Peanut butter - what am I doing wrong?

[Catrin]

Natural peanut butter does separate. I would stir it every time to make certain the oil is thoroughly combined with the nut butter.

[IBrakeforPastry]

If you can remember to do it, take the jar out of the refrigerator ahead of time and let the peanut butter warm up a bit. That may help.

A couple of jars ago, I made a mess during the initial stir. A lot of oil spilled out and the pb was fine without it. So last time, I poured out some oil into a small jar, and carefully mixed the remainder. I have used some of that "extra" oil for cooking, but I'm saving it in case the peanut butter gets too dry. I've been on a peanut butter kick lately.

[ny biker]

If you can remember to do it, take the jar out of the refrigerator ahead of time and let the peanut butter warm up a bit. That may help.

A couple of jars ago, I made a mess during the initial stir. A lot of oil spilled out and the pb was fine without it. So last time, I poured out some oil into a small jar, and carefully mixed the remainder. I have used some of that "extra" oil for cooking, but I'm saving it in case the peanut butter gets too dry. I've been on a peanut butter kick lately.

Ooh, thinking outside the box, or the jar as it were. I could do this. It's too late for the current jar that I just opened and mixed for the first time. So I will mix it every time I open it and hope that helps. But in the future I will pour some of the oil into a storage jar and add it back later.

Thanks!

[BikeDutchess]

I don't store mine in the refrigerator, and I do stir every time - it's easier to stir & spread when it's not cold. It's a little challenging to stir when you first open the jar. Usually I buy a new jar when I see the old one starting to run low, and then store the new jar upside-down for a few days before I open it. It starts moving the oil from the (real) top to the bottom. And when I stir, I really dig down to get the drier bits at the bottom redistributed.

[OakLeaf]

I keep mine in the refrigerator once I open it since I worry about aflatoxin - realistically a jar probably doesn't last long enough around my house that that's a real worry, but better safe than sorry IMO.

It varies a lot from brand to brand, and sometimes even from batch to batch within a brand, just how much oil is in each batch. But yeah - taking it out of the fridge ahead of time, or just spooning whatever you plan to use onto your plate and letting that warm up before spreading - that helps. Or, since I have peanut butter in hot cereal much more often than I do on bread, I'll just nuke the cereal for 20-30 seconds after adding the PB, to warm it all back up.

The other thing I do to help mix a jar that's been on the store shelf long enough to separate, is as soon as I get it home, I put it upside down on the counter. Leave it there until the oil is at the other end (opposite the lid). If the jar is really old, I might do that a couple times each side before attempting to stir it. Stirring with a knife rather than a spoon is less messy IME - I can kind of stab the solid parts to break them up, and mix with more of a gentle churning motion than a circular one, at least until it starts to get smoother. But it sounds like you're already doing that.

[IBrakeforPastry]

I stab it with a knife, too, and let the oil seep into the crevices. Then stir, or it's more of a slicing motion, with the knife vertical.

If I don't use all the extra oil, I like to kid myself into thinking how many calories I saved

[rebeccaC]

'Grandpa Witmer's Old Fashioned Peanut Butter Mixer‬' ftw! The lid cleans the stirring rod as you pull it out of the jar too. Make sure you get the right size lid for the peanut butter jar size you buy.
....and use the zen moment while stirring to think peaceful thoughts