Nut butters and pastes

When oily nuts and seed are roasted and ground to rupture a sufficient number of cell walls, a paste or butter is produced. When the nuts are of edible quality and the operation is sanitary, the paste becomes an important food item. Pulverizing nuts not only releases free oil, but flavors as well. Historically, grinding roasted nuts into paste was one of the first nut products to be made. It was adapted from grinding coffee with mortar and pestle, and crushing corn and wheat to make bread. While most oily nuts of the world - hazel nuts, almonds, macadamia, peanuts and pecans - have been made into paste commercially, the process is a part of the history of all edible nuts. 

To decrease stickiness and increase chewiness, peanut particles are sometimes added to finely ground peanut butter. This product is labeled chunky peanut butter . Video analysis techniques have been developed for measuring defects and color in peanut butter (Whitaker et al., 1987). 

To prevent oil separation of peanut butter during storage, about 1% of a stabilizer such as hydrogenated vegetable oil or mono- and diglycerides from vegetable oils are added. 

---