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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. ;)
Did you know that your favorite homemade Chex Mix recipe can be made in the slow cooker? Give it a try!
Ingredients
Scale
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
*Legally, I have to mention that you do so at your own risk, as technically that could be a fire hazard. But I’ve used that method for years with crispy slow cooker recipes, and have never had a problem.
What a great idea! I have become a big snacker in the last few months, and chex would be a favorite choice…..other than the fact I am trying to work on making everything myself, no processed! Well you just solved that for me, thank you! My bottomless pit runner belly will thank you for this one :)
YES!! That actually happens with pregnancy too…I swear I never see any pregnant people until I’M pregnant, then there are fifty of us grocery shopping!
OMG, yes! I know exactly what you are talking about with this phenomenon (except is it bad that I feel like it’s not a “perception”—it always seems so REAL!) Thanks for tripling the spices. xo, a fellow salt-lover :)
Wait. What?? Crockpot Chex Mix?? Be still my heart.
I don’t know WHY we don’t eat this except at the holidays {probably because my backside would be twice its normal size!!}. Can’t wait to try!!
PS Buffalo Chex Mix. To. Die. For.
I really had to laugh out loud when I read your comments on Baader-Meinhof. They were a German terrorist couple in the seventies, and they did tons of movies about their group, the Red Army Fraction. But I never heard about this cognitive bias, I guess this is almost unknown here in Germany due to the strong historical background. Just learned something new ;-)
I made some chex mix in my slow cooker a few weeks back and loved how easy it was. Your pictures are gorgeous! Makes me want to dive right in! Pinned!!
You know, I never knew that concept had a name….so glad I do now! Oh I could eat this whole batch! Perfect timing with the World Series tomorrow to cheer on our Royals!
This is a US snack mix and its popular over there? I’m in Australia, and I have to admit I have a bit of an obsession with American snacks and anything related to your Holiday seasons. We do get very festive over here, but it’s just that I think Americans take it that one step further. Just like I do.
Anyway, I’m going to fund substitute ingredients over here and make it for Christmas parties :)
Love this! We call it nuts n’ bolts here for whatever reason…and my grandma will actually cross the border to the states to pick up the cereals we can’t get here!
Well, I must be out of the loop, because I’ve never heard of this before. Annnddd I love it! Chex-mex has been a staple in my house since I was a kid, and now as an adult it’s always around. Definitely trying it out in the slow-cooker next time!
LOVE the chex mix time of year! I’ve alwasy heard you could make it in a slow cooker, but haven’t actually tried it out that way yet. I’ll give it a go!
WOW! Thank you for posting this! I always make the traditional recipe in the oven, but this will be so easy and I can get other things done while it’s “baking”.
xo, Lee
I have been checking your site periodically since I made a vegetarian version of your enchilada casserole a few weeks ago, because it was so delicious! I just had to say that I heard of the Baader-Meinhof phenomenon for the first time ever a few days ago on a show I randomly started watching on Hulu (A to Z). Now here we are a few days later…BAADER-MEINHOF PHENOMENON discussed on a cooking site I just started following. So strange, I had to comment! Anyway, I love Chex Mix in the winter. Does it really get as crispy as in the oven this way? Can’t wait to try it. Thanks!
Just noticed your tags – most Worcestershire sauce is made with anchovies and thus, technically the recipe is not vegetarian. There are some that are made vegetarian, but a lot of commercially available ones aren’t. It’s pescaterian though, I suppose.
Sounds good but my family tradition is to make it in a turkey roaster! We dump a box of Rice Chex, a box or Wheat Chex… I’ll have you know I never have cooked a turkey in that pan but made many batches of what we called TV mix!
This is the same recipe my family has used for years and we call it “Trash”. We love having trash around the holidays, haha! My mom and I were wondering the same thing as Lindsey. Does it get as crispy as it does in the oven, doing it this way?
I love the idea of making it in the crockpot because I won’t have to worry about making a mess trying to stir it in the shallower cake pans as I normally would, and I don’t have to worry about burning myself on the oven, because I don’t want to take the time to pull the pans out to stir!
