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I want to make peanut butter and almond butter. My food processor heated after a couple of minutes last time, so this time I first used a mortar and pestle to grind it a little and then use the processor. After 3-4 minutes, the motor just stopped and I had to press the reset button. I'm a kid and have to use my mum's food processor, so I'm really scared that I'll break it. Any other way to make the butter? I don't add any oils or anything and would prefer not to.

harsh99
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  • There are examples/recipes for nut butters using a food processor on the internet. You might get more help by (a) describing the specific method you are using, and (b) identifying the kind of food processor you have. – moscafj Jun 05 '18 at 10:55
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    You may have put too large a quantity of nuts in the bowl of the food processor at once, causing it to overload. Try doing this with much smaller batches – Cynetta Jun 05 '18 at 12:04
  • @Cynetta Nope, it was as little as it could hold without the blades missing the nuts. – harsh99 Jun 05 '18 at 12:26
  • @moscafj It's an old Maharaja Whiteliner which I couldn't find on the internet. I have described the method, is there anything more I should add? – harsh99 Jun 05 '18 at 12:28
  • @nervousring you really haven't described your method. Do you begin with raw nuts? ...roast the nuts yourself? ...add anything to the nuts to aid in emulsification? ...grind all at once? ...give your machine breaks? – moscafj Jun 06 '18 at 00:06
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    @moscafj I heat the peanuts on 750W for a bit more than a minute. Then work on them with a mortar and pestle for about half an hour. Then I pour the roughly-ground nuts into the food processor and then grind for half a minute and then give a minute or two's break. After grinding for four-five times, I have to press the reset button if I want to grind further. – harsh99 Jun 06 '18 at 10:21
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    Please, put details from your last comment directly into answer. – Mołot Jun 06 '18 at 11:51
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    What you're running into is a 'thermal cutoff'. Basically, it's something that stops the motor if it gets too warm. They're also in kitchen mixers and paper shredders. (as I've tripped them both). For stand mixers, you can put a cold damp towel across the top to give you a little more time, but I'm not aware of any tricks for other appliances. – Joe Aug 31 '18 at 16:17
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    It's also worth mentioning that sometimes too little food in a food processor can also be a problem -- the food pops up rather than being held down by the food on top of it, and just swirls around the outside of the processor. For small amounts, you really need to pulse it so the food settles back down – Joe Aug 31 '18 at 16:29

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There usually is no good way to do this, since most home appliances in an average kitchen are simply not suited for making nut butters.

If you really want to do it, the preferable tool would be a masticating juicer. It is an expensive thing which also uses up quite a lot of counter space, and the process is messy.

All other electric tools you can misuse - food processors, blenders, mills, etc. - run into the problems you already noticed, because they are not designed to make nut butter. For all, it is easy to burn them out. If you take the risk and grind away, and the motor survives, you are as likely to end up with a collection of nut pieces and nut dust as you are with a butter. And not adding oils reduces your chances of success.

The mortar and pestle approach would work, but you will probably have to spend several hours for a jar of nut butter. It is usually not worth your time when compared to buying the nut butter.

See also earlier questions like What features should a food processor have in order to make nut butters?, What features should I look for in a hand grinder (for peanut butter)? and How to make ground almonds creamy?.

rumtscho
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  • Thanks! Didn't know others had this problem as well, couldn't find anyone else on the internet. And there's just no article that doesn't need a food processor. How would you do it? – harsh99 Jun 06 '18 at 10:23
  • Sorry, I don't understand the comment. What do you mean by "there's just no article that doesn't need a food processor"? Also, "How would you do it" - do what? – rumtscho Jun 06 '18 at 10:53
  • All the articles I read online about making nut butter. They all do it with the food processor. How do you make butter, if you do? – harsh99 Jun 07 '18 at 07:04
  • I personally don't, tried it a couple of times with a powerful blender (vitamix style) and got nowhere. If you have a recipe, the best you can do is to follow it. But there is no guarantee that it will work, or that your food processor won't burn out in the process, especially if it has a weaker motor than the recipe author's. – rumtscho Jun 07 '18 at 07:17
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There are a few recipes for nut butters on the Internet, which use a food processor. They recommend using raw, unsalted nuts, without skins. Begin by lightly roasting the nuts, then, placing them in the food processor while still warm. In bursts, begin to grind the nuts. While you stated that you didn't want to add anything, it might actually be necessary. They suggest 2 tablespoons of mild flavored honey, and 5 tablespoons of fat (coconut oil or palm oil), per 2 cups of nuts. This aids in the emulsification process. They suggest grinding in shorter bursts. Do the initial grind of 1 - 3 minutes (before adding emulsifiers), then allow to cool for 10 minutes. Add 1/2 of the emulsifiers, grind for 5 minutes, cool 10 minutes. Add rest of emulsifiers, grind for 5 minutes. Adjust seasoning, grind for an additional minute.

moscafj
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Look for 'making peanut butter without a food processor'. The lady uses a mortar and pestle & adds a little salt, some oil & honey. She says she can crush 3/4 cup of roasted nuts in about 15 minutes. There are pictures & instructions. It can be done, don't give up & don't ruin Mom's machine. :)

Suzanne Green
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    Welcome to the site- to make your answer more useful, it would be best to provide a link to the video you mention. – bob1 Jul 29 '19 at 10:43
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Making nut butter is easy:

  • you have to soak your nuts for so many hours
  • drain
  • add some avocado in one of those new blending machines.

The above is a bit of a trial and error, maybe add a touch more avocado or just a touch more water if you do not like avocado,

In my 1000 W blender it works like a charm.

Fabby
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john drage
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    I almost burnt the motor of another food processor. I think I'd rather invest in a nut butter maker. Thanks for your answer though, I hope somebody else will find it helpful. – harsh99 Sep 02 '18 at 03:28
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    Wouldn’t avocado or water dramatically reduce the shelf life of the product? – Stephie Sep 02 '18 at 15:08
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    Welcome to Seasoned Advice! **;-)** Could you please review my **[edits](https://cooking.stackexchange.com/posts/92008/revisions)** and also review the [editing help](/editing-help) to improve the readability of your answers in the future... **;-)** – Fabby Sep 03 '18 at 21:04