Is Powdered Peanut Butter Actually Any Good? Here’s My Honest Review

If peanut butter is one of your favorite flavors, then you’ve come to the right place. Here at The Kitchn, we are such BIG fans of the nutty spread that we’ve found ways to add it to every meal of the day. You could start with peanut butter oatmeal for breakfast, pack peanut chicken power bowls for lunch, snack on peanut butter popcorn in the afternoon, and make Gado Gado (Indonesian Salad with Peanut Dressing) for dinner.

Grocery stores are packed with peanut butters from the name-brand jars you grew up with (including those no-stir varieties!), and even new chocolate peanut butter spreads. (If you’re still undecided which jar is best, check out our taste test. We tested 30 jars of peanut butter to find the best one you can buy.)

Another peanut butter product you’re likely to see is peanut butter powder. If you’ve always wondered what’s the deal with powdered peanut butter we’ve got all of the details including what it is, how it differs from those jars of peanut butter, and how to use it.

Powdered peanut butter is made by pressing roasted peanuts to remove most of the fat. The defatted peanuts are then ground into a fine powder. This peanut flour is mixed with sugar and salt for the original and crunchy varieties. Other varieties, including cocoa and sugar- and salt-free powdered peanut butters, are also available.

Powdered peanut butter and conventional peanut butters are made from the same list of ingredients: peanuts, sugar, and salt. As you can see, though, the nutrition facts differ for each of the three categories of peanut butter. These are based on a 2-tablespoon serving size. Make sure to check the label on your favorite jar for more specific information.

Note: To reconstitute the powdered peanut butter, I mixed 2 tablespoons of the powdered peanut butter with 1 1/2 tablespoons water per the package instructions. This made 2 tablespoons of peanut butter.

I reconstituted 2 tablespoons of powdered peanut butter with 1 1/2 tablespoons of water per the package instructions. It had a consistency much thinner than regular peanut butter, so I would recommend starting with 1 tablespoon of water and adding more water, 1/4 teaspoon at a time, until desired consistency.

The spread made with powdered peanut butter delivered pure peanut flavor that was well-seasoned and not overly sweet or salty. Fat is what gives peanut butter its rich taste and creamy consistency, so it’s to be expected that the reconstituted spread lags behind conventional peanut butter in that aspect.

Powdered peanut butter entered the market around 2007. In the intervening years, a variety of brands, including private label (or store brands), have debuted their own powdered peanut butters alongside their name-brand counterparts at a range of price points. Here’s the cost per ounce breakdown from my local grocery store in the Atlanta-area.

• Powdered Peanut Butter: 88 cents per ounce
• Peanut Butter: 27 cents per ounce
• (No-Stir) Peanut Butter: 23 cents per ounce

• Blend into smoothies and milkshakes. Add powdered peanut butter to your favorite smoothie recipe or cool and creamy milkshakes.
• Add to oatmeal. Stir powdered peanut butter into overnight oats before chilling or add to creamy cooked oatmeal.
• Spread onto sandwiches. Stir powdered peanut butter and water together into a spreadable consistency, then serve with jelly or jam, or marshmallow Fluff.
• Add to cookies and brownies. Depending on the amount of peanut butter flavor desired, add just a tablespoon of peanut butter powder to the dry ingredients or replace up to 1/3 of the flour with the powder.
• Make into a dip. Stir peanut butter powder into yogurt to make a simple dip for fresh fruit.

Unopened jars of powdered peanut butter last about one year (though some brands claim a whopping five-year shelf life), while opened jars are good for two to three months when stored in a cool, dry place. The shelf life of opened containers of powdered peanut butter can be extended to up to nine months if stored in the refrigerator.

Buy: PB2 Powdered Peanut Butter, $5.75 for 6.5 ounces on Instacart

A version of this story was first published on March 10, 2014, by Faith Durand.

Have you tried powdered peanut butter? Tell us your favorite ways to use it in the comments below.