Soak the chickpeas

• Rinse the dried chickpeas and submerge them in plenty of water in a bowl.
• Leave to hydrate overnight, until they have almost doubled or tripled in size.

Boil the chickpeas

• Drain the soaked chickpeas and transfer them to a large pot.
• Cover with clean water and bring to a light bubble over high heat.
• Add a tiny amount of baking soda, skim off the foam that rises to the top, then lower the heat and cook until tender.

Cool the chickpeas

• Drain the tender chickpeas and transfer them to another container.
• Place them in the freezer to cool completely — never blend warm chickpeas or the hummus won't be smooth.

Blend chickpeas with tahini

• Put the cold chickpeas in the food processor with the tahini (add a couple of ice cubes if they are only cold, not frozen).
• Pulse, scraping down the sides a couple of times, until the mixture looks like dry, clumpy play dough.

Finish the hummus

• Add the lemon juice, a little cold water, a generous pinch of salt and the cumin, plus garlic and olive oil if you like.
• Blend until silky smooth, adding a splash more water if needed — thick but not watery.

Sear the filet mignon

• Heat a pan until scorching hot and add the clarified butter.
• Add the cubed filet mignon with a hefty pinch of salt and keep on extremely high heat.
• Sear until nicely charred and brown, then remove from the heat.

Serve

• Spread the hummus on a plate with a swirl.
• Top with the seared meat and spoon over some of the ghee from the pan.