Learn how to make awesome Chex Mix in the slow cooker with this easy recipe! It’s super easy, and always a crowd fave.
Have you ever heard of the Baader-Meinhof Phenomenon?
Well if you’re like me, you have probably known exactly what it is, but never knew it had an official name. Basically, it’s what happens when That New Thing you just found out about suddenly seems to start showing up everywhere. Like when I started researching buying a Prius, and I suddenly noticed every single Prius on the road. Or when a friend recommended a new author to read, and suddenly I started hearing her quoted everywhere. Or when I randomly picked up a pennywhistle at work and taught myself how to play it, and then realized it’s hidden in way more popular songs than just the theme song to Titanic. ;)
You know.
Well, call it Baaeder-Meinhof (or call it by its shorter name, “frequency illusion”) or call it a simple coincidence, the same thing has been happening over the past month with slow cooker Chex mix. It began when I saw a recipe for crock pot Chex mix out of the corner of my eye on Pinterest, and was immediately intrigued. Then a week later, a friend brought a batch of sweet Chex mix to a party and announced that she made it in the slow cooker. Then another completely different friend brought a batch to our neighbor night. And then…well, then I was just craving Chex mix.
I’ve long been a fan of making my favorite Extra-Bold Chex Mix recipe in the microwave. But this crock-pot method seemed too tempting not to try. So I pulled out my slow cooker and decided to make a test batch.
And I’ve gotta say — speaking of phenomenons, it was quite phenomenal. ;)
Actually, Chex mix has been a regular occurrence in my kitchen since before I even had my own kitchen. I had the great luck of growing up with a mom who whipped up batches of the stuff for just about any occasion, and all of the cravings in between. Our family loves Chex mix.
Although while I love the traditional recipe, I have to admit that I usually double or triple the seasonings. I love my salt. :)
Still, while I have made Chex mix at least one or two hundred times in my life (no exaggeration), this past month was the first time I have ever made it in the slow cooker!
For my inaugural batch, I decided to go with the classic recipe using 3 kinds of Chex cereal (rice, corn and wheat), pretzels, Cheerios and peanuts. I lined them all up just to show you, but obviously (and please), just dump ’em all in.
And then pour your seasoning evenly all over the top. (I used the traditional mixture of melted butter, worcestershire, seasoned salt and garlic powder.)
Then give it a good, gentle stir to toss everything together. (I recommend using a rubber spatula in order to try and avoid breaking the cereal pieces.) Then cover and let it cook on low for about 3 hours. In order to prevent burning, you have to give it a stir at least once an hour, and probably twice in the final hour.
Then, sure enough, 3 hours later the Chex mix is cooked and ready to go!
You still have to spread it out on some baking pans (or my mom always just spread out parchment paper all over the countertops and spread out the mix there) to let it cool to room temperature. But otherwise, the slow cooker (that’s an affiliate link to the one I used) does all of the work for you.
And oh man, this stuff is as irresistible as ever. It’s salty, crunchy, savory, and perfect for snacking. (And snacking…and snacking some more.)
My mom and I usually sub in whatever random ingredients we have on hand — various cereals, cookies, crackers, or candies. But the original recipe is a classic for a reason, and you can’t go wrong with all of those Chex.
I will say, my biggest question was whether or not making Chex mix in the slow cooker would actually be any easier than the microwave or oven versions. And to be honest, I don’t think it’s any easier. Any of those versions require you to keep an eye on the cooking process and give the mix a stir every so often. And the slow cooker version certainly takes the longest of the three methods.
But it does do a remarkable job of making your home smell like yummy Chex mix. And if you happen to be hanging near the kitchen for a few hours — say, when you’re cooking another meal, or having people over for a party or to watch the big game, it would be fun to try it in the slow cooker. Or, you know, if you are just looking for an excuse to make another batch, it’s definitely something that ever Chex-mix-lover should try. ;)
So here’s how I made it. Enjoy!
Slow Cooker Chex Mix
Ingredients
- 9 cups Chex cereal (I used equal parts corn, rice, and wheat Chex)
- 2 cups pretzels
- 1 cup Cheerios
- 1 cup peanuts
- 1/3 cup (6 Tablespoons) butter, melted and hot
- 1 Tablespoon seasoned salt
- 1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder (optional)
Instructions
- Add cereal, pretzels, cheerios and peanuts to the bowl of a slow cooker.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together butter and seasoned salt until the salt is dissolved. Stir in the Worcestershire sauce until combined.
- Drizzle the sauce evenly over the top of the cereal mixture. Toss for about 1 minute, or until the mixture is evenly combined.
- Cover and slow cook on low for 3 hours, stirring at the 1 hour, 2 hour and 2.5 hour marks so that the mixture does not burn. Then spread the mixture out onto a few baking sheets or parchment paper in an even layer until it cools to room temperature. Serve, or store in a sealed container for up to 3 weeks.