Yum. Yum. Yum. I grew up on chez mix and love that this is a one pot fix it’s tough to find a big enough bowl to mix all the ingredients in before dumping onto sheet pans so the crock pot is perfect. And @Sara – my grandma was from MI and also called it Nuts & Bolts! Must be that part of North America. :)
This will free up the oven for other baking. Always looking on how to multi task in the kitchen. We made this with many more seasonings ie. celery salt, onion salt, garlic salt, seasoning salt, and the butter, Worcestershire. It’s all yum.
I am in the process of making this as I type. Mine has an hour left and I taste tested it and it was soggy. Any suggestions? I followed everything as you said. :(
Oh no! I wonder if your slow cooker collects more condensation than mine. You can place a thin towel (or a few paper towel) underneath the lid to collect the condensation. But otherwise, give it a stir and you might just need to cook it an extra half hour or so. It will also dry out more once you lay the chex mix out to dry afterwards.
My crockpot has a vent hole but it still didn’t get as crispy as it should have. I won’t give up! I will try a thin towel next time.. Thanks for the idea!
I also had the problem of my crockpot lid collecting condensation and making the cereal and pretzels soggy. After noticing the problem, I took the lid off and let it continue cooking like that.
So I tried making chex mix in the crockpot last week and it did get soggy so I was searching for different recipes and now I’m glad I found this one! Thanks for the tips on stirring and the potential condensation!! :)
My mom makes these all the time. She uses the straight pretzels and adds pecans. She uses her electric roaster tho, and makes a lot at a time. It’s wonderful.
GREAT idea — making Chex Mix in a crockpot! I’ve been making Chex Mix for years in the oven, so I’ll definitely have to try it!
Through experimentation, I’ve left out the seasoned salt in my Mixes (it makes it TOO salty for my palate). I’ve liked the taste of the Mix sauce, so (like you) I usually double the amount of butter, Worcestershire sauce, and garlic and onion powder (of the standard Mix recipe) when I make my Mix. (I also like to substitute peanuts for the mixed nuts, and add in a cup or two of Cheerios, pretzel rods or minis, and/or other unsweetened grain cereals.)
I also noticed that your recipe says “Serve, or store in a sealed container for up to 3 weeks.” Does your Mix even last ONE week?
I tried this today to give away as Christmas gifts, and as handy as it is, I’m not a huge fan… I even stirred it more often than suggested, and it still ended up burning on the very bottom… which unfortunately made the rest of the batch taste burned. It seems so wasteful, but I think this batch is going in the garbage & I’m going back to the regular ol’ oven version. It was a little bland too. If I tried this again, I’d cook it at least an hour shorter than suggested, or turn it down to “warm” for the last hour or so. Good tip about putting a towel under the lid – that helped a lot with the condensation!
Don’t wait an hour to stir, it actually burns if you wait that long. I stirred every hour and on the second hour of stirring it had already burned. So next time I will try stirring every half hour or sooner. But it was easier than the oven method.
This stuff is the bomb, any way you fix it. My dad used to make this with mixed nuts..loved the brazil nuts the best. For whatever reason, we always called it ” Dog Food”. I have no idea why…lol
My mom has been making this same thing for years, we just call it “Trash”. I make it in the oven, because I use a huge pot because I have a huge family and everyone loves it.
What a great idea! I have become a big snacker in the last few months, and chex would be a favorite choice…..other than the fact I am trying to work on making everything myself, no processed! Well you just solved that for me, thank you! My bottomless pit runner belly will thank you for this one :)
YES!! That actually happens with pregnancy too…I swear I never see any pregnant people until I’M pregnant, then there are fifty of us grocery shopping!
This Chex mix is gorgeous! Need.
Confession? I’m not a Chex Mix girl. I know, I know!!! But I am totally intrigued by this slow cooker method. Super creative!
What a fun idea to do chex mix in the slow cooker! xo
OMG, yes! I know exactly what you are talking about with this phenomenon (except is it bad that I feel like it’s not a “perception”—it always seems so REAL!) Thanks for tripling the spices. xo, a fellow salt-lover :)
LOVE this idea to use the slow cooker. I cannot wait to try it this Christmas!
