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A delicious two-ingredient homemade pistachio nut butter recipe with pistachio butter uses and flavour combinations! Perfect for spreading on toast, mixing into your baked goods or preparing as an edible gift.
I think of Pistachio butter like the underappreciated, sultry cousin to Nutella. Pistachio butter is like a silky pistachio creme that is possibly one of the most addictive of all the nut butter recipes.
This butter is better to be eaten in moderation if you’re watching your weight! I’d also say that this homemade Pistachio butter recipe is an excellent option for a DIY holiday gift. Who doesn’t love an edible Christmas gift, after all? I’ve included a list of pistachio butter uses below as well! And flavoured pistachio butter suggestions.
In terms of price, Pistachio nuts certainly aren’t easy on the purse strings. However, when looking at the cost of store-bought jars of pistachio butter and the price of making your own – It’s still much more cost-efficient to make your own. I tend to buy my pistachios in bulk (usually a 1kg bag shelled raw pistachios) since I’m using them ALL the time – For pistachio pesto, in vegan tart bases etc. Buying in bulk makes this recipe even more cost-efficient over store-bought versions.
How to make homemade pistachio butter
Just like all homemade nut butter recipes, this pistachio butter is ridiculously simple to make and takes only two ingredients: Pistachios and salt.
I started with pistachios in shells because I had a lot on hand, but if you can manage NOT to do this, then I’d suggest buying shelled pistachios. We don’t all need blisters on our fingers from shelling pistachios for twenty minutes!
To begin, you need to roast the pistachios in the oven at 165ºC (fan assisted) for 10 minutes, turning them halfway.Â
This will give the pistachio butter a delicious, toasty roasted taste. Leave these to cool entirely before starting the next step.Â
Note* It’s worth noting that pistachio butter will naturally be a brown-green shade. If you want it to be more vibrant green colour, one way to get the colour greener is to remove the pistachio skins after roasting by rubbing the roasted pistachios in between a cloth like I did in this peanut butter butter recipe .Â
Next, you blend the pistachios in a high-speed processor or blender. Depending on how powerful your blender is, this is best done in intervals. This will stop the nuts (and the machine) from overheating. The longer you blend them, the runnier in consistency your butter will be.
I always aim to make my homemade nut butter recipes oil-free, because I think they don’t need the additional oil. The blender / food processor you use does all the work for you. As the nuts are blended, their oils are released, and this helps to make a smooth paste.
Once you’ve reached your desired consistency (for me, the smoother, the better!), then add the salt to the blender.
Give a final quick blitz to combine thoroughly.
This homemade pistachio butter can then be kept in an airtight glass container in the fridge for a month. Alternatively, freeze it for up to 3 months.
I usually avoid additional ingredients to my homemade nut butter recipes because it will affect the shelf-life of the nut butter. If I do want to flavour this pistachio butter for any reason, I tend to only flavour a small batch.
Pistachio Butter flavour combinations
Here are some pistachio butter flavour combinations you could try, Â especially if making for a DIY holiday gift:
- To make a delicious, sinful pistachio spread you can mix some melted white chocolate into this spread. Alternatively, blend some white chocolate directly into the blender when making the pistachio butter, with some water.
- Pop in some homemade Vanilla extract or Vanilla Powder.
- For a delicious chocolate pistachio butter, add some cocoa powder and your favourite natural liquid sweetener of choice. The cocoa will dry the mix so the liquid is needed to avoid having to add oil.
- Add a cheeky 1 tsp of matcha for a delicious matcha pistachio butter blend
- This isn’t one I’ve tried, but you can always experiment with flavours such as pumpkin spice with some maple syrup. If you try it, let me know how it goes!
- A dash of Cinnamon could be lovely too!
- For a delicious middle eastern twist try adding some rose water and natural sweetener of choice.
How To Use Pistachio Butter/Pistachio Butter Uses
Not a word of a lie – there are tons of homemade pistachio butter uses. Not only can you use this like any other nut butter and pop it on your morning toast. You can also whip up a batch as a special DIY holiday gift (just label and ribbon the jar and this homemade pistachio butter works amazingly as an edible Christmas gift!).
Homemade pistachio butter can also be used tons of recipes including homemade pistachio ice-cream, pistachio macaron filling, to make a pistachio ‘frosting’ filling for cakes and tarts. For other pistachio butter uses, you can drizzle some over your morning porridge (or ice-cream), add a spoonful into your smoothies etc. The options are plentiful!
Other Recipes you may like
As always, if you give this recipe a go then let me know your thoughts in the comments below. Also, feel free to tag me in your recreations @AlphaFoodie.
Homemade Pistachio Butter
Ingredients
- 3 cups pistachios raw shelled
- 1/2 tsp salt
Instructions
- To begin, you need to roast the pistachios in the oven at 165ºC (fan assisted) for 10 minutes, turning them halfway.
- Leave them to cool entirely before the next step.
