“Back to basics”. That’s what I’m naming this round of peanut butter reviews. I have reviewed a
vast assortment of peanut butter from locally-produced small batch peanut butter like
Eastwind Nut Butters to crazy flavored peanut butters from out-of-business companies like
P.B. Loco, and everything in between. But it’s time for a review of some simple, basic peanut butter from different regions of the country. Also, check out my new 10-jar rating system! Each and every
peanut butter reviewed on my site now has a score from 1 to 10 jars. Yellow jars are for standard peanut butter and Red jars are for flavored ones.
Reviews:
Kirkland Organic Creamy Peanut Butter
= 85%
The level of roasting is perfect, not too much, not too little. The grind is thick but silky smooth with just a pinch of salt. It’s a little bland and, in my opinion, needs more salt, but for organic
peanut butter, this is a great value. This variety comes in a 2-pack of 28oz jars (56oz total) for around $7, which works out to $2 per standard size jar (16oz). The grind is very fine, which means the oil separates a lot but the texture is super creamy, so it’s the perfect choice for something like
Peanut Sauce Stir-Fry. The only downside is that Kirkland is the private label of Costco, so you must go to Costco to buy it. My only question: Why is there no crunchy variety?
Market Pantry Creamy Peanut Butter
= 75%
Like your standard store-brand creamy
peanut butter but a little better. Spreads more easily than Skippy but not as easily as Peter Pan. Simple and cheap, I use this style of peanut butter for cooking and baking so as not to waste the more expensive and tastier natural
peanut butters. Good flavor and good enough for a
PB&J. I still prefer
Wegman’s brand a little better though, but not everyone has access to the fabulous grocery store that is Wegman’s.
Crown Creamy
= 75%
Similar in texture to a traditional Skippy-like peanut butter but tastes a little more like actual peanuts. The other difference is a bit more sugar which makes for a very tasty
peanut butter. It’s very thick and creamy but spreads easily. A cool fact about Crown is that apparently they used to sell their
peanut butter in a drinking glass with a lid. After finishing the jar, you could keep the glass to use for drinking purposes. That got me thinking, I bet if you put a full jar of Crown
peanut butter in the microwave for about a minute, you’d have a most delicious beverage! Crown is a southern US brand, which may explain the higher sugar content (those Southerners like their tea sweeeeet!), but makes a great
Pancake topping or classic
PB&J.
Crown Crunchy
= 70%
Just like the creamy, the crunchy variety has plenty of added peanut chunks. This variety tastes less sweet due to the added peanuts but actually has more sugar – go figure. It’s good, but the full experience of this
peanut butter is better uncovered with the creamy variety. Great for some
Peanut Butter Cereal though. And just look how classically old-school that jar is? How could you not?
Additional Info:
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