Peanut Butter (pic from Morguefile)

I’ve been buying the “natural” versions peanut butter from Skippy, Jif, etc. for so long to avoid HFCS, but I’d somehow missed that they contained palm oil. (I did know they had added sugar, but this did not overly concern me because we take baby steps at making healthier choices.)

Peanut Butter (pic from Morguefile)

So I switched to Smucker’s (chunky, of course) as of our last grocery shopping trip on Saturday, aka Halloween. This post is not sponsored, although I wouldn’t say no if Smucker’s or any other company that makes legit peanut butter with just peanuts and salt on the ingredient list wanted to send me peanut butter or pay me to write about them. TJ and I eat peanut butter practically every day.

But getting down to business…

I made a HUGE mess upon opening my new jar of peanut butter today.

I was well aware that the oil would have risen to the top and needed to be stirred in with the rest of the contents of the jar. I got a sturdy butter knife and stirred it up. I’m not entirely sure I did it adequately though, because it seemed rather runnier than the peanut butter I’m used to. But I have no frame of reference for whether this is the natural state of things or I should have kept stirring until it was more…solid? substantial?

As I attempted to spread the peanut butter on my awaiting bagel, peanut butter dripped off my knife onto the counter. More than once. And I realized there was peanut oil dripping down the side of the jar as a result of my stirring.

Should it be this drippy? Or am I doing it wrong?

Of course, as I was wondering about this, sitting down at my desk to enjoy said bagel with peanut butter on it, I fumbled the plate in my hand and dropped half the bagel. Miraculously, the bagel did not land on the floor, but was saved by a mostly-clean pair of TJ’s pajama pants. (I picked the bagel up, made sure there was nothing gross on it, and ate it. Don’t judge.) Well, they weren’t mostly clean anymore. I had to rinse them off in the sink and spray them with pre-treater for the impending load of laundry. And there was lots of splatter to things other than TJ’s discarded pajama pants. (For the record, I’m not sure why they ended up near my desk, but I’m grateful they saved my lunch from being a total loss.) I had peanut butter on my pants, on the floor, and on the container of disinfecting wipes I ended up using to clean the whole mess up.

All because the peanut butter was so drippy.

So I ask you, my friends, is this the peanut butter’s fault, or is it mine for not giving it a more thorough stir?

After publishing this post, I decided to discuss the topic on Periscope. Here’s the video if you’re interested:

Christina Gleason (976 Posts)

That’s me: Christina Gleason. I’m a writer, editor, and disability advocate. I'm a multiply disabled autistic lady doing my best in this world built for abled people. I’m a geek for grammar, fantasy, and casual gaming. I hate vegetables. I cannot reliably speak, so I’ll happily conduct business over email or messaging instead.


By Christina Gleason

That’s me: Christina Gleason. I’m a writer, editor, and disability advocate. I'm a multiply disabled autistic lady doing my best in this world built for abled people. I’m a geek for grammar, fantasy, and casual gaming. I hate vegetables. I cannot reliably speak, so I’ll happily conduct business over email or messaging instead.

2 thoughts on “Is There a Secret to Opening a New Jar of LEGIT PEANUT BUTTER?”
  1. I’ve been buying Smucker’s natural PB for years. It will be runny if you store it at room temperature. I stir it well when I first open it to re-incorporate the oil into the PB, then I store it in the fridge. The cooler temperature gives it a perfect consistency.

    I don’t have trouble spilling oil when opening the jar the first time, but if it continues to be a problem, store the jar upside in your pantry for a while. When you turn the jar right-side-up to open it, the oil will be on the bottom.

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