Homemade Bar Snack Mix
Bar snack mix is a delicious blend of Bugles, pretzels, cheese balls, Funyuns, pork rinds, and Saltines tossed in melted butter with Worcestershire sauce and BBQ seasoning, then baked until crispy. It tastes like your favorite bar snacks all in one bowl. Perfect for game day, parties, road trips, or when you’re craving a crunchy snack. Bakes at 250°F for 1 hour and makes about 14 cups using budget-friendly ingredients.
This bar snack mix is dangerously addictive! All your favorite bar snacks mixed together and baked with a smoky BBQ seasoning.
It has all my favorite crunchy, salty snacks. Bugles, pretzels, cheese balls, Funyuns, pork rinds, saltines, and potato sticks, oh my! Toss them in a seasoned butter and bake until everything is crispy and yummy.
Adding in the beef sticks and honey roasted peanuts afterwards makes it complete! Feel free to leave them out if you are storing for longer since they can make the mix soggy.
It’s perfect for game day, parties, road trips, or anytime you need a big batch of munchies. I love making themed snack mixes because you can customize them perfectly for your family and the occasion.
Plus it’s inexpensive and fun to eat! Grab handfuls while watching the big game with friends.
More Snack Mixes
- Patriotic Trail Mix – Red, white, and blue
- Crockpot Chex Mix – Hands off original snack mix
- Spicy Sriracha Chex Mix – Extra heat
- Kids Party Snack Mix – Sweet and kid-friendly
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See recipe card for complete information on ingredients and their quantities.
Ingredients Needed
- Bugles – Cone-shaped corn snacks add crunch.
- Mini Saltines – Regular size works too, just break them up.
- Cheese Balls – The crunchy cheese puffs add cheesy flavor.
- Pork Rinds – Adds salty, crunchy texture. Skip if you don’t like them.
- Funyuns – Onion-flavored rings are essential!
- Potato Stix – Or use crushed plain potato chips.
- Pretzels – Mini pretzel twists or sticks both work.
- Honey Roasted Peanuts – Added at the end so they stay crunchy.
- Beef Jerky Sticks – Cut into 1-inch pieces, added at the end.
- Butter – Use unsalted butter since the seasoning has some in it.
- Worcestershire Sauce – Adds a rich smoky flavor.
- BBQ Seasoning – Use homemade or store-bought.
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How To Make Bar Snack Mix
- Preheat oven to 250°F. Combine Bugles, saltines, cheese balls, pork rinds, Funyuns, potato sticks, and pretzels in a large bowl. Don’t add peanuts or jerky yet!
- Melt butter. Stir Worcestershire sauce into melted butter. Add BBQ seasoning and stir until combined.
- Pour butter mixture over snack mix. Toss to coat everything evenly. Spread onto a baking sheet in a single layer.
- Bake at 250°F for 1 hour, stirring every 15 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool completely to room temperature. Add honey roasted peanuts and chopped beef jerky. Toss to mix. Serve immediately or store in an airtight container!
For the full recipe and detailed instructions, please refer to the recipe card at the bottom of the post.
Storage
Airtight Container: Store for up to 1 week at room temperature. If storing longer than 3 days, leave beef sticks out and add at the last minute. They add moisture that makes the mix stale faster.
Keep Dry: Store in a cool, dry place. Humidity makes it soggy. For the same reason, I don’t recommend freezing it. When you thaw it, it can get condensation on it and turn soggy.
Gift Giving: Package in mason jars or tins with decorative ribbon for party favors or gifts.
Variations
- Different Snacks: Use what you have! Chex cereal, Cheez-Its, Goldfish, popcorn, corn chips, mixed nuts all work. You need about 14 cups total dry ingredients.
- Spicy Version: Add cayenne pepper or hot sauce to the butter mixture.
- Ranch Style: Use ranch seasoning instead of BBQ seasoning.
- Taco Flavor: Substitute taco seasoning for BBQ.
- Sweet and Salty: Add M&Ms or chocolate chips after cooling.
- Extra Crunchy: Add more pretzels and Bugles.
- No Pork Rinds: Skip them and add more of the other snacks.
Frequently Asked Questions
It will last up to a week if stored in an airtight container. If you are storing for more than 3 days, I would leave the beef sticks out and add them at the last minute. The beef sticks will add moisture to the mix that will make it stale faster.
