Peanut butter, smooth style, with salt

Smooth peanut butter is a pantry staple spread on toast and sandwiches, stirred into oatmeal, or used as a base for satay sauces, cookies, and no-bake bars, prized for its creamy texture and the way it clings without dripping the way natural, oilier styles can. It pairs naturally with both sweet partners like banana, honey, and jelly, and savory ones like celery or in Asian-style peanut sauces with soy sauce, lime, and chili. Because it's salted, it needs less added seasoning than natural peanut butter when used in savory cooking, and its smooth, emulsified consistency means it won't need stirring the way an oily natural style does.

Store an unopened jar in the pantry and refrigerate after opening if you want to slow oil separation, stirring before use if any does separate. At 598 calories per 100 g and 51.4 g of fat, it's calorie-dense, so a tablespoon-sized 32 g portion is typically the serving used to build it into a meal or snack. It's a strong source of protein at 22.2 g per 100 g (44% DV), plus magnesium at 40% DV, vitamin E at 61% DV, and 5 g of fiber, making a spoonful on toast or fruit a way to add protein and fiber to a light meal, though its 10.5 g of sugar and 426 mg of sodium per 100 g are worth keeping in mind.