{ Just here to make the dang spicy Chex Mix? Skip straight to the recipe! }
Are you old enough to remember when there was no Pinterest? And no social media? The only pictures you saw of the food people made for parties or to give to their friends were blurry photos they snapped with actual film cameras, and those photos were mostly of actual people. Do you remember when food didn't have to look good unless you were in a fancy city restaurant? And people didn't have to look all that good at parties because the photos were guaranteed to blur out any imperfections, leaving behind only happy memories. Remember when parties were parties, not showcases? I do.
I also remember my mother making easy things, like spaghetti sauce, pot roast, oatmeal cookies, chicken divan, and Chex Mix. The packaged stuff is fine, but it doesn't hold a candle to the buttery deliciousness of fresh-baked, homemade Chex Mix. As an aside, I have a really good idea and no restaurant seems to want it so if you own a restaurant and need a gimmick, this can be yours for free, as long as you promise to give away little bowls of it at the bar.
Have your chef make a Chex Mix of the Day. The spice blend can complement that day's specials. Serve little bowls of it in the bar. People will love you. You're welcome.
Chex Mix pairs well with any number of cold drinks, from ginger ale to prosecco. The bubbles are nice to cut the salt, but a sweet, cool lemonade or a cup of cranberry party punch also complements the salty, crunchy mix. It can also be eaten in pajamas wen you're just to tired and sad to deal, in which case you should pair it with copious amounts of water because adding soda or booze to the mix isn't going to make you feel any better.
You can never have enough Chex Mix because people will also eat it at the end of the night, when they think they're finished eating but you're all playing pool and you're actually not finished eating. This makes it the perfect host gift for a holiday party. Your host can serve it immediately if they've suddenly realized they forgot honey roasted peanuts or they can wait. It is perfect for the famed "two-hours-later course." Chex Mix is a versatile dish!
The holidays are here. Now is the time we trade mason jars!
Christmas is when we all trade mason jars. You get a bunch of them, filled with artichoke relish, jellies and jams, caramel sauce, bourbon-soaked cherries, Russian tea mix, cookies-in-a-jar, and a whole host of other things. And you use the ones you have from last year to bring whatever it is you like to put in a jar to other people. Keep it classy: Buy new lids and throw out all the rusty ones. (Yes, I know they're only meant to be used once and then tossed, but I use them again, but only at my house.) Use your mason jars for gifts with abandon. They'll come back.
On to the Chex Mix. I happen to like a slightly spicy blend and the combination of Wholly gochujang and Beautiful Briny Sea's Sultan Papadopolous salt hits the spot. I also think little melba toasts are important, even if my family picks them out and eats them before most people even get here. Nuts are optional but they do make Chex Mix into a meal because of the protein. Chex Mix was an essential part of this balanced lunch, which we ate the day after Thanksgiving.
I've started making my Chex Mix in the slow cooker because it's less messy, and I can. This recipe makes about 20 cups, but you'll need to subtract a cup or two because it cooks with the lid off and every time someone walks by they'll taste it "just to make sure you're doing it right."
Anyhow, blah, blah, blah ... this was supposed to be easy, so here's the recipe for spicy slow cooker Chex mix.
Slow Cooker Guchujang Chex Mix
◔ Makes about 20 cups
⧖ 10 minutes, plus 2 hours cooking time (with intermittent stirring)
3 cups corn Chex cereal
3 cups rice Chex cereal
2 cups wheat Chex cereal
2 cups melba toast, bite-size
2 cups pretzels, bite-size
1 ½ cups cashews or other nuts (one 8.5 ounce can)
1 stick butter or margarine
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon gochujang sauce or Sriracha
2 teaspoons seasoning salt, like Beautiful Briny Sea Sultan Papadopolous
1 teaspoon garlic powder
½ teaspoon onion powder
Combine cereal, melba toast, pretzels, and cashews in a slow cooker.
Melt butter in a pan and whisk in all other ingredients.
Pour over cereal mixture and stir gently to combine.
Cook for 2 hours in the slow cooker on high, with the lid off. Stir every thirty minutes or so to keep the pieces on the bottom from burning.
Remove from slow cooker and package or serve immediately to prevent burning.
Notes:
Wholly Gochujang or a similar product works really well, but Sriracha or another chili sauce can be used if that's what you have in the fridge. If you're sensitive to sulfites, Wholly Gochujang is a good choice because, unlike Sriracha, it is sulfite-free.
The exact composition of the cereal isn't all that important, so if you have rice Chex and you're all out of corn? Just make sure you have 8 total cups of Chex cereal, any type.
Use vegan versions of margarine and Worcestershire sauce if you want to make this one vegan-friendly. (And why not?)
So, you hungry? Do you have a few minutes? Make spicy Chex Mix. If you need some more super easy ideas for food gifts, take a look at this article I wrote for Free Times a few years ago. I've always been lazy!