I had no idea you could make chex mix in a slow cooker! Simply brilliant and perfect for World Series watching!!
Love this! It reminds me when I was little. My mom always had chex mix going in the crock pot for both Thanksgiving and Christmas.
I’ve never heard of such a thing, but this is SUCH a good idea!!
Wait. What?? Crockpot Chex Mix?? Be still my heart.
I don’t know WHY we don’t eat this except at the holidays {probably because my backside would be twice its normal size!!}. Can’t wait to try!!
PS Buffalo Chex Mix. To. Die. For.
I really had to laugh out loud when I read your comments on Baader-Meinhof. They were a German terrorist couple in the seventies, and they did tons of movies about their group, the Red Army Fraction. But I never heard about this cognitive bias, I guess this is almost unknown here in Germany due to the strong historical background. Just learned something new ;-)
I made some chex mix in my slow cooker a few weeks back and loved how easy it was. Your pictures are gorgeous! Makes me want to dive right in! Pinned!!
You know, I never knew that concept had a name….so glad I do now! Oh I could eat this whole batch! Perfect timing with the World Series tomorrow to cheer on our Royals!
Virtual hug to you Ali. I’m so in love to your recipe. My kids will definitely love this. Can’t wait to try this on weekend. ♥ ♥ ♥
Love this mix, I know I’d inhale a few handfuls! :)
This is a US snack mix and its popular over there? I’m in Australia, and I have to admit I have a bit of an obsession with American snacks and anything related to your Holiday seasons. We do get very festive over here, but it’s just that I think Americans take it that one step further. Just like I do.
Anyway, I’m going to fund substitute ingredients over here and make it for Christmas parties :)
Love this! We call it nuts n’ bolts here for whatever reason…and my grandma will actually cross the border to the states to pick up the cereals we can’t get here!
I am a SUCKER for chexmix. Can’t wait to try this :) It looks ta die for.
Well, I must be out of the loop, because I’ve never heard of this before. Annnddd I love it! Chex-mex has been a staple in my house since I was a kid, and now as an adult it’s always around. Definitely trying it out in the slow-cooker next time!
LOVE the chex mix time of year! I’ve alwasy heard you could make it in a slow cooker, but haven’t actually tried it out that way yet. I’ll give it a go!
This is brilliant! I never would have thought to make chex mix in a slow cooker, but it looks absolutely perfect!
What a great way to make Chex Mix!
WOW! Thank you for posting this! I always make the traditional recipe in the oven, but this will be so easy and I can get other things done while it’s “baking”.
xo, Lee
I have been checking your site periodically since I made a vegetarian version of your enchilada casserole a few weeks ago, because it was so delicious! I just had to say that I heard of the Baader-Meinhof phenomenon for the first time ever a few days ago on a show I randomly started watching on Hulu (A to Z). Now here we are a few days later…BAADER-MEINHOF PHENOMENON discussed on a cooking site I just started following. So strange, I had to comment! Anyway, I love Chex Mix in the winter. Does it really get as crispy as in the oven this way? Can’t wait to try it. Thanks!
Just noticed your tags – most Worcestershire sauce is made with anchovies and thus, technically the recipe is not vegetarian. There are some that are made vegetarian, but a lot of commercially available ones aren’t. It’s pescaterian though, I suppose.
Sounds good but my family tradition is to make it in a turkey roaster! We dump a box of Rice Chex, a box or Wheat Chex… I’ll have you know I never have cooked a turkey in that pan but made many batches of what we called TV mix!
This is the same recipe my family has used for years and we call it “Trash”. We love having trash around the holidays, haha! My mom and I were wondering the same thing as Lindsey. Does it get as crispy as it does in the oven, doing it this way?
Ha, nice. And yep, it definitely gets crispy!
I love the idea of making it in the crockpot because I won’t have to worry about making a mess trying to stir it in the shallower cake pans as I normally would, and I don’t have to worry about burning myself on the oven, because I don’t want to take the time to pull the pans out to stir!
We make this but we call it nuts and bolts…. Best time to make it too with Christmas coming makes an awesome gift..
I also take a handful out of the pan after cooking and sprinkle a little Buffalo Tabasco and reheat.. Pretty good stuff..
