31 Comments

  1. What can't you get in Germany, than you can in the US? - Grounded Traveler
    August 6, 2013 @ 9:03 pm

    […] areas, so it is used differently than the sprawling stores at home which can stock everything. Take peanut butter for example, definitely available here. You get a choice of creamy and chunky in one brand. If you […]

  2. America’s Favorite Treat: Peanut Butter « « Country SkipperCountry Skipper
    July 13, 2011 @ 3:20 pm

    […] everywhere! And of course there is the ubiquitous peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Check out Andrew’s post about this very American sandwich on his blog. My take on it? Well, let’s just say that the idea of combining peanut butter […]

  3. Thomas
    March 19, 2011 @ 2:26 am

    As a Brit I have to say Peanut butter and Jam (as we say here) is a REALLY common sandwich filler for kids, but I found it really hard to find reasonably priced peanut butter when I lived in Germany. The stuff I didn’t consider too expensive just tasted like someone had taken salty, bar-snack peanuts and smashed them with a hammer until they had formed a paste. Gross. Still it wasn’t enough to put me off moving back in September!!

    • Andrew
      March 19, 2011 @ 11:30 am

      When did you live here? There is a brand that I can get in the local store that is “American Style” that tastes great. Yeah, there are brands that are literally just salted peanuts smashed. Not so good with jam. Welcome back in September. Where you coming to?

  4. The Honourable Husband
    February 21, 2011 @ 9:25 pm

    And don’t you just love the fact that “peanut butter” in German is “earth-nut cream”?

    • Andrew
      February 21, 2011 @ 9:38 pm

      Yup. The German words for things are really just descriptions all smushed together as a single word.

  5. Heather
    February 4, 2011 @ 12:40 am

    I had PBJs growing up from time to time but have embraced them fully in my 20s and continue to do so!! They’re a staple when I travel 🙂 And sometimes it gets more interesting for onlookers and other travelers because I use gluten free bread and natural peanut butter.

    When I’ve traveled folks from other countries question the PBJ. When I tried Vegemite here in Oz and filmed it, a couple of Aussies decided to take on a PBJ challenge as they’d never had one!

    Here’s to continuing to spread the PBJ love!

    • Andrew
      February 5, 2011 @ 6:37 pm

      Good, PBnJ can be a fully normal adult food. The natural PB i can’t deal with. It is too grainy. Well the one brand I remember anyway. Not ever tried gluten-free bread.
      Good on you trying Vegemite. Every time my NZ friends talk about Marmite, I trot out the running joke of “something died on toast, and you want me to eat it??”

  6. Theresa
    February 2, 2011 @ 9:51 pm

    Oddly enough, I’ve never eaten a PB&J, and yes, I did grow up in America. No one in my family has had one. There’s just something unappealing about it to me. But I am at the moment craving a simple peanut butter sandwich.

    For me, the fun food to introduce to others is s’mores. We made them while camping in Ireland and at a Fourth of July cookout in Germany, and in both instances our local friends found them to be very, very odd.

    • Andrew
      February 5, 2011 @ 6:24 pm

      Wow s’mores. I have totally forgotten about those when writing. I seriously need to find some graham crackers in the US. I had a company Christmas party with a bonfire one year. Someone brought marshmallows and I was teaching people how to roast them on sticks. Noone but me had a clue and kept showing them to me to ask if it was done. No crackers or chocolate, but still it was fun.

  7. Annie
    January 23, 2011 @ 9:15 pm

    Such a great go-to! It just makes me mad that PB is so expensive here! Usually PB is the cheap option in the States and it’s sad that it’s had to turn into a luxury these days, but definitely useful on the road.

    I had some friends in Australia that liked PB (notably Canadian and French ones) and the rest hated it! Some didn’t even know what it was, including my Italian boyfriend!

  8. Suzy
    January 23, 2011 @ 6:13 pm

    Great explanation of the PB&J! I always pack a jar when I go to Italy. It is just nice to have something from home, but I also can get sick of all the pizza, pasta,etc. I will have to try out Nutella on my PB&J…sounds delicious.

    • Andrew
      January 23, 2011 @ 8:43 pm

      Thanks Suzy. My public speaking classes often had an assignment to explain something. I oddly remember having to stand in front of class explaining how to make a PB&J.
      The comfort food part of it is an aspect that should not be overlooked. I love italian and german food too, but sometimes like you I just get sick of it.

  9. Dalene
    January 23, 2011 @ 5:58 pm

    Ahhh…what a great post! During our travels across South America we often couldn’t find PB, and so when we did, we bought a large jar and made space for it in our backpack! It is a traveling staple!!

    • Andrew
      January 23, 2011 @ 8:41 pm

      That is so cool to hear that other people carry it around. And to see that it really is both a Canadian and US thing. I had noticed that in some research I did before writing. Not that I was really surprised, but cool to see.