- Next, you simply blend the pistachios in a high-speed processor or blender. Depending on how powerful your blender is, this is best done in intervals so the nuts ( or the machine) don't overheat. The longer you blend them, the runnier in consistency your butter will be. *
- Once you've reached your desired consistency (for me, the smoother the better!) then add the salt to the blender and give a quick blitz to combine thoroughly.Â
- This homemade pistachio butter can then be kept in an airtight glass container in the fridge for a month or can be frozen for up to 3 months.Â
Video
Notes
- * For a completely smooth pistachio butter, this process can take up to 15 minutes- with plenty of breaks to your processor/blender so it doesn't heat up.
- I try not to add too many additional ingredients to my homemade nut butter recipes because every new ingredient will affect the shelf-life of the nut butter. If I do want to flavour this pistachio butter for any particular recipe then I tend to just flavour the specific amount needed for my recipe. For some flavoured options, read my blog post above
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
This was SO SMOOTH and creamy! Patience is key here but it is absolutely worth it! My mother just got diagnosed with breast cancer so we have had to make a TON of dietary changes, which has been extremely stressful. Simple SUCCESSFUL delicious things like this make me so so happy to find. THANK YOU Samira!!
Hi Rachel,
Thank you for your lovely feedback and I’m so sorry to hear about your mother. It can be challenging but these dietary changes are so worth it in the end. I’m glad I can help, good luck on your side. Xx
I recently had a cup of coffee from a little shop in Cambridge. The barista offered new flavors and one of them was pistachio. I love pistachios, and so I chose that flavor. It was so good and I kept wondering what was giving it such a true pistachio flavor and made it so smooth. When I got towards the bottom of the cup, I opened the cup and realized that it was pistachio butter that made it so good. I can’t find it in grocery stores, so this recipe is such a wonderful find. Thanks!
Thank you for your comment, Helen.
This is such a great idea – adding a spoonful of pistachio butter to the coffee sounds delicious 🙂
I’m excited to make this recipe! I love pistachios!
Is it a good idea to peel off pistachios’ skins before roasting them? I usually peel them by soaking them in boiling water for a minute, then the skin becomes soft and easy to peel. But I’m wondering if that will affect the final result for pistachio butter?
Hi Noor,
Removing the skins will mostly affect the color. You can also remove them after roasting the pistachios.
Is this the equivalent to pistachio paste? I’ve made pistachio paste before but it called for 2 other ingredients… oil and powdered sugar. I’m trying to find a recipe where I can use the final product to spread onto a cake layer and/or add to a frosting. A frosting such as a SMBC yet not have the product interfer with the consistency of the frosting…
Hi Tammie,
This homemade pistachio butter is different from the pistachio paste you talk about. This is more like a smooth peanut/almond butter.
What blender do you use? My mom would like to know:)
Hi Omar,
For this recipe, the NutraMilk machine was used – it’s linked on the Shop page on the blog if you want to check it out. However, you can use any food processor or blender to make pistachio butter.
I am trying to fat wash mezcal with pistachio butter. This means adding pistachio butter to the mezcal, shaking it, letting sit in a dark place at room temp for a few hours, then putting it in the freezer for a few hours so the fat collects again at the top. Then you filter the fat from the liquid, yet much of the flavor remains. If I made this pistachio butter, would the fat cooperate for me like this do you think?
Hi Dustyn,
I’ve never tried infusing spirits in such a way but it sounds like this pistachio butter would do the job – this recipe calls only for pistachios and a pinch of salt, no other additives.
Hi!
Is the pistachio butter become somewhat sweet naturally? I’m thinking of Pistachio gelato, etc. Or is it salty?
Thanks!
Hi Mariela,
Pistachios naturally have a slightly sweet flavor, not salty.
this is probably a stupid question, but if we buy (shelled) pre roasted pistachios, do we still have to roast them again?
Hi,
It’s recommended to use raw pistachios and roast them for a bit so they release their natural oils – this helps with blending, as well as give them the nice toasty taste. Are the pre-roasted store-bought pistachios roasted with no additives (no oil)?
10 minutes at 165 degrees burnt the pistachios and completely threw the taste off.
Hi there,
I’m so sorry your nuts burned, is your oven fan assisted? If not, it’s better to keep a close eye on them. Also, did you turn the nuts halfway throughout?
How much pistachio butter does this recipe yield?
Hi Lucy,
This recipe yields about 1.5 cups of pistachio butter.
Hey, is it possible to turn the raw pistachios into so smooth butter? I guess it could take a bit longer, but do you think that’s possible?
Hi, Seiryū.
Roasting the nuts will make them easier to process as well as will bring out their flavors. You can skip roasting them and directly blend – you will still get pistachio butter. I hope this helps 🙂
Yeah, that’s that, thanks 🙂 btw. You’ve got so many so inspirating recipes here, I’m really glad that found your blog in the depths of the internet 😀 greetings!
How did you get your pistachio butter so green? Mine was a brown colour…I de shelled all of them and took off as many skins as possible!
Hi Kimi,
The color depends a lot on the nuts themselves (their origin). It’s said that pistachios grown in cooler climates have a more vibrant color.