When you say you double or triple the seasonings, do you also double or triple the butter?
Yes, I add more butter if I double or triple. :)
I like the idea of making my own because I don’t like the pretzels. I like them in general, but they are too dry in the Chex mix.
What type of peanuts do you use? Baking or snacking? Thanks!
I used basic party peanuts for this recipe, but any will work. Enjoy! :)
This is a great idea! Will definitely try this at home.
Yum. Yum. Yum. I grew up on chez mix and love that this is a one pot fix it’s tough to find a big enough bowl to mix all the ingredients in before dumping onto sheet pans so the crock pot is perfect. And @Sara – my grandma was from MI and also called it Nuts & Bolts! Must be that part of North America. :)
Love this idea! I add a ton of extra seasoning too. ;)
This will free up the oven for other baking. Always looking on how to multi task in the kitchen. We made this with many more seasonings ie. celery salt, onion salt, garlic salt, seasoning salt, and the butter, Worcestershire. It’s all yum.
I am in the process of making this as I type. Mine has an hour left and I taste tested it and it was soggy. Any suggestions? I followed everything as you said. :(
Oh no! I wonder if your slow cooker collects more condensation than mine. You can place a thin towel (or a few paper towel) underneath the lid to collect the condensation. But otherwise, give it a stir and you might just need to cook it an extra half hour or so. It will also dry out more once you lay the chex mix out to dry afterwards.
My crockpot has a vent hole but it still didn’t get as crispy as it should have. I won’t give up! I will try a thin towel next time.. Thanks for the idea!
I also had the problem of my crockpot lid collecting condensation and making the cereal and pretzels soggy. After noticing the problem, I took the lid off and let it continue cooking like that.
So I tried making chex mix in the crockpot last week and it did get soggy so I was searching for different recipes and now I’m glad I found this one! Thanks for the tips on stirring and the potential condensation!! :)
My mom makes these all the time. She uses the straight pretzels and adds pecans. She uses her electric roaster tho, and makes a lot at a time. It’s wonderful.
Made this today. Absolutely delicious! I almost wish it wasn’t this delicious because I can’t stop eating it! Thank you for the recipe!
I’ve got this in the slow cooker right now! I know I’ll make this way too often, now, due to how easy this is! Thank you for sharing. :)
GREAT idea — making Chex Mix in a crockpot! I’ve been making Chex Mix for years in the oven, so I’ll definitely have to try it!
Through experimentation, I’ve left out the seasoned salt in my Mixes (it makes it TOO salty for my palate). I’ve liked the taste of the Mix sauce, so (like you) I usually double the amount of butter, Worcestershire sauce, and garlic and onion powder (of the standard Mix recipe) when I make my Mix. (I also like to substitute peanuts for the mixed nuts, and add in a cup or two of Cheerios, pretzel rods or minis, and/or other unsweetened grain cereals.)
I also noticed that your recipe says “Serve, or store in a sealed container for up to 3 weeks.” Does your Mix even last ONE week?
I tried this today to give away as Christmas gifts, and as handy as it is, I’m not a huge fan… I even stirred it more often than suggested, and it still ended up burning on the very bottom… which unfortunately made the rest of the batch taste burned. It seems so wasteful, but I think this batch is going in the garbage & I’m going back to the regular ol’ oven version. It was a little bland too. If I tried this again, I’d cook it at least an hour shorter than suggested, or turn it down to “warm” for the last hour or so. Good tip about putting a towel under the lid – that helped a lot with the condensation!
Don’t wait an hour to stir, it actually burns if you wait that long. I stirred every hour and on the second hour of stirring it had already burned. So next time I will try stirring every half hour or sooner. But it was easier than the oven method.
This stuff is the bomb, any way you fix it. My dad used to make this with mixed nuts..loved the brazil nuts the best. For whatever reason, we always called it ” Dog Food”. I have no idea why…lol
My mom has been making this same thing for years, we just call it “Trash”. I make it in the oven, because I use a huge pot because I have a huge family and everyone loves it.
Don’t leave out the Bugles and pecans! I also love to use Crispix, corn on one side, rice on the other.