How to Stir Natural Peanut Butter

Natural peanut butter is so much better than regular peanut butter. First of all, the flavor is so much better. With just two ingredients, natural peanut butter only contains rich, nutty peanuts and salt!

But secondly, regular peanut butter uses hydrogenated vegetable oils - which contain trans fats - to stabilize it on the shelf. These fats are linked to health problems like heart disease. No bueno.

Since natural peanut butters don’t contain stabilizers, they tend to separate on the shelf into ground peanuts with a layer of oil on top. This means that to get to your tantalizing nutty goodness, you’ve got to stir the natural peanut butter. This can be a messy pain, with oil spilling all over you hands as you try to incorporate the two ingredients.

Well, we were determined to solve this quandary once and for all - what is the best way to stir natural peanut butter?

We tested three different methods and ranked them according to three important metrics:

• Effectiveness: How well does the method incorporate the peanutty goodness into the much-needed smoothness of the oil?

• Ease: Can the average person pull this method off, or does it require a punishing gym regimen to stir this way?

• Cleanliness: Can you stir the entire jar without getting covered in oil?

We found our winner. And it wasn’t exactly the one you would expect.

Oh, and pro tip - don’t forget to pop your jar of peanut butter in the fridge after you’ve finished stirring. That way, your labor will last until you finish the jar.