Peanut butter and butter are the two common ingredients that are used by people across the world. But many people consider them the same due to the similar name tags.
But does peanut butter have butter in it? No, peanut butter doesn’t contain any butter. Read on to understand the ingredient used to make peanut butter and the difference between peanut butter and butter.
Does Peanut Butter have Butter in it?
In short, no. peanut butter doesn’t have any butter or other dairy. “Butter” “prefers the texture of this ingredient. Peanut butter is as simple as oil, peanuts, and salt. It’s made by smashing up roasted, dehulled peanuts with a little bit of oil to give it a smooth, creamy taste.
Hence, it was originally named peanut butter, and that name has remained. Another reason to call it peanut butter is that its consistency is spreadable at room temperature like original butter.
However, many manufacturers add other ingredients to peanut butter to extend its shelf life, add flavor, and prevent separation. Many mass-produced peanut butters also contain added vegetable oil to improve their viscosity and smoothness. Some peanut butters also have added sugar.
Why Commercial Peanut Butter is Smooth or Thick while All-Natural one is Watery or Oily?
If you make peanut butter at home by grinding up peanuts in a food processor, you’ll discover that it’s quite similar to store-bought all-natural peanut butter.
Oil contained in peanuts generally separates when it is ground and will float to the top if left for a moment. Though you can manually mix it back in, it’ll ultimately get separated again.
Conversely, commercial peanut butter has additives that prevent this from happening. These peanut butters also contain various moderately hydrogenated oils and ingredients that keep the oil mixed in with the other portion of ground peanut.
However, if you leave for an extended period of time and expose yourself to extreme temperatures, it may begin to separate.
Difference between Peanut Butter and Butter
Ingredients
Butter is made of water, milk proteins. It gets its high, creamy texture from milk fat, which is pulled out after churning cream or milk.
Typically, butter is churned manually and made of goat milk, cow milk, and buffalo milk, which give it a thicker, creamier texture while retaining the nutrients of animal milk.
Conversely, peanut butter is made of ground and roasted peanuts along with sweeteners and vegetable oil, which give it a rich, creamy taste.
An ingredient like salt and vegetable oil retains their smooth texture even after refrigerating while regular butter gets hardened after refrigerating.
Nutrients
Butter is a rich source of vitamins A, E, B12, and K and fats. Vitamin E protects the body from cell damage. CLA, which is found in butter, helps to slow the growth of cancerous cells and tumors.
In addition, regular butter also improves the immune system while reducing inflammation in the body.
On the other hand, peanut butter contains vitamins B9, B6, B3, and E, phosphorus, fiber protein, fats, and magnesium. This ingredient helps with effective weight management.
Final Words
In the end, peanut butter doesn’t contain butter. Many people misunderstand it due to its soft spread. But, now that you’ve read the summary, ingredient list, and preparation procedure, I hope your doubts have been dispelled.
Even both of these ingredients vary in nutrients, making them beneficial for different purposes.