For the best almond butter toast, banana and almond butter smoothie or a smooth, tasty nut butter on its own, you have to make sure you’re nut butter is stored in tip-top shape. I wanted to share the best way to store nut butter to make it last longer, maintain flavor, and improve ease of use
Unlike smooth, no-stir almond butter, natural nut butter consists of just ground up nuts and sometimes a sprinkle of salt rather than hydrogenated oils and sugar. That’s why you’ll notice a thick layer of oil floating at the top of your natural nut butter jar.
This oil separation is natural, but the worst thing about natural nut butters is that frustrating moment of mixing them together, and even though that separation is totally natural, it can make the task of using your nut butter a messier task than necessary.
The solution? Pop the jar in your pantry upside down! When you flip the jar over, the oil will travel to the “bottom” of the jar. Then, when you open it to spread, that oil is at the base instead of in your way. It makes using your nut butters in tasty recipes a lot easier.
Wait, pantry? Or Refrigerator?
What is the best place to store nut butter?
It’s generally best to refrigerate natural nut butters. Because they do not contain any artificial preservatives or stabilizers, they can become rancid if left out of refrigeration for an extended period of time and/or exposed to warm temperatures.
You can however, keep your nut butter in a cool, dark place, like your pantry. You may find that refrigeration is not required, as long as you use the contents of the jar within a reasonable amount of time. If you choose to do this, check the aroma of the nut butter regularly to ensure it is not becoming rancid.
Natural nut butters are preservative-free, so their shelf lives are shorter than that of processed nut butter like Jif or Skippy. So, as a general rule of thumb, if you know you’ll eat the entire jar in less than a month, go ahead and store it in your pantry.
If you take a little more time nurturing your jar, opt for storing it in the fridge to prevent the fats in the nut butter from going rancid.
I suggest mixing the oil into the solid part once the oil has gone to the bottom of the jar. A good wooden spoon or spatula works well. Refrigerate ,to maintain a more spreadable nut butter
Great suggestion! Thank you