In a Nut Shell

Europeans may turn their noses up in disgust at peanut butter, but what do they know? The stuff is on the shelves of three out of every four American kitchens. It is probably between two slices of bread in your kid’s lunch box right now. In honor of National Peanut Butter Lovers’ Month, Executive Chef David Hubert of Dolphin (1 Van Der Donck St, Yonkers 914-751-8170; dolphinrbl.com) taste-tested 10 crunchy–style brands to help find the top PB to go with your J.

1/2		1/2
Peter Pan Crunchy ($3.39/18oz) “Has a faint nut aroma; it’s smooth on the tongue, with its salt and sweet in balance. The taste reminds me of being a kid. Best of this bunch.”	Skippy Super Chunk ($2.99/16.3 oz) “This has the perfect chunk factor and the flavor is there, but there’s not much of an aroma and it’s too thick.	Peanut Butter & Co Crunch Time ($4.99/16 oz) “Nice balance of salty and sweet, though a bit thick.”	Jif Extra Crunchy Peanut Butter ($3.39/18 oz) “The flavor is average. It is too, too, thick, as if cornstarch was added, but it has great nutty aroma.”	Whole Foods 365 Crunchy Peanut Butter ($2.19/18 oz) “Good aroma but no flavor—there’s no salt or sugar taste; just ground up nuts.”
		1/2	1/2	0
Smucker’s Natural Chunky Peanut Butter ($3.49/16 oz) “Although this has a nutty, fresh aroma and a creamy texture, the taste is bland.”	Trader Joe’s Crunchy Salted Peanut Butter (1.79/16 oz) “This has wet texture, is a little too salty, and not very good tasting.”	Stonewall Kitchen Chunky Peanut Butter ($5.99/15.5 oz) “Good chop of nuts and creamy texture. Too bad it tastes like wallpaper paste.”	Santa Cruz Organic Light Roasted Crunchy Peanut Butter ($4.49/16 oz) “Good aroma but gritty texture. Specs of burnt peanuts? Not good. No surprise it tastes burnt.”	Fairway Organic Peanut Butter ($3.49/16 oz) “Grainy look; very, very dry; not chunky enough; and not enough salt. Horrible.”