Sweet and Salty Chex Mix

There’s something wonderful about the sweet and salty flavor combination, especially when it comes to snacks. This sweet and salty Chex mix recipe has loads of flavor, different textures and a delightful balance of salty and sweet. It’s also an excuse to buy more cereal. This recipe is a little different than a classic Chex party mix, but every bit as delicious.

Ingredients for Sweet and Salty Chex Mix

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• Corn Chex, Cheerios and Honeycomb cereal: This trio creates an excellent flavor base for a sweet and salty party mix. The textural variation makes it fun, too.
• Pretzel sticks: Pretzels add crunch and a little salt to the snack mix.
• Sugar: Sugar makes the entire snack a little sweeter.
• Canola oil: The oil helps the flavorings stick to the dry ingredients. Vegetable oil works just as well if you don’t have canola handy.
• Butter: The butter adds a hint of buttery flavor. Melt the butter in advance; here’s how to soften butter quickly and easily.
• Soy sauce: The soy sauce adds umami and lots of flavor depth.
• Garlic salt: Garlic salt adds a lovely garlicky flavor to the party mix.

Directions 

Step 1: Prepare the cereal

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Preheat the oven to 275°F. In a very large bowl, combine the cereals and pretzels. In another bowl, mix the remaining ingredients until the sugar dissolves. Pour the liquid over the cereal mixture; toss to coat.

Step 2: Bake the Chex mix

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Transfer the snack mix to a large roasting pan. Bake the treat, uncovered, 1-1/4 hours or until the cereal is crisp, stirring every 15 minutes. Allow it to cool completely before eating it. Store the mix in an airtight container.

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Recipe Variations

• Sesame treats: Add 1/2 teaspoon or so of sesame oil to the wet mixture to give the treats a hint of sesame flavor that’s oh-so wonderful.
• Get spicy: Add 1/8 teaspoon or so of powdered cayenne pepper to spice things up just a little. Here’s a kickin’ snack mix recipe that features cayenne and other flavors.
• Add wasabi peas: To make things even hotter, add a handful or two of crunchy wasabi peas to the mix. They’ll add pops of color and heat to the mix.
• Add cheddar crackers: Add a snack-sized bag of small cheddar-flavored crackers for an even more flavorful treat.

How to Store Sweet and Salty Chex Mix

Wait until the mix cools completely, then transfer it to an airtight container and store it at room temperature. It’ll keep for two to four weeks, but will it really stick around that long? If you leave it within eyesight, watch out, it vanishes quickly!

Can you make sweet and salty Chex mix ahead of time?

Absolutely! A friend’s mother used to make a batch for her son to enjoy every time he returned home from college. Around the holidays, she’d make extra batches and put them in metal cookie tins. Make the mix up to a week in advance and keep it in an airtight container or zippered storage bag.

Sweet and Salty Chex Mix Tips

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Could I use different cereal?

Sure! Try Crispix, or rice or wheat Chex instead of the corn Chex, and Kix or Multi-Grain or Honey Nut Cheerios instead of original Cheerios. Chocolate and peanut butter ball-shaped cereals are another option that tastes delish in this recipe. Off-brand cereals work, too; just pick a variety that tastes good, and that is crunchy and will hold up well in such a recipe. Here’s a recipe for a healthy snack mix that also uses a lot of cereal.

What else could I add to this mix?

So many things taste delicious in a party mix; add pistachios, walnuts or a variety of mixed nuts, some caramel corn or lightly salted popcorn, or even some corn chips.

Could I reduce the sugar?

Sure! Feel free to cut 1/3 to 1/2 of the sugar if you don’t want such the mix to be so sweet. Reducing the amount of Honeycomb cereal will also cut some of the sugar.