What The Heck Is Powdered Peanut Butter?
A friend of mine recently shared one of their protein shake recipes with me, and it included PB2
I’d never heard of PB2 or peanut butter powder. Maybe that’s because I prefer to eat whole foods, or maybe it’s because I prefer almond butter to peanut butter. He went on to explain what powdered peanut butter is and why he uses it in his protein shakes. Powdered peanut butter is peanut butter that has most of its fat removed, and is turned into a dry powder form.
PB2 is now a popular substitute for peanut butter, especially among bodybuilders and those who are looking for a peanut taste but want less calories. And PB2 is not the only powdered peanut butter brand out there.
Powdered peanut butter is now made by a large number of manufacturers. Peanut butter classic Jif
How is Powdered Peanut Butter Made
Essentially, peanut butter is taken and most of the fat is removed. You know that layer of fatty liquid that forms in a jar of peanut butter that has been sitting for too long? That’s all fat and it’s where a lot of peanut butter’s calories come from. If you were to pour that out you would have a peanut butter that is less fatty and that contains less calories. That’s more or less what manufacturers do to get powdered peanut butter.
The peanuts are basically compressed really hard so that the liquid is squeezed out of them. This removes most of the fat and calories. What remains is sold as peanut butter powder. This means peanut butter powder is great for those who want some peanut flavor without all the calories that come in peanut butter. Remember, a single tablespoon of peanut butter has about 95 calories and eight grams of fat.
You can then take a couple of tablespoons of peanut butter powder, add some water and it turns back into a sort of less-fatty peanut butter.
Taste of Powdered Peanut Butter
So part of the deliciousness of nut butters is all the fat. Nuts are mainly fat and that is one reason that our bodies like them so much. Humans enjoy eating fatty foods. It’s a simple fact, likely due to our evolutionary past.
This means that peanut butter with less fat and less calories is never going to taste the same as the whole peanut butter. There’s just no way. PB2 tastes a bit like beans. Jif is definitely better tasting and does not have that bean under-flavor. But even Jif flavored powdered peanut butter tastes different than pure peanut butter. It’s more bitter and you can tell something is missing.
I would not recommend powdered peanut butter for things like sandwiches as the flavor is noticeably worse than regular peanut butter. But, it is great in smoothies and mixed with other foods.
I have tried flavoring some Greek yogurt with Jif peanut powder and it came out really good. It added a nice peanut flavor to the yogurt.
Powdered Peanut Butter In Smoothies
The time to use powdered peanut butter is when you need a peanut flavor but do not need full on peanut butter. That is, if you ever have a recipe that calls for peanut butter, but the peanut butter is actually mixed up with other ingredients. This is exactly what you do in a smoothie. You normally take a spoonful of peanut butter and mix it with a bunch of other stuff.
This is exactly the situation in which powdered peanut butter shines. It gives you a peanut flavor without all the calories and fat or regular peanut butter. It’s also made from real peanuts, so you’re still getting most of the nutrition that real peanut butter has. It’s great for someone looking to lose weight or someone on a lot-fat diet.
You can substitute nut butter in any smoothie recipe with the same amount of PB2 or Jif peanut powder.
Nutrition Per Tbsp
| Item | Calories | Protein | Fat | Carbs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Peanut Butter | 95 | 4 | 8 | 3 |
| Jif Peanut Powder | 23 | 3 | 0 | 2 |
| PB2 | 23 | 3 | 0 | 2 |
