"peanut butter machine" anybody tried?

[ejw50]

amazon link

Saw this link on Amazon. Anybody ever tried a machine like this? I am thinking I could make all the pistachio, hazelnut, and almond paste I ever wanted and come out ahead in the deal.

[mrose]

amazon link

Saw this link on Amazon.  Anybody ever tried a machine like this?  I am thinking I could make all the pistachio, hazelnut, and almond paste I ever wanted and come out ahead in the deal.

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Doesn't look like it is even out in the marketplace. It would be great if it did work well.

[jfield]

To throw in my 2 cents worth, it's been my experience that you get what you pay for.

A machine that can grind nuts down to a smooth paste for $40? I'm going out on a limb to say it's impossible: nut pastes are incredibly smooth, and the product overview states that this machine will make nut butter--not paste. Big difference. A butter will have some texture to it--at least "grainy" and all the way up to "crunchy."

If you want nut butter and not true nut paste, it might be okay, but I've had good luck using a good food processor to make nut butters. Not as smooth as Jif, but certainly close to a natural peanut butter mouth feel.

I'd save the $40 and use the food processor.

[infernooo]

I purchased a Salton Just Nutty peanut butter maker on ebay a while ago, and it appears to be very similar to the one on sale at Amazon (except the Just Nutty one is quite old and no longer made: http://cgi.ebay.com/New-In-Box-Salton-Pean...QQcmdZViewItem)

However, these machines have a strong tendency to break. The one I bought was from an antique collector and it was brand new in the box. However, using it you get the feeling it won't have a very long life !

The texture can be selected from course to smooth, but to be honest you won't get perfectly smooth peanut butter... the machine just can't do it and it has to work VERY hard to get it almost smooth.

[CaliPoutine]

You could make Peanut Butter in the vitamix too( granted, its an expensive piece of equipment, but it does a lot for the money)

[Joe Blowe]

Forty bucks is pretty tempting, but if you're really into making nut butters you'd be better off with this model.

[Peter the eater]

I'm skeptical about that machine. I suppose having one would keep the coffee grinder free of peanut residue.

The smoothest peanut butter is not made by spinning blades but by pressure. From experience I can tell you that if enough pressure is placed on a bunch of peanuts they will go from solid to liquid in the blink of an eye. Velvety smoooth.

[Lisa Shock]

It may not be the best tool for the task, but I get acceptable results, for sandwiches and sauces at home, with my immersion blender. I got a stainless cup from an industrial milkshake machine and I just toss nuts in the cup and go at them with the blender.

[andiesenji]

I am suspicious of anything that is not going to ship for a couple of months - it may never ship.

The only really efficient (and fairly affordable) electric nut butter grinders are the appliances from India that are use for "wet" grinding of spices. Like this one made by Premier

I have, over the years, experimented with various cheap versions and have never been satisfied - the Salton one I bought many years ago lasted about a month, as I recall.

The hand-cranked Universal food grinders, manufactured from the 1910s until the 1960s often came with a "Nut-Butter" "blade" or disc as a option - many of the "complete" sets included it.

They make an excellent product, although it does require elbow grease.

Some of the electric meat grinders offered in the '50s and '60s also came with a nut butter blade.

I don't know why this option was discontinued but they are often sold on ebay.

I can guarantee that one of the early Universal or Griswold or other hand-cranked food grinders will do the job, with some effort on your part, and last into the next century with proper care. And they are inexpensive.

The ones in my collection are all in perfect working order and are easy to keep that way.

This one has the nut butter "blade"

In the bottom two pictures, it is the solid-looking disc at the left of the grinder body.

Here are photos of two different Universal grinders to show the difference in size;

This is the NO. 1 patented in 1897-1899, mfg in 1903

And the "Nut Butter" blade

The bigger No. 3 compared to the No. 1.

The nut butter blade for the No. 3. is next to it - the blades are much larger on this unit.

There is a size between, a No. 2

They also made larger "commercial" grinders - I have a No. 8 (ca. 1930) but it's too heavy and bulky for me to move easily. It has a "meat paste" blade that works as a nut butter grinder also.

(I have 31 grinders like these in my collection.)

Edited September 9, 2008 by andiesenji (log)

[FoodMan]

This is way too cheap to make proper nut pastes. As for nut butter, sure I have a machine that does that and I use it to make peanut butter about once every month. It's called a food processor, mine is a Cuisinart and makes fantastic nut butters among other things like pie dough and pate mixtures .

[Melanger]

Has anyone tried using a Paco Jet?

[Chris Hennes]

Has anyone tried using a Paco Jet?

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How would you do it? Process it in a food processor, then stuff into the PJ container and freeze?

[Melanger]

Has anyone tried using a Paco Jet?

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How would you do it? Process it in a food processor, then stuff into the PJ container and freeze?

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I am currently without Paco but yes, I think that the food processor/Paco combi method would work really well. I also think that using whole nuts (or even better, granulated peanuts - way cheaper and they would pack together better in the canister) would yield a slightly more textured version.

The only thing that I would be concerned with insofar as the Paco goes is that it tends to make things with singular flavor profiles taste slightly burnt or toasty. I think it is because of the massive friction. Compare a vanilla ice cream in a Paco and a vanilla ice cream spun in a normal machine - you'll see what I mean. That being said, the toastiness might not be a bad thing with the peanut-y goodness.

You could probably do the granulated peanuts, some salt and some cream in the Paco tin and make a killer fresh peanut parfait. But I digress...

If I can track down a loaner Paco I'll do the side by side. Fun fun fun!!!

[jfield]

You don't have to freeze ingredients to use the PacoJet (although, that was the original intent). Here's a link to a page on their site that shows other attachments and their uses, one of which can be used for grinding nuts. Of course, the Paco is very expensive, as is this extra set. I still say: use the food processor.

http://www.pacojet.com/html/en/pacojet.htm

[tafkap4d]

To throw in my 2 cents worth, it's been my experience that you get what you pay for. 

A machine that can grind nuts down to a smooth paste for $40?  I'm going out on a limb to say it's impossible:  nut pastes are incredibly smooth, and the product overview states that this machine will make nut butter--not paste.  Big difference.  A butter will have some texture to it--at least "grainy" and all the way up to "crunchy."

If you want nut butter and not true nut paste, it might be okay, but I've had good luck using a good food processor to make nut butters.  Not as smooth as Jif, but certainly close to a natural peanut butter mouth feel.

I'd save the $40 and use the food processor.

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Ditto. I'm all for kitchen gadgets but this sounds like a waste. I'd sooner use a food processor - I don't have anymore available counter space. LOL