This is a snack mix for a reason! Use what you have in your pantry or what you can find. Just make up the volume with another ingredient. You need about 14 cups total.
They don’t need to be baked and adding them at the end keeps them crunchy. The jerky can also add moisture if stored too long with the mix.
The oven toasting is what makes everything crispy and coated. You can skip it but it won’t be as good. If you don’t have an oven you can use an air fryer and toast it in small batches or just leave it unbaked.
Leave beef jerky out if storing longer than 3 days.
Yes! Just use two baking sheets and rotate them halfway through baking.
Use gluten-free pretzels, crackers, and check that all snacks are certified gluten-free.
Tips & Tricks
- Use about 14 cups total of dry snack ingredients. Mix and match what you have!
- Stir every 15 minutes during baking so it coats evenly and doesn’t burn.
- Let cool completely before adding peanuts and jerky. Hot mix will make them soggy.
- Use homemade BBQ seasoning for best flavor, or any store-bought blend works. You can also use steak seasoning.
- Store in an airtight container to keep it crispy.
- Leave beef jerky out if storing longer than 3 days to prevent staleness.
- Make a big batch for parties – this disappears fast!
- Package in mason jars for easy party favors or gifts.
This bar snack mix is perfect for game day and parties! Make a big batch and watch it disappear.
If you love this recipe as much as I do, please leave us a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ five-star review in the comment section below. Thanks!
Easy Bar Snack Mix
Ingredients
Snack Mix
- 2 cups bugles
- 2 cups Saltine crackers mini-sized
- 2 cups cheeseballs
- 2 cups pork rinds
- 2 cups funyuns
- 2 cups potato stix or crushed plain chips
- 2 beef jerky sticks cut into 1-inch pieces
- 2 cups pretzels salted
- 2 cups honey roasted peanuts
Coating
- ¾ cup butter unsalted
- 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- 2 tablespoons BBQ seasoning or another dry rub mix
Instructions
Mix the snack items
- Combine all the snacks (minus the peanuts and jerky) together in one bowl.
- Preheat oven to 250.
Prepare the coating
- Melt the butter.
- Stir the Worcestershire sauce into the melted butter.
- Stir in the BBQ Seasoning until combined.
- Pour the butter, Worcestershire, and BBQ seasoning mix over the snack mix.
- Stir or toss to coat the snack mix evenly.
- Pour out onto a baking sheet and spread into one layer.
Bake the Snack Mix
- Bake at 250 for 1 hour, stirring every 15 minutes.
- When the hour is up, remove from oven.
- Let cool completely.
- Add in the honey roasted peanuts and jerky.
- Toss to mix.
- Serve with friends or store in an air-tight container for up to 1 week.
Video
Notes
- Use about 14 cups total of dry snack ingredients. Mix and match what you have!
- Stir every 15 minutes during baking so it coats evenly and doesn’t burn.
- Let cool completely before adding peanuts and jerky. Hot mix will make them soggy.
- Use homemade BBQ seasoning for best flavor, or any store-bought blend works. You can also use steak seasoning.
- Store in an airtight container to keep it crispy.
- Leave beef jerky out if storing longer than 3 days to prevent staleness.
- Make a big batch for parties – this disappears fast!
- Package in mason jars for easy party favors or gifts.
Nutrition
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Bit confused here. The recipe calls for beef jerky sticks, but pic looks like cut up slim jim type snack sticks? Thx
Sorry for the confusion. They are beef sticks like slim jims but you can use beef jerky if you prefer. I will make the changes in the recipe notes.
How do you make the dry bbq seasoning?
https://www.taketwotapas.com/homemade-bbq-seasoning-mix/
If you can’t find I i saltines….oyster crackers would be good!
I LOVE this mix! Traditional chex mix was always my go to. This is now my fav! I rediscovered Bugles – a fav from my childhood too! I like the BBQ flavor – not too intense but not bland either. It’s great to customize too with what I have on hand. Highly recommend!
Great recipe! I think I might add hot fries instead of pork rinds next time to add a bigger spice component.
Great idea!
This is amazing!!
thank you!
LOL oh my god this looks amazing. I want to try this. I never thought of putting slim jims in the mix. Amazing idea. Excellent recipe, I will def try this.