Peanut Butter Perfection
Not all peanut butters are made the same, and that doesn’t just apply to smooth versus crunchy. Some are clearly better tasting than others, and that comes down to everything from texture to ingredients. If you’re a fan of peanut butter, you’ll want to ensure you’re eating one of the best brands around. Do you agree with our list of the very worst and best of peanut butter?
1. Once Again
Despite the name, this is a brand you’ll probably never buy more than once. Despite the healthy-looking branding and the cute raccoon mascot, the exterior doesn’t match the interior. They claim to add no salt or sugar, so you’re getting exactly what you expect: the peanut butter tastes like nothing.
2. Natural Way
Mixing peanut butter with olive oil and honey might sound good in theory, but it turns out it doesn’t work in execution. The color doesn’t seem reminiscent of peanut butter, and while it does taste a bit like toasted seeds, it just doesn’t feel like peanut butter. Not to mention, the texture is quite slick from the olive oil.
3. 365 Organic
Whole Foods is known for its healthy and organic offerings. They’re supposed to offer food you can feel good about buying and eating, but this peanut butter just isn’t it. The issue is the oil and solid separation. It takes this to the extreme, leaving a weird texture that just doesn’t work in sandwiches.
4. Great Value Natural
There are a lot of reasons to buy Great Value. They’re usually affordably priced, and if you’re in Walmart, they’re easily accessible. But if you’re after great texture and flavor, you might want to skip this one. There isn’t anything natural about this jar, as it includes oil and sugar to achieve its no-stir texture.
5. Smuckers Natural
Smuckers is a go-to brand for jam, but that doesn’t necessarily make it a good brand. They attempted to get into the peanut butter game, but clearly have a lot of kinks to work out. The peanut butter tastes very neutral and oily. In fact, some jars come across as burnt and grainy.
6. Smart Way
Smart Way makes the same mistake most healthy peanut butters do: they completely miss the mark on flavor. Despite being quite affordable, this Kroger house brand is unbearably basic. The peanut flavor just doesn’t come across, and you can get higher-quality items elsewhere.
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7. Good Good
Good Good is another healthy-ish peanut butter brand that promises no sugar added. Despite the lack of sugar, it’s not what you notice when you first taste it. Instead, it comes across tasting a bit like sesame seeds and even has a bitter effect to it. Not to mention, the texture is as stiff as it gets.
8.Peter Pan
You might have missed this brand when it came out and was impressively one of the first American peanut butter companies around. They had a lot going for them, from a light and creamy texture that comes across as whipped. But when it came to flavor, there really wasn’t anything to praise, as it was bland as can be.
9. Kroger Creamy
Kroger should probably leave the peanut butter game to other, more capable brands. Either way, it misses the mark once again with its house brand creamy version. Despite going on sale often, it really lacks the roasted peanut butter and molasses flavor it claims to contain.
10. MaraNatha Organic
MaraNatha is another brand that promises you organic goodness, but at the cost of flavor, that is. This peanut butter is decent tasting compared to others, but just not good enough to compete with its betters. Plus, it loses a lot of points for texture, as it’s quite runny instead of thick and creamy.
Now that we talked about peanut butters you’ll want to avoid, here are 10 to indulge in.
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1. Adams Crunchy Peanut Butter
It seems like most peanut butters are divided into the natural and artificial categories, with the natural usually struggling with blandness or weird textures. Well, Adams flips that all around. Their natural peanut butter is crunchy and tastes a lot like roasted peanuts. It’s a bit sticky too but tastes wonderfully fresh!
2. Teddie
If you haven’t heard of Teddie, then it’s a brand that’s definitely worth finding and purchasing. The peanut butter is made up of natural ingredients, and while other brands struggle with that, Teddie manages to retain a strong and salty peanut butter flavor. Additionally, the texture is perfectly balanced between creaminess and grit.
3. Reese’s
Reese’s is best known for its chocolates, which have always taken advantage of peanut butter flavoring. So, it makes sense that they’d eventually come out with their own jar of peanut butter. This jar works on a lot of levels, offering a tamed level of sweetness with a texture that feels like frosting.
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4. Skippy
Skippy can come across as a bit intimidating at first if you choose the squeezable pouch version instead of the jar. Either way, it takes advantage of the same great formula, offering a tantalizingly creamy texture that won’t get stuck in your mouth. It’s nostalgic and flavorful, leaving you wanting for little.
5. Jif
Jif is an abundant and available brand you can find in most grocery. That’s a good thing, considering how nostalgic and beloved this peanut butter is. Interestingly, it is also owned by the Smuckers Company, so maybe they should leave the peanut butter game to what’s already working.
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6. Santa Cruz
This peanut butter is certainly expensive, but is it worth it? Well, according to many, yes, it is. The taste is definitely there, and you can tell its high quality from one bite. It has more of a pure peanut flavor and doesn’t rely on sweet additives to get the flavor across.
7. Justin’s
Justin’s is all about that classic peanut butter flavor, and you can never go wrong choosing them. If you prefer smooth to crunchy, their classic jar is perfectly creamy with the tiniest bit of grit so that you know it’s made of actual peanuts. While the flavor’s certainly there, it could use a bit more salt.
8. Earth Balance
This is technically a spread, not a butter, but either way, it’s pretty good. The brand uses flaxseeds as well as peanuts to achieve a unique flavor and texture. It’s a bit on the stickier side, but you can just taste how healthy it is: in a good way.
9. Jif With Honey
You might be thinking that Jif is already on this list, but that doesn’t mean you can’t improve upon it. In addition to their standard flavor, they also offer a creamy peanut butter with honey variation. Turns out adding a bit of honey can really elevate the bar, making this jar nothing but deliciousness and creaminess.
10. Crazy Richard’s
Crazy Richard’s does, in fact, live up to its name by doing something you wouldn’t expect. They use nothing but 100% peanuts in their jar. The ingredient list is only made up of peanuts. There is literally nothing else! But what does that mean for flavor? Well, it’s going to come across as bland, but it’s a great cooking peanut butter and as healthy as it gets.
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