Accessibility links Skip to main content Keyboard shortcuts for audio player Open Navigation Menu --> Newsletters NPR Shop Close Navigation Menu Home News Expand/collapse submenu for News National World Politics Business Health Science Climate Race Culture Expand/collapse submenu for Culture Books Movies Television Pop Culture Food Art & Design Performing Arts Life Kit Gaming Music Expand/collapse submenu for Music Tiny Desk New Music Friday All Songs Considered Music Features Live Sessions The Best Music of 2025 Podcasts & Shows Expand/collapse submenu for Podcasts & Shows Daily Morning Edition Weekend Edition Saturday Weekend Edition Sunday All Things Considered Up First Here & Now NPR Politics Podcast Featured Wait Wait...Don't Tell Me! Fresh Air Wild Card with Rachel Martin It's Been a Minute Planet Money Get NPR+ More Podcasts & Shows Search Newsletters NPR Shop Tiny Desk New Music Friday All Songs Considered Music Features Live Sessions The Best Music of 2025 About NPR Diversity Support Careers Press Ethics Happy 125th birthday to the PB&J! What's more accessible, reliable and universally beloved than a peanut butter and jelly sandwich? Turns out this affordable finger-food staple got its start at high tea. National Happy 125th birthday to the PB&J! April 2, 20265:47 PM ET Heard on All Things Considered From By Andrea Shea Happy 125th birthday to the PB&J! Listen · 3:39 3:39 Transcript Toggle more options Download Embed Embed "> <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/nx-s1-5726833/nx-s1-9714870" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript What's more accessible, reliable and universally beloved than a peanut butter and jelly sandwich? Turns out this affordable finger-food staple got its start at high tea. Sponsor Message
SCOTT DETROW, HOST:
All right, try to name the sandwich I'm talking about. It is savory, and it is sweet, and it is accessible, reliable, affordable and historic. It is National Peanut Butter and Jelly Day, so WBUR's Andrea Shea has a story about the all-American lunchbox staple's origins in Boston 125 years ago.
(SOUNDBITE OF BREAD BAG RUSTLING)
ANDREA SHEA, BYLINE: Food historian Susan Benjamin opens a bag of bread, then a couple of jars...
(SOUNDBITE OF JAR LID UNSCREWING)
SHEA: ...And starts slathering.
SUSAN BENJAMIN: When you put the peanut butter on the bread, it's crazy to imagine how many legions of people have done this exact same thing.
SHEA: Benjamin is the author of "Fun Foods Of America" and says the PB&J we know today has Victorian-era roots. In the late 1800s, peanut butter was everywhere, and she dug up recipes for jelly sandwiches in old newspapers.
BENJAMIN: But they didn't say peanut butter and jelly. They were separate.
SHEA: Until a 1901 article brought them together - it was published by the Boston Cooking School, which was founded by women to empower women with knowledge about food, nutrition and budgeting. In her magazine piece, Julia Davis Chandler suggested a dainty triple decker with - (reading) three very thin layers of bread and two of filling, one of peanut paste, whatever brand you prefer, and currant or crab apple jelly for the other. The combination is delicious, and so far as I know, original.
BENJAMIN: This was, as far as we know, the first recipe for PB&J that would later land in kids' lunch boxes but started in the tea rooms of the fancy and well to do. And then you start to see iterations of peanut butter and jelly popping up all around the country.
SHEA: Including peanut butter and jelly with watercress. But it took time for the PB&J to really take hold.
BENJAMIN: Now, as you move into the '20s, something bubbles up, and that is that women overtly said something they'd been feeling for a really long time, which is that they hate to cook. Peanut butter and jelly - not only do the kids love it, but they can do it for themselves. Go ahead, honey. Make your own sandwich. And it really took off.
SHEA: With help from mass-produced jarred peanut butter and jelly and machine-sliced bread. Benjamin says PB&J appealed because it was nutritious, portable and affordable. During the Depression, moms relied on it to sustain their families. World War II soldiers' rations included peanut butter and jelly kits. In the post-war 1950s, homemakers had access to convenient processed food in cans and boxes but also faced pressure to conform to domestic ideals.
BENJAMIN: At that time, women felt really guilty about using ready-made cake mixes and so on because they felt like they were cheating. Peanut butter and jelly was just as easy, but they weren't cheating.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "PEANUT BUTTER & JELLY")
UNIDENTIFIED MUSICAL ARTIST #1: (Singing) Peanut peanut butter.
UNIDENTIFIED MUSICAL ARTIST #2: (Singing) And jelly.
UNIDENTIFIED MUSICAL ARTIST #1: (Singing) Peanut peanut butter.
UNIDENTIFIED MUSICAL ARTIST #2: (Singing) And Jelly.
SHEA: In this century, the humble PB&J has been a star in songs like this children's classic, memes and "Family Guy." It's the NBA's favorite pregame power snack. But for Susan Benjamin, PB&J will always be the sandwich that still makes women's lives easier. For NPR News, I'm Andrea Shea in Boston.
(SOUNDBITE OF BUCKWHEAT BOYZ SONG, "PEANUT BUTTER JELLY TIME") Copyright © 2026 NPR. All rights reserved. Visit our website terms of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for further information. Accuracy and availability of NPR transcripts may vary. Transcript text may be revised to correct errors or match updates to audio. Audio on npr.org may be edited after its original broadcast or publication. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record. Facebook Flipboard Email Read & Listen Home News Culture Music Podcasts & Shows Connect Newsletters Facebook Instagram Press Public Editor Corrections Transcripts Contact & Help About NPR Overview Diversity NPR Network Accessibility Ethics Finances Get Involved Support Public Radio Sponsor NPR NPR Careers NPR Shop NPR Extra Terms of Use Privacy Your Privacy Choices Text Only Sponsor Message Sponsor MessageBecome an NPR sponsor (function () { var loadPageJs = function () { (window.webpackJsonp=window.webpackJsonp||[]).push([[22],{1167:function(e,n,c){e.exports=c(323)},323:function(e,n,c){"use strict";c.p=NPR.serverVars.webpackPublicPath,Promise.all([c.e(1),c.e(2),c.e(3),c.e(4),c.e(84)]).then(function(e){c(3),c(1140),c(116),c(94),c(52),c(493),c(239),c(102),c(104),c(1141),c(143),c(1142),c(238),c(48),c(1143)}.bind(null,c)).catch(c.oe)}},[[1167,0]]]); }; if (document.readyState === 'complete') { loadPageJs(); } else { window.addEventListener('load', function load() { window.removeEventListener('load', load, false); loadPageJs(); }); } })();