Effects of Grind Size, Sucrose Concentration and Salt Concentration on Peanut Butter Texture 1

A 3 X 3 X 3 factorial design with three grinds (fine, medium and coarse), three salt concentrations (0, 0.6 and 1.2%) and three sucrose concentrations (0, 3 and 6%) was used in formulating peanut butters. Eleven sensory descriptive characteristics were examined, along with instrumental hardness, hesion and power law flow model constants. A consumer panel rated the peanut butter texture using a 9‐point hedonic scale. Increased grind size decreased sensory smoothness, spreadability, adhesiveness and preference ratings, but increased instrumental hesion and hardness. Increased sucrose caused decreases in instrumental hesion and hardness, sensory adhesiveness and consumer texture ratings. Added salt increased the ease of swallowing, as well as consumer preference of texture.