Guide
Gluten-free pastas compared: expensive doesn’t equal good
by Simon Balissat
Who needs peanuts for peanut butter?
21/5/2025
Translation: machine translated
Pictures: Stefanie Lechthaler
Sun Fly's sunflower seed butter is supposed to taste like peanut butter - without the nuts. I found out whether this is true in this comparison.
Butter without milk, salmon made from carrots, honey without bees - the world of food has the right substitute product for almost every need. There is even peanut butter without peanuts
What sounds like a really strange idea to me at first, turns out not to be so contradictory. Around two per cent of children in industrialised countries suffer from a peanut allergy, which can be triggered by even the smallest traces, depending on the severity. In severe cases, this allergic reaction can even lead to respiratory distress or cardiac arrest and become life-threatening.
For this group of people, Sunfly has prepared various spreads made from roasted sunflower seeds that are said to taste like peanut butter. The spreads could also be of interest to other allergy sufferers, as they are free from sesame, soya, nuts, lactose and gluten.
«Natural Taste» and «Sweet & Salty» in comparison
For the comparison, I tried the flavours «Natural Taste» and «Sweet & Salty» and compared them with real peanut butter.
First of all, the similarities between «Natural Taste» and «Sweet & Salty»: Both are slightly runny, similar in consistency to creamy peanut butter and also smell like it. With both, the solid mass settles over time and separates from the oil. However, they can be stirred back into a uniform mass with a firm spoonful.
«Natural Taste»
However, the flavour of the two varieties is very different. With «Natural Taste», the name says it all. The spread is not particularly intense and tastes slightly bland to me. However, it only contains 1.7 grams of sugar per 100 grams. The flavour is difficult to classify and is perhaps most reminiscent of sunflower oil - in a blind test, I couldn't name sunflower seeds as the main ingredient in any case. Finally, there is a slightly bitter aftertaste. Overall, «Natural Taste» does not give me the typical impression of peanut butter. «Natural Taste» is not really my cup of tea.
«Sweet & Salty»
The «Sweet & Salty» is a different story. The sweet and salty combination makes the spread much more savoury and gives it the typical peanut butter experience, where the fat, salt and sugar bomb hits the taste receptors with full force. In direct comparison with real peanut butter, the sunflower seed spread is slightly less intense. I realise: the peanuts are missing - but the spread comes pretty close to the original.
Satay kebabs for the ultimate taste test
Because I'm really hungry and want to find out whether the peanut butter substitute is also suitable for cooking, I use it as an alternative to peanut butter in a satay sauce and compare it with the original.
Peanut butter or sunflower seed butter: which tastes better?
The sauce with Sunfly tastes very good and can stand on its own. It is not a 100 per cent alternative to peanut sauce, even as a sauce. It just doesn't taste as savoury. The fat from the nuts is probably crucial and irreplaceable for the typical satay flavour. I like the original better - my boyfriend prefers the sauce with Sunfly. After all, tastes are different.
Unbeatable in muesli
Although I like the satay skewers with peanut butter better, a spoonful of «Sweet & Salty» cream ends up in my muesli every morning. Without the expectation of having to replace peanut butter, the spread is delicious and fits perfectly into my breakfast.
I'm unlikely to use Sunfly's spreads as an alternative to peanut butter in future. I don't have to, because I don't have a nut intolerance. However, sunflower seed butter could be a valuable solution for people with such an allergy. I just wonder whether these people miss the flavour of peanut butter in their everyday lives at all.
Do you have a peanut allergy? Then tell me in the comments if you've been waiting for an alternative to peanut butter.
Want to find out more about alternatives to conventional foods? I challenged my colleagues to a blind test to see if they could tell the difference between vegan and animal honey. You can find out how they did in this article.
Header image: Stefanie Lechthaler
Painting the walls just before handing over the flat? Making your own kimchi? Soldering a broken raclette oven? There's nothing you can't do yourself. Well, perhaps sometimes, but I'll definitely give it a try.
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