Chickpeas used in hummus are legumes: annual plants in the family Fabaceae, also called Leguminosae. Their edible seeds are the familiar chickpeas or garbanzo beans.
Botanically, the chickpea is Cicer arietinum. Like other legumes, it produces seeds in pods and belongs to a plant family that includes peas, lentils, beans and peanuts. As an annual, an individual chickpea plant completes its life cycle within one growing season.
The term “legume” describes the plant group, while “pulse” usually refers to the dry edible seeds harvested from legume crops. Thus chickpeas can be called both legumes and pulses in food and agricultural contexts. They are not grasses or cereals, which include wheat, rice and maize, and they are not tubers such as potatoes.
Chickpeas are especially important in hummus because cooking softens their seeds, allowing them to be blended with tahini, lemon juice and other ingredients. They are also used across South Asian, Mediterranean and Middle Eastern cuisines, including in falafel, curries, soups and stews.