Peanut butter

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Peanut butter (also known as peanut paste) is a food paste made primarily from ground roasted peanuts, with or without added oil. It is popular primarily in Canada, the United States, South America, Mexico, Central America,^[1] Australia, the United Kingdom,^[1] South Africa, Papua New Guinea, New Zealand, The Bahamas, North Africa, The Netherlands,^[1] the Philippines^[2] and Saudi Arabia.^[1] It is also manufactured in some emerging markets.

Similar peanut pastes are popular in various cultures. In South Indian cooking, additional chillies are used to make a spicy variant of peanut paste. In Andhra Pradesh, India cooking, peanut paste has been quite popular for centuries where peanuts are ground along with other ingredients.

Various nut butters are also made from other nuts.

Contents 1 History 2 Modern peanut butter production 3 Health 3.1 Health benefits 3.2 Health concerns 4 Other uses 5 Reference peanut butters 6 See also 7 References 8 External links

[edit] History

Modern peanut butter was created by Dr. John Kellogg in 1890 as protein source for patients lacking the ability to chew.^[3]

Contrary to popular belief, George Washington Carver did not invent peanut butter.

[edit] Modern peanut butter production

About half of shelled U.S. peanut production was used to make peanut butter as of 2001.^[4] The United States is the world's largest peanut butter supplier and consumer.^[1] Along with Argentina and China, it is one of the world's three largest exporters of peanuts. Peanuts grown in other countries are usually harvested for peanut oil (a type of cooking oil) and for animal feed.^[5] The economic impact of peanut butter production is also significant in Subsaharan Africa.^[6][7]

There are many types of peanuts. Small-seed peanuts are rich in oil and usually grown for peanut butter and oil. In the U.S., Runner Types and Spanish Types are two families of peanuts grown in southern states including Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Oklahoma, South Carolina and Texas. The first three states produce 60% of the peanuts that are used in peanut butter.

Harvested peanuts are sent to factories for inspection, roasted in ovens^[8], and rapidly air-cooled to stop cooking, which helps to retain their color and oil constituents.

The cooked peanuts are then rubbed between rubber belts or brushes to remove the outer skin. The kernels are split with the hearts removed and then cleaned and sorted.^[8] Next, the peanuts are sent to the grinder.

The peanuts are ground twice. First they are ground into small pieces. A second grinding stage, which may combine the peanut butter with salt, sweetener, and often a stabilizer to keep the oil from separating, grinds them finely. The oils will separate after a time; unstabilized varieties in particular are best refrigerated to prevent the oil from separating out, but which makes the butter harder to spread. "Natural" peanut butters have been introduced which use palm oil as a stabilizer so as not to require stirring. Crunchy peanut butter has small pieces of unground peanuts mixed in.

In the United States, a product described as peanut butter must contain a minimum of 90% peanuts.^[9] Artificial sweeteners, artificial colors and preservatives are not allowed (this is why some peanut butter manufacturers sell peanut spread, sometimes called low-calorie or low-fat, with additives or lower peanut content). Some brands add salt or sugars including dextrose, sucrose, fructose, or molasses to suit the taste of the average consumer; others have no additives.

[edit] Health

[edit] Health benefits

Peanut butter provides protection against cardiovascular disease due to high levels of monounsaturated fats and Resveratrol; butter prepared with the skin of the peanuts has a greater level of resveratrol and other health-aiding agents.^[10] Peanut butter (and peanuts) provide protein, vitamins B3 and E, magnesium, folate, dietary fibre, arginine^[11], and high levels of the antioxidant p-coumaric acid.

Plumpy'nut is a peanut butter-based food used to fight malnutrition in famine-stricken countries. A single pack contains 500 calories, can be stored unrefrigerated for 2 years, and requires no cooking or preparation.^[12]

In the novel Make Room! Make Room! by Harry Harrison and the film Soylent Green made from it an impoverished and malnourished world is portrayed; the government supplies a peanut butter ration to prevent "the kwash" (kwashiorkor, associated with protein deficiency) in children.

[edit] Health concerns

For people with a peanut allergy, peanut butter can cause reactions including anaphylactic shock which has led to its banning in some schools.^[13]

The peanut plant is susceptible to the mold Aspergillus flavus which produces a carcinogenic substance called aflatoxin.^[14] Since it is impossible to completely remove every instance of aflatoxins, contamination of peanuts and peanut butter is monitored in many countries to ensure safe levels of this carcinogen. Average American peanut butter contains about 13 parts per billion of aflatoxins, a thousand times below the maximum recommended level.^{[citation needed]}

Some brands of peanut butter may contain a fraction of a percent of added hydrogenated vegetable oils, which are high in trans fatty acids, thought to be a cause of atherosclerosis, coronary heart disease, and stroke; these oils are added to make the butter easier to spread. Natural peanut butter, and peanuts, do not contain partially hydrogenated oils. A USDA survey of commercial peanut butters in the US did not show the presence of trans fat.^[15] Peanut butter is high in total fat and calorie levels.

[edit] Other uses

A common, simple outdoor bird feeder can be made by coating a pine cone once with peanut butter, then again with birdseed.

Peanut butter is an effective bait for mouse traps.^[16]

Disinfectant for certain kinds of insect bites^{[citation needed]}.

Can also help take gum out of hair.

Dogs are known to be fond of peanut butter, resulting in some peanut butter-flavored dog treats.

[edit] Reference peanut butters

As of February 2008, the most expensive peanut butter on the market is a $603 limited item which can be mail-ordered from the National Institute of Standards and Technology of the U.S.^[17] This peanut butter (SRM 2387) is a set of three 170 g (6 oz.) jars which will expire on December 31, 2009.

This piece of reference material has been analyzed with state-of-the-art measurement methods to provide values for the amount of fatty acids, 18 individual amino acids (protein), vitamins, minerals, dietary fiber, other nutrients and mold-produced carcinogenic aflatoxins. Food manufacturers can use it to validate production and quality control procedures as well as ensure accurate labeling of product content. It can also be used to evaluate allergen test kits.

[edit] See also

• Peanut sauce
• Peanut allergy

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• The National Peanut Board
• Peanut Butter Trivia
• The federal "Peanut Butter Law" in the U.S.
• The USDA's Commercial Item Description for peanut butter and peanut spread