British sense of hummus - Telegraph In the days when olive oil had to be bought at the chemist's, Elizabeth David changed Britain's culinary life. Her first success, Mediterranean Food (illustrated by John Minton, 1950), urged readers to pound their own hummus. The Oxford English Dictionary knows of no earlier use of the word. How much has changed in half a century, for now the British are more likely than any other nation in Europe to have hummus in the fridge. Even there, it goes a little bubbly after a few days. This might in future become an alternative energy source. In the meantime hummus attracts strong feelings (with chilli; with fresh lemon juice?) because, like a string of foreign staple foods, it is thoroughly incorporated into the British repertoire. Perhaps in the interest of food security, scientists should work on a variety that will ripen in our less than Mediterranean climate.