15 Facts About Peanut Butter You Should Know

No American lunchbox would be complete without a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. The peanut butter component in this sandwich has a very long and somewhat confusing history. However, it has reigned supreme as one of our favorite baking ingredients, breakfast spreads, and snacking staples. The average American will eat 3 pounds of peanut butter each year, which brings the national total close to 700 million pounds annually. In addition, the average American child will eat more than 1,500 peanut butter sandwiches by the time they graduate high school. That's a whole lot of peanut butter! 

The popularity of peanut butter has also sparked debates in households nationwide. A survey compiled by Jif polled 2,000 Americans and found that for half of the respondents, "it would be a deal-breaker to find out their date is on the opposite side of the creamy versus crunchy debate." Although we can't tell you which type of peanut butter we prefer more, we can tell you some fun facts about America's favorite nutty spread. 

Peanut butter is just so delicious and full of healthy fats that you may want to eat the whole jar in a single sitting. But it is possible to eat too much peanut butter — and the effects are serious. If you consume peanut butter too often, your body can build up an intolerance to it. While not as severe as a peanut allergy, the intolerance can cause some gastrointestinal upset.

You should consult your doctor immediately if you eat peanut butter daily and notice symptoms like acne, fatigue, skin rashes, or unexplained weight gain. Removing the offending food from your diet should cause improvement and lessen physical symptoms in three to six weeks. The best prevention method for food intolerances is to vary your diet and avoid eating the same foods every day for extended periods of time. It might be healthy to eat peanut butter, but too much of anything — healthy or not — is never good for you.

There are tons of ways to make peanut butter unique. For example, Haitian peanut butter is special because it contains various spices and utilizes a unique production method. Otherwise known as mamba, this spread is made by removing the shells from the legumes and throwing them into a tray. Then, peppers like fresh Scotch bonnet or habaneros are fried in coconut oil and added to the mixture. If the mamba is being stored, the makers may use dried cayenne or chilis instead of fresh ones. The finished spread is often served alongside crackers or bread. 

Mamba has a meaningful social, medicinal, and historical connection to Haiti. Clinics on the island have used mamba as a treatment for malnutrition in children, and global charities like UNICEF have cottoned onto this miracle cure and started distributing mamba all over the world. Local businesses exporting peanuts means more money going back into Haitian farmers' pockets, too. The livelihoods of close to 50,000 households in Haiti depend on some part of the peanut value chain.

Everything good can't last forever. Even your trusty jar of peanut butter has an expiration date. An unopened jar of peanut butter will last six to nine months in the pantry. After opening, it stays good for two to three months. You won't need to refrigerate peanut butter once it has been opened. However, storing the peanut butter at room temperature can accelerate oil separation for natural varieties. Storing opened or unopened peanut butter in the fridge may also extend its shelf life up to four months.

Since peanut butter has a high fat content and minimal moisture, it is generally uninhabitable for many molds and types of bacteria. In addition, peanut butter that contains stabilizers, such as palm oil and sodium benzoate, has less opportunity for bacterial growth than other types of peanut butter. But it can still go bad. There are several ways to tell that it's time to toss your peanut butter container in the trash. Peanut butter that has gone bad will be dark or dry in appearance and may taste different than peanut butter should. A sour taste also indicates it's time to toss the jar.

One of the most common misconceptions about peanut butter was that agrarian advocate George Washington Carver invented it. However, the person who invented peanut butter isn't this historical figure. Carver came up with over 300 uses for the peanut and pioneered the legume in the Southern United States. But he did not invent peanut butter.

The concept behind peanut butter was initially created by the ancient Aztec and Incan societies — which ground roasted peanuts into a paste. In 1884, Canadian inventor Marcellus Gilmore Edson patented peanut paste. In 1895, Dr. John Harvey Kellogg patented the first process for making raw peanuts into a creamy peanut spread; he branded peanut butter for individuals who could not eat solid food. A few years later, in 1903, the first patent for a peanut butter-making machine was created by Missourian Dr. Ambrose Straub. The innovations of these three folks suggest that the invention of modern peanut butter was a group effort rather than the result of a single person.

The concern over salmonella and peanut butter has increased recently, especially with the outbreak as recent as 2022. This foodborne illness outbreak impacted 21 people across 17 states and was linked to Jif peanut butter, which was promptly removed from shelves. (The outbreak has since ended, so you can go back to enjoying your Jif.) Between 2008 and 2009, 714 people became ill after eating King Nut peanut butter, with several other minor occurrences of infection happening around that time with other brands of peanut butter, too. 

Although salmonella is often associated with raw eggs and poultry, peanut butter has been a known source of contamination. Keeping the peanuts at a hot enough temperature to kill the bacteria, monitoring rodents and pests, and proper sanitization procedures are essential to ensure that the peanut butter stays safe to eat from a production and manufacturing standpoint. And although peanut butter is not a hospitable place for the salmonella bacteria to grow, the high-fat layer can be a buffer zone for the bacteria to live. For example, one study indicated that the bacteria could survive over 24 weeks in peanut butter jars. 

Making peanut butter at home only takes some ingredients and simple steps. You'll first need to start with unsalted peanuts, allowing you to control the saltiness of your peanut butter yourself. You should also use roasted peanuts rather than raw ones for a better flavor. Add sweeteners like shelf-stable honey or sugar to your mixture, or keep it original with just the peanuts and the salt.

Once you have assembled your ingredients, add the nuts to a high-speed blender or food processor. You'll need to repeatedly puree and scrape down the sides of your machine for smooth peanut butter — so be sure to have a spatula handy. In the first round, you'll want to get the mixture to a sand-like texture. Then, scrape and puree again until a paste-like texture emerges. Then, add your salt and optional sweetener to the mix. You should avoid over-blending the mixture, which can cause the peanut butter to cook.

If you like spirits and peanut butter, you should try peanut butter whiskey. Although it first appeared commercially in the 1960s, the spirit, and its top producer Skrewball, has recently returned as one of the fastest-growing liquors in the United States. The exact recipe for peanut butter whiskey will depend on the brand producing it. Skrewball, for example, originally started as a mix of Jameson and peanut butter. Ole Smoky instead uses peanut oil. You can drink peanut butter whiskey in several ways; some folks prefer to drink it at room temperature, while others use it in mixed drinks as a replacement for Irish cream.

Depending on the brand you purchase, peanut butter whiskey isn't as overpowering as it sounds. Think of an Irish cream but with a flavor on your tongue that is more peanuty. Each bottle has an alcohol content of around 30 to 35% ABV.