Peanut Butter elicits different reactions from each of us here at home. My daughter likes it. My husband is okay with it and definitely not a fan. I absolutely love it. I can eat by spoonfuls straight out of the jar. However, my Peanut Butter has to be home made. I can find all sorts of things I don’t like about the store bought variety. Today, I’m sharing how I make this Easy Peanut Butter.
As a child I remember all those times, I would crave peanut butter (no jam/ jelly) on thick slices of soft, crusty bread. It was one of my favourite snacks. To be honest, I didn’t even need the bread.
Peanut Butter was difficult to find in India for a long time. Now we’re spoilt for choice between imported and local brands at the supermarkets. It’s quite expensive though as Peanut Butter seems to be considered a gourmet food item! It is odd considering India grows peanuts (or groundnuts as we call them here) in plenty.
Picking up a jar of peanut butter off the shelves and bringing it home takes very little time. It takes even less time to make Peanut Butter at home. All you need is to grind roasted peanuts, a little oil, salt and some honey to a paste. Ta-daa! It’s much less expensive than the commercial variety too.
I dislike the waxy feel that store bought peanut butter leaves on my tongue. We can also do without ingredients like fully hydrogenated vegetable oil, natural peanut butter flavour, caramel colour, corn syrup, etc. I also find commercial peanut butter too salty for my taste. So the home-made stuff wins hands down, whichever way you look at it. Be warned that this Easy Peanut Butter might not have the exact texture of the commercial one, but it will be so much better to eat.
I didn’t use to get shelled peanuts where I lived earlier. So I used to buy peanuts with the skin and roast them at home. Now, there’s a store not far from home where I can get roasted and skinned peanuts. So making Peanut Butter just got a lot easier.
You can make this Easy Peanut Butter in the processor or in a mixer/ grinder jar. Peanuts contain oil. The amount of oil in peanuts depends on the variety. So, when grinding the peanuts, add a little oil initially to help the grinding get along. Once the mixture becomes really pasty you decide how much more oil you need to add, if any at all. You can customize your Peanut Butter to your taste. I like gritty Peanut butter which is somewhere between Smooth and Crunchy.
For Smooth or Regular Peanut Butter – Grind the peanuts and other ingredients to a smooth paste.
For Chunky or Crunchy Peanut Butter – Keep aside about 1/2 to 3/4 cup of roasted peanuts. Finely chop, coarsely grind or crush them into pieces. Stir this into the Smooth Peanut Butter.
For Honey Roasted Peanut Butter – You can use Honey Roasted Peanuts to make the Peanut Butter if you can find them or make them. Otherwise pan roast your peanuts in a little browned butter till they’re really golden brown, not burnt. Then grind these with the other ingredients and add more honey according to taste. You can also add butterscotch bits but cut down on the honey. For a twist on the basic, add a little cinnamon and maybe a dash of red chilli flakes.
For Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter – Add chopped or grated dark or milk chocolate to the mix and grind. You can melt the chocolate first if you prefer. I find the processor and the heat generated during grinding melts the chocolate. Add as much or as less chocolate depending on hw chocolatey you want your Peanut Butter to be.
For Peanut Butter With Cookies – Crumble Gingernut Cookies or Gingersnaps or any dark spiced cookie and grind with the Peanut Butter for a spread that tastes a bit like Speculoos Butter or Biscoff spread.
See my Make It At Home Series for other easy to make recipes at home. You will never buy them from the store again.
Peanut Butter - Make It At Home Series
Ingredients
- 1/2 kg peanuts shelled and roasted
- 2 tbsp honey
- 3 tbsps oil
- 1 tsp salt or to taste
Instructions
- Run the peanuts in the food processor till the peanuts are broken into small bits. If you like chunky peanut butter, remove about 1/2 a cup and keep aside before going further. I prefer a smoother peanut butter without large bits of peanuts to bite into.
- Now add the honey, salt and about 2 tbsps of the oil. Run the mixture in the food processor, adding the remaining 1 tbsp oil, until everything comes together in a smooth and buttery mass. Bottle and refrigerate if necessary.
I'm Aparna and My Diverse Kitchen is my ovo-lacto vegetarian food blog where you'll find recipes, food stories & photography. I've been blogging since 2007 and believe the kitchen, and the dining table (by extension) is really the heart of a home. 
i love peanut butter too and i feel there are very few who like it. its either love or ugghh! that looks lovely. i shud start making it myself too.. normally get my bro to bring it from dubai!
that peanut butter does look great..i think anything when made at home is more healthy as there is some sort of control!! love p.b too!!
have never tried making it…now that i have the recipe, would like to try sometime
gr8 idea… Will try this way..
Better tasting if home made but got to finish it fast! I am sure you and your daughter will!:)
My mom makes this at home too. I have never given it a shot…too lazy! Love PB sandwiches.:-)
i love crunchy peanut butter…making at home amazing!!!!…looks perfect..
wow! that’s a great recipe Aparna! I usually like peanut butter with my morning banana smoothies, and nothing else, so maybe I can make a small batch and keep preserved:)thanks for sharing girl!
Happy to see so many PB lovers.:)
Very clever of you to make your own. It is fresher and tastier, looks wonderful and creamy!
Hi, Its my first visit to your blog. Was very happy to find a lot of Kerala cuisine .i bet giving the kids home made peanut butter would be very satisfying.. Nice one! 🙂
I am not a fan of peanut butter. But home made peanut butter indeed looks good
My first visit to your blog . Nice collections of recipes you have. My husband is a die hard fan of Peanut butter . You have no idea how much he loves it. I am gonna try this and surprise him with your recipe. Thanks for sharing.
Thanks. Didn’t know people eat peanut butter in India. I have a question – can you substitue the sugar for jaggery?
IFK,Lots of people in India eat peanut butter.:) But I’m guessing they must be living in the cities and larger towns, though.I’ve never tried using jaggery in PB so I really have no idea. It should be ok,I think, as jaggery and peanuts make a good pairing.
I am a peanut butter fan .. Can eat loads and loads of it however it is not easily availiable in India. Now a days you can find some brands in Super Market but they are very costly. Thanks for the process will try at home atleast once and let see what is result
Peanut butter is indeed on the expensive side in India.I ceratinly hope this recipe works out for you, Anil.
Hi Aparna, thanks for the recipe. I am planning to try it. For how many days will such homemade peanut butter be good ?
You’re welcome.As long as you refrigerate it, it stays for about 3 weeks to a month. That’s the longest any batch has lasted in my fridge before I have had to make another batch. I have no idea if it lasts longer than that.
Hi, Please tell do I have to remove the reddish peel on the peanuts or do I have to grind it with without removing that peel. And also suggest which oil should I use. Like Dhara Refined or mustard oil or any other thing?BTW I am a 21 yrs old software engg guy… in case my question sounds weird.
Prakhar,You have to shell (remove the reddish peel/skin) on the peanuts before grinding them.You can use any refined oil such as any brand of sunflower oil. Oils such as mustard or coconut oil have a strong flavour which doesn’t go well with peanut butter.Good luck!
Thankyou so much… Its my first time trying to do develop anything in kitchen. Should I read some prayers? or keeping the fingers crossed is good enough?