll need

The basic hummus recipe only requires 4 simple ingredients, which are all pantry staples, plus cold water and salt. You can also add more flavorful ingredients if you wish, see below for more inspiration!

Canned butter beans: super easy to find in most grocery stores. They are naturally super creamy and easy to blend to smooth, making this dip amazingly velvety! They also have a mild flavor, making it easy to flavor this dip to your taste.
Tahini: the natural healthy fats from sesame seed paste help whip the dip to a super rich and creamy consistency and add an amazing nutty flavor.
Lemon: add as much fresh lemon juice as you want for a more or less zesty white bean dip. I used half of a lemon, but add the juice from a whole lemon if you want, especially if your lemon is small.
Fresh garlic: I used 2 cloves of raw garlic for a nice garlicky flavor.

Showing are the ingredients needed to make this recipe.

How to make a butter bean hummus

Process

Rinse and drain well the canned butter beans. Then, transfer to a food process.

Add the tahini, lemon juice, garlic and salt. Blend on high until smooth without any visible pieces of bean. You should have a pretty thick paste at this point that might even be a little sticky.

Adjust flavor and texture

Then, add 1 tablespoon of cold water and blend again. I recommend to also taste and add more lemon juice and salt, if needed.

Use a spatula to scrape the walls of the food processor and check on texture: you can add more cold water as needed until desired consistency.

Transfer to a bowl and serve garnished with spices and fresh herbs, if desired.

In process picture: combining all the ingredients.

In process picture: adding water to the food processor.

Helpful tips

Don't skip on adding the cold water, it is responsible for the lighter and almost whipped consistency of this dip. You can even put the water in a bowl with ice cubes and let it sit for 5 minutes or so to ensure it is super cold.
If you are sensitive to garlic, then include only one clove! Also, you can crush the garlic into a bowl containing the juice from half a lemon and let it sit for a few minutes. This can help tenderize its raw flavor.

Close up on a bowl of butter bean hummus garnished with fresh parsley and paprika.

Serving suggestions

The dip can be served right away or if you prefer a chilled dip, then allow it to cool down in the fridge for 1-2 hours before serving. This can also help thicken the consistency a little bit.

Also, this white bean dip is great garnished with extra ingredients for added texture and flavor. I like to simply garnish with paprika and chopped parsley, but here are a few topping ideas:

Chopped green or kalamata olives
Sesame seeds
Smoked paprika
Healthy caramelized onions
Lemon wedges
Chopped cherry tomatoes or artichoke hearts
Drizzle of balsamic glaze and pomegranate seeds
Red pepper flakes for a little heat
A drizzle of olive oil

We love serving it as a dip with a side of fresh veggies and wedges of pita bread or pita chips for a super healthy and filling snack. You can also spread over this buckwheat bread and top with sliced cucumber for a simple healthy lunch.

You can serve this recipe as something else than a dip too, especially if you are left with some extra you want to use quickly until it goes bad. Here are more ideas to serve this recipe:

Spread in sandwiches (try it in these balsamic tofu wraps)
Over buddha bowls (especially this falafel bowl)
Spread over crackers
Mixed in with roasted vegetables and serve with pasta or rice (check out this hummus pasta for inspiration)
In soups for more nutrients and creamy texture
Over salads (amazing with this rainbow salad!)

Variations to the recipe

You can also flavor this dip by including more ingredients in the food processor when blending. You can blend them to smooth with the beans or just pulse them at the end if you want to keep some extra texture. Here are some ways you can customize your dip:

Sun-dried tomatoes
Pesto (try combining with this walnut pesto!)
Roasted red peppers
Fresh herbs, such as parsley, cilantro or basil
Cooked beets, I love those already-cooked beets from Whole Food Markets for their convenience, they would turn this dip to a nice pink hue and add tons of nutrients!
Roasted garlic (see how I roast garlic in the oven in this roasted garlic pasta baked dish!)
Spices, such as cumin, paprika or garlic powder

Also, if you cannot find canned large lima beans, then simply use cannellini beans: they also are a type of creamy beans, which will work just as well to make this recipe a really smooth hummus.

Close up on a butter bean hummus showing the creamy texture.

Storage

Simply keep the butter bean hummus in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. You might have to stir well before serving the leftovers, especially if there is some separation while storing.

I do not recommend freezing this recipe.

FAQ's

Can I make it without tahini?

You can, although the consistency might not be as creamy and rich. If you must make it without tahini, then add some vegan yogurt to add some creaminess or compensate by adding more cold water.

Do I have to remove the peels on the butter beans before blending?

No! As opposed to hummus made using chickpeas, you don't have to remove the peels on these white beans. Butter beans are delicate and blend very easily to a super smooth consistency.

I don't have a food processor. Can I use a high-speed blender instead?

Yes you can, although you will have to take more breaks to scrape the walls of the blender.

There is a piece of orange pepper dipping in a butter bean hummus.

More healthy dip recipes you might like

I hope you like this butter bean hummus dip recipe as much as we do! If you try it, please leave a comment below and rate the recipe to let me know how it was. Your feedback is so helpful!

Let's stay in touch with Instagram, Pinterest and Facebook. Also, don't forget to subscribe to my newsletter to be sure not to miss anything.