Top 8 peanut butters

Roz Crowley finds out where to get the best peanut butter.

A CONVENIENT store cupboard ingredient, peanut butter is useful in more ways than on bread. I add it to stews to add richness, at the end of stirfrying to add creaminess and with water to make a sauce. It is also useful to mollify over-spiced foods — the fat can soak up any harsh chilli flavour. Add a heaped dessertspoon. It may be all you need.

Health-wise, peanuts are a good source of protein, vitamin D and iodine, so some on bread sustains us better than sugary alternatives such as jam. On wholemeal bread for lunch, peanut butter could get us to our next meal. Added oil brings up the fat content, but some of the fats can be good. The trick is to choose well which means reading labels to avoid undesirable additions such as sugar, the bête noir of dietitians and Dr Eva Orsmond.

Some manufacturers use it as a cheap addition and to balance the addition of salt. However, you will see from the samples below that there are plenty of options without sugar.

The sustainability of sources of palm oil is becoming serious. We all need to think twice before buying products, from shampoo to peanut butter, which promote the cutting down of forests so palm oil trees can be planted, with huge environmental consequences. Some are planted sustainably — another good reason to read labels. Watch for recyclable containers too.