  10. Eli
    January 23, 2011 @ 1:43 pm

    Good stuff, Andrew. We recently ate PB&J at a restuarant in Kuala Lumpur! We never expected to find something like that way out here. It was actually pretty good. 🙂

    Wandering Trader is on point with the PB & Nutella. Very good. We lived off that stuff on a coast to coast Amtrak ride last fall.

    • Andrew
      January 23, 2011 @ 8:34 pm

      WOW, PBnJ as far as Malaysia. I am impressed. Was it the same price as the other items? Cheaper or sold at a premium? The big bread slices sound fine as long as they are not the artisan style thick crunchy crust slices. Those are great, but not appropriate for the humble PBnJ.

  11. Eli
    January 23, 2011 @ 1:38 pm

    Great stuff, Andrew. We were at a restauant in Kuala Lumpur recently and they actually had PB&J on the menu, and what a massive sandwich it was! It was made with the biggest slices of bread I think I’ve ever seen.

    I agree with wandering trader about the Nutella, but the way I’ve always had it is just plain PB&Nutella, no jelly. I’m going to have to try the variation.

  12. WanderingTrader
    January 23, 2011 @ 6:37 am

    Great post Andrew! I have even heard people doing the PB and J plus Nutella! Have to try it its delicious!!

  13. Globetrottergirls
    January 22, 2011 @ 6:14 pm

    My favorite variation is peanut butter with banana slices, on toasted bread. Jess @Globetrottergirls

    • Andrew
      January 23, 2011 @ 5:45 pm

      Yes, the toasting is the best. Then the jelly doesn’t soak into the bread and floats on top into the peanut butter. I’m not a fan of bananas in any form, but can at least see how it fits.

  14. Globetrottergirls
    January 22, 2011 @ 6:13 pm

    This is a great explanation of a PB&J sandwich, Andrew! – Love that you see yourself as a sandwich ambassador!! I should do that more with German food (but if I traveled with some German food it would be Nutella and I wouldn’t want to share it 😉 ) I know that we Germans don’t really get peanut butter, and PB with jelly in the same sandwich – even more odd. My American girlfriend Jess finally got me to give it a try and, surprisingly, it wasn’t all that bad! My favorite kind is the PB&J already mixed in the jar. We traveled with a jar of peanut butter for a while but it’s nothing that we need to have all the time – the occasional dose does it for us. Dani @Globetrottergirls

    • Andrew
      January 23, 2011 @ 5:44 pm

      Ugh, the ready made PBnJ in a jar? Wow I had forgotten about that stuff. Grape jelly I imagine right?
      Traveling with PB is great because it goes well with lot of different things, like apple slices or celery. It really is a backpackers friend.
      It has taken me a bit of adjustment to get use to putting butter on sandwiches. Now though, when they only have normal pretzels and sandwiches for breakfast at work (which is weird to see what I think of as lunch food for breakfast) I pass. I will however eat a butter pretzel with the salt scraped off for breakfast. I still prefer sweet, but it is not a bad meal.

  15. Jen
    January 22, 2011 @ 4:18 pm

    As soon as I stop typing this, I’m going to slather some PB&J on some bread….

    • Andrew
      January 23, 2011 @ 5:40 pm

      Go for it. 🙂

  16. LandLopers Picks of the Week | LandLopers
    January 22, 2011 @ 3:09 pm

    […] Peanut Butter and Jelly – A Cultural Marker […]

  17. MaryAnne
    January 22, 2011 @ 1:50 pm

    I remember being in a cafe in Berlin in 1994 and the guy behind the counter told me he had something for me, a surprise! He hauled out the tiniest jar of Skippy ever– but such a rare prize in those days! i hadn’t seen pb in ages by that point.

    Here in Shanghai, it’s really easy to get all sorts of pb and all sorts of jam and boy, I’ve made me a lot of sandwiches in China. Major comfort food.

    • Andrew
      January 23, 2011 @ 5:40 pm

      Awesome, that is good to hear that China has proper peanut butter. They are so cheap to make (well unless the PB is expensive somehow), which helps on budgets.

      • MaryAnne
        January 24, 2011 @ 12:31 pm

        Alas not cheap (8 bucks a jar, on average, but for a decent sized jar) but it’s worth it as it lasts a long time and it makes me happy.

  18. Megan
    January 22, 2011 @ 4:02 am

    Ah, what a great ode to the PB&J! Almost every morning here in Thailand I have a peanut butter and Nutella sandwich. I never ate Nutella when I was little, but it’s a really fantastic addition. And you know what? I never liked jelly on my peanut butter sandwiches. You’re right, though–PB is such a comfort food. We’re lucky that in Bangkok we can get the regular ol’ American stuff (Skippy, etc) very easily. It’s expensive, but it lasts quite some time, so it’s worth it!

    • Andrew
      January 23, 2011 @ 5:38 pm

      Ooo yes, I’ve had PB and N too. Almost too sweet for me and I like the faux-vitamins in jelly.
      Do you actually get Skippy? We get american style, but it isn’t a brand I have every heard of. Its still good though. How much do you pay for a jar of how big?