Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall
LATIN NAME
Cannabis sativa
MORE RECIPES
Artichoke heart and potato salad; Smashed chickpeas with preserved lemon and red onion; Mujadara
SOURCING
clearspring.co.uk; goodhempfood.com
I’ve always enjoyed good olive oil and I always will – but I can’t condone the monopoly it seems to hold over our culinary imaginations. Many keen cooks see it as the one and only high-end oil, the answer to every dressing, trickling and dipping requirement. That needs to change. There is a panoply of other delicious and characterful oils – often with nutritional credentials at least as good as olive oil – that I think we should all be exploring. And hempseed oil is among the best of them.
This is strong stuff. It comes from the same family as – you know – the other kind of hemp and, while it certainly won’t get you high, its pungent, grassy flavour notes do have something in common with its recreational relative. But in that intense, herbal flavour lies its appeal. It’s a complex and rich oil, gloriously grassy green, that is just made to mingle with earthy, fruity, salty flavours.
It makes a barnstorming pesto and turns potato salad into a talking point. Any roasted veg soup – pumpkin, celeriac, parsnip – will be taken to a whole new level with a slosh of this emerald liquid (try adding a crumbling of sheep’s cheese or ricotta too). And trickled on to bruschetta with sweet tomatoes, or simply used to dunk bread, it does the job extra virgin olive oil would conventionally do – only with more chutzpah.
It’s not great for frying because heating can change the structure of the oil and damage the nutrients. But as a raw cold-pressed oil, hempseed oil is an exciting ingredient. Experiment a little and I predict you’ll soon be seduced. You can always try blending it with a gentler oil such as rapeseed, or mixing it into a dressing. Milder tasting ‘light’ versions are also available.
Consider also hemp oil’s environmental and nutritional benefits. British-grown hemp is a very green, low-input crop – it drinks in carbon dioxide, and every part of it can be used. It’s also rich in omega-3 as well as omega-6 fatty acids.
The oil is pressed from shiny-shelled little hemp seeds and these are a tasty treat in themselves. You’ll find them increasingly in health food shops and delis, and in a few supermarkets too. I use them in salads, granolas and flapjacks. Packed with protein, they have a robust crunchy texture and benefit from being lightly bashed or crushed before use. You can also buy shelled hempseed kernels – expensive, but creamy, nutty and a great sprinkler on everything from salads and soups to porridge and pasta.
You can make this in minutes and it keeps in the fridge for days. Nutty hempseed kernels make a great alternative to the traditional tahini (sesame seed paste) and give the dip a rich earthy flavour. Large, mealy broad beans can be used instead of the tinned beans; you’ll need 250g skinned, cooked beans. Serves 4–6
400g tin beans, such as borlotti, butter or cannellini, drained and rinsed
1 garlic clove, crushed
1 tbsp shelled hempseed kernels, toasted
½ small-medium red chilli, deseeded and chopped
3 tbsp hempseed oil, plus extra to finish
1 tsp finely chopped rosemary, plus an extra sprig to finish
A little squeeze of lemon juice
Sea salt and black pepper
Put the beans, garlic, hempseed kernels, chilli, oil, rosemary and a little squeeze of lemon juice in a food processor and blitz to a smooth purée. If it seems a bit thick, add 1–2 tbsp warm water to ‘let it down’. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Spoon the hummus into a bowl, trickle with a little more hempseed oil and finish with a sprig of rosemary. Serve with flatbreads and crudités.