Have you ever tried making your own peanut butter? Not yet? After I tasted homemade peanut butter for the first time, there was no turning back. Whatever store-bought version I tried, later on, it felt too oily. I haven’t realized that before. So, who is willing to try this super easy, 1-ingredient peanut butter recipe? With a bonus of peanut butter milk at the end! 🙂
Apart from the obvious PBJ sandwiches… By the way, my current favorite jam is cranberry jam. I use this cranberry jelly recipe without straining to make jam. I even use dried cranberries to make it quick and available all year round. So back to peanut butter, which I use in Breakfast Oatmeal, 3-ingredient Cookies, Chocolate Cake, Super Fudgy Brownie Cupcakes, and in many more recipes. What is your favorite peanut butter recipe? Let us know in the comments.
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Store-bought vs homemade peanut butter
Have you checked the labels of store-bought peanut butter carefully? Eat This published the results of a survey to find the most popular peanut butter brands. These were the top ones:
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- Jif* -> apart from roasted peanuts it contains molasses, hydrogenated vegetable oil (rapeseed and soybean oil), and mono- and diglycerides
- Skippy -> it also contains sugar, hydrogenated vegetable oil (cottonseed, soybean and rapeseed oil). Even its Natural Peanut Butter contains palm oil and sugar.
- Store Brands like Trader Joe’s or Whole Foods or Target’s
- Peter Pan* -> it also contains sugar and fractionated palm oil, whatever that means.
I don’t know about you, but I don’t really feel like eating oil if I don’t have to. I am not saying that it is not possible to find truly natural peanut butter, but the question is at what price.
In my opinion, nothing beats homemade things. Why?
- You know exactly what you put in them.
- You can make it any time you want, in any flavor you want and in any amount you want.
- Especially with peanut butter, it is fun to do it with kids. My daughters love to lick the spatula and the bowl not to get any peanut butter to waste.
How to make peanut butter?
Ingredients
It is truly only one ingredient: DRY ROASTED PEANUTS (no shells). It can be salted and unsalted. Both work the same.
Do you need oil?
ABSOLUTELY NOT! I never ever had any problem making peanut butter using only peanuts.
Can you add flavoring?
Sure you can. First, make your peanut butter and then transfer it to small containers. Only after then add any spices (vanilla seeds, cinnamon, gingerbread spices, cocoa powder, sea salt or anything else).
Can you add sweetener?
I don’t think it needs any sweetener, but if you insist I would recommend dry sweeteners. Liquid sweeteners can make it lumpy or separated. You should also know that honey is not considered vegan, so choose one of these honey substitutes instead.
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Equipment
You can only make peanut butter in a strong food processor or in a high power blender. Sadly, regular blenders or low Watt food processors will likely not work.
Useful tips to make peanut butter in Vitamix
- Turn on the Vitamix and slowly increase the speed to the maximum.
- Use the tamper to push down the ingredients, if anything stuck to the sides. Push it hard. Don’t be afraid, the tamper will not reach the blades.
- Vitamix usually needs at most 2 minutes to be ready. As per the notes on their website, you shouldn’t process it more than 1 minute after the mixture is circulating freely.
- When ready, use a silicone spatula to gently scrape all the yummy peanut butter out of the container.
- Even if Vitamix is powerful, it is working hard to make the peanut butter so when it is ready it will be slightly warm.
- We have a Vitamix with a 64 oz (2-liter) wet container in which I found that 4 cups (approx. 500 g) is the bare minimum to make peanut butter.
Useful tips to make peanut butter in a food processor
- Pulse for a couple of times in the beginning before turning it on completely.
- You have to stop and scrape for a couple of times as the peanut butter will likely stick to the sides.
- Depending on the size of your container, I found that 4 cups (approx. 500 g) is the bare minimum to make peanut butter in a normal-sized container. But at least you need to cover the blades completely.
- To make peanut butter in a food processor you need more time than with a Vitamix. If the mixture or the food processor gets too warm, stop and continue only after everything cooled down.
- Be patient! Depending on the power of your food processor you might need 5-10 minutes to get the buttery consistency.
Making peanut butter step by step
So what can you see when making peanut butter? Peanuts will actually go through different stages before turning into peanut butter. You can see it in action in our short video on YouTube or within the recipe card below.
- First, dry roasted peanuts will turn into crumbs.
- Then the crumbs will be separated into layers of different crumb sizes.
- Then it will look like crunchy peanut butter.
- Keep going, and you will get a creamy peanut butter texture.
FAQs and Substitutions
Salted or unsalted peanuts?
Both work the same. You need unshelled dry roasted peanuts though.
Can I use other nuts to make nut butter?
Yes, you can. They work pretty much the same: almond, walnut, macadamia etc.
How to store homemade peanut butter?
I always store them in the fridge. It should be good for at least 2 months for sure.
Can you freeze it?
Yes, you can. We recommend that you freeze them in smaller containers, so it can be easily thawed.
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BONUS! Homemade Peanut Milk
Sadly, it is IMPOSSIBLE to scrape every last bit of peanut butter out of the blender. I hate to see any peanut butter go to waste. Do I need to feel ashamed to say that I even lick the jar at the end? I would feel so sad to wash it until completely empty.
The good news is that you can save every last bit. I usually leave 1 Tbsp worth of peanut butter in the blender. Add 2 cups of fresh water. Optionally I add a bit of maple syrup and vanilla extract. Blend it for 1-2 minutes and you have fluffy, creamy peanut milk. See, nothing goes to waste!
This Homemade Peanut Butter recipe is also suitable for vegan, vegetarian, whole foods plant-based, gluten-free, and soy-free diets.
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More condiment recipes
You can browse through our Vegan Condiment Recipes or check out
3-minute Homemade Peanut Butter
Equipment
Ingredients
- 4 cup Dry roasted peanuts
Instructions
If you have a high power blender like Vitamix
- Turn on the Vitamix and slowly increase the speed to the maximum.
- Use the tamper to push down the ingredients if anything is stuck to the sides. Push it hard. Don't be afraid, the tamper will not reach the blades.
- Vitamix usually needs at most 2 minutes to be ready. Per their website notes, you shouldn't process it more than 1 minute after the mixture is circulating freely.
- When ready, use a silicone spatula to gently scrape all the yummy peanut butter out of the container.
If you have a food processor
- Pulse a couple of times in the beginning before turning it on completely.
- You must stop and scrape for a couple of times as the peanut butter will likely stick to the sides.
- To make peanut butter in a food processor you need more time than with a Vitamix. If the mixture or the food processor gets too warm, stop and continue only after everything has cooled down.
- Be patient! Depending on the power of your food processor, you might need 5-10 minutes to get the buttery consistency.
Notes
BONUS! Homemade Peanut Milk
Leave 1 Tbsp peanut butter in the blender and add 2 cups water. Optionally, you can add a bit of maple syrup and vanilla extract. Blend it for 1-2 minutes, and you have fluffy, creamy peanut milk. See, nothing goes to waste!Video
Nutrition
All That I'm Eating
It sounds so easy! I love the colour yours has come out and it looks so creamy too.
My Pure Plants
Thank you. I really enjoy making my own creamy peanut butter.