- *If your slow cooker does not have a tiny hole in it to let air escape, it may collect too much condensation which could make the Chex Mix get too soggy. If that is the case, another great method is to place a towel (or a few layers of paper towels) just under the lid of the slow cooker, to collect the condensation.*
Notes
Did you make this?Let me know how it turned out in the comments below!This post contains affiliate links.
Tried this today. Our store only had the rice Chex so I bought the shredding cereal and added cherries. Also for a cheesy taste added cheese flavored buggless. I thought I would use honey roasted peanuts but the coating melted and so next time I would just add them at the end.
We’re glad you enjoyed it Bonita, and we bet honey roasted peanuts would be delish in this!
I have been making Chex Mix for ages and always took it on our beach vacations – tradition!! But I made HUGE batches – dumped the entire box of each of three chex cereals into two large Tupperware bowls, added a large jar of peanuts in addition to the pretzels AND then subbed 1/2 of the butter with (melted) peanut butter. Everything else was proportionally the same! It was delicious and I liked to think it was a tad bit healthier with the peanut butter instead of the butter! Ha! But it was all gone at the end of the two weeks and many cocktail hours. The beach vacations would not be the same without it!
Isn’t it the best?! Thats sounds like a wonderful family tradition you guys have there. :)
I enjoyed this method, even though I put it on high (didn’t pay attention), and forgot to stir it for quite a while. Turned it to low when I realized my error, and cooked it the required three hours. I did end up with some burnt pieces, but that was my fault. I don’t have a vent hole on my lid, but I kept the lid tipped the entire time. Came out nice and crunchy. Much better than microwave style. Plus with microwave, I have to do half batches because I don’t have a large enough microwave safe bowl. I used sea salt cashews I had that had no flavor–this really picked them up. Also one cup of almonds, and a cup of gently broken up Win Schuler garlic crisps– kind of like Melba toast only white. I don’t do pretzels or Cheerios. Every time I have someone’s Chex mix with Cheerios, I just think it’s off. I will use this method again for sure! Now I’m off to explore other recipes here. Thanks, Ali!
Thanks for sharing with us, we’re glad you enjoyed the recipe, and we hope you enjoy some of the other recipes on the blog as well! :D
I tried this recipe last night, and it worked out perfectly! At first I was hesitant, because like some others had mentioned, my mom tried Chex Mix in the crock pot and it doesn’t come out crispy enough. Because I wanted to avoid that happening, I added the paper towel at the top of the Crock Pot even though my slow cooker DOES have the small hole. I think this is what did the trick for me, and I would recommend doing that, just to be on the safe side .
My Chex mix is crispy all-around, and tastes great! I also enjoyed the connivence of stirring every 30 minutes instead of every 10 minutes in an oven. If you have the time to do that, such as on a weekend or day off (like I did yesterday!), it’s worth not having to stick around the kitchen for an hour.
Thanks for sharing the recipe!
Thanks much for sharing Georgia, we’re so glad this worked out well for you! :D
My family loves this stuff. I also started cooking it in a turkey roaster because I can double the recipe. We love broken up Stacy’s Pita Chips, broken ramen noodles, and cashew bits and pieces in place of the cheerios and nuts.
Thanks for sharing Karm – we love your family’s method, it sounds like an amazing combination!
Silly question, but what is seasoned salt? Any particular brands you recommend? Thank you and thanks for the recipe – can’t wait to try it!!!
Hi Elise! Seasoned salt is a blend of table salt, herbs and spices (usually the spices listed here). We like McCormick or Morton’s. :)
Hi Dee! If you’re concerned about salt in this, you could always use lightly salted or unsalted peanuts, and/or you could just add the salt to taste (maybe start with 1/2 TBS first – you can gradually add more if you like). We hope this helps and that you enjoy!
I saw this on Facebook today, went to the store and got everything, but when I got home I realized I forgot the Cheerios so I used Gold Fish (with 3 kids we have plenty of them). I just took it out of the crockpot and it’s awesome. Thanks for posting!!!!!!
Yay, we’re so glad you guys enjoyed this! :)
Try using some Honeycomb cereal. The salty & sweet is awesome. Gonna try a small batch tonight using some teriyaki.
Thanks for the recommendation Katy, we’ll definitely have to try that! :)
I made my mom’s recipe of this, but hers only had 2 sticks of butter, 1 tsp. Garlic powder, a dash of worchester. Sauce. I already baked it in the oven. It is not spicy enough. What can I do to correct this. Too expensive to throw out. Can I I add more Worcester shire sauce, butter and seasonings and mix if dry maybe with vegetable oil?
Hi there, you can certainly toss it with a little bit of cayenne pepper for more spice! Or if you just want more flavor all around, toss it with more seasonings and Worcestershire to taste. We hope this helps!