Build a Better Trail Mix With Ingredients You May Have Never Tried

Trail mix can be much more than peanuts, raisins, and candy-coated chocolate.

One of the easiest food hacks is to build your own trail mix. You control the ingredients, the sweetness, and the portions—and you can introduce foods you might never have thought of putting together.

The ingredients pictured above offer different combinations of protein, fiber, unsaturated fats, minerals, and naturally occurring plant compounds. You don't need all 14 in one bag. Pick a few from each group and create your own combination.

Sacha Inchi Seeds: An excellent centerpiece for an unusual trail mix. Sacha inchi provides plant protein and is especially notable for its polyunsaturated fats, including ALA, a plant-based omega-3 fatty acid. Roasted sacha inchi gives the mix a satisfying nut-like crunch.

Sprouted Pumpkin Seeds: Pumpkin seeds contribute protein, magnesium, zinc, iron, and unsaturated fats. Sprouting changes the seed and may reduce some phytate, which can influence mineral availability. Both sprouted and conventional pumpkin seeds are nutritious, but sprouted seeds give you another interesting option.

Baru Nuts (Baru Seeds): Native to Brazil's Cerrado, these provide protein, fiber, unsaturated fats, and minerals. Their roasted peanut-cashew character makes them especially well suited to trail mix.

Sprouted Watermelon Seeds: Shelled watermelon seeds are surprisingly good snack ingredients. They provide plant protein, magnesium, iron, zinc, and unsaturated fats and add a light crunch without needing a sugary coating.

Tiger Nuts: Despite their name, tiger nuts are actually small tubers. They contribute fiber and have a naturally sweet, nutty flavor and chewy texture—useful when you want sweetness without making candy the main ingredient.

Pili Nuts: These rich, buttery nuts provide mostly fat, including unsaturated fat. A small amount can add richness and contrast to crunchy seeds. Because nuts and seeds are calorie-dense, a little can go a long way.

Dried Goldenberries: Goldenberries bring something important to trail mix: tartness. Their sharp sweet-tart flavor balances rich nuts and seeds while contributing fiber and naturally occurring carotenoids and polyphenols. Look for varieties without unnecessary added sugar.

Dried Mulberries: Chewy and naturally sweet, dried mulberries can replace some of the conventional sweetened fruit found in commercial trail mixes. Choose unsweetened varieties when available.

Freeze-Dried Dragon Fruit: This provides dramatic color and a light, crispy texture. Dragon fruit contains fiber and naturally occurring plant compounds, and red varieties contain betalain pigments. Look for freeze-dried fruit without added sugar.

Dried Aronia Berries (Chokeberries): These dark berries contain anthocyanins and other polyphenols. Their tart, somewhat astringent flavor can balance sweeter dried fruits, so you only need a small amount.

Puffed Amaranth or Sorghum: Want volume and crunch? Puffed ancient grains provide a lighter textural contrast to calorie-dense nuts and seeds. Amaranth and sorghum are whole grains that contribute fiber, minerals, and other nutrients.

Popped Lotus Seeds (Makhana): Light and crunchy, popped lotus seeds can give a trail mix some of the satisfying texture of a puffed snack. They're especially useful when you want something different from adding another handful of nuts.

Cacao Nibs: Think chocolate without turning the trail mix into candy. Cacao nibs are pieces of cacao bean with an intense chocolate flavor, crunch, and naturally occurring cocoa polyphenols. They're bitter, so a little goes a long way.

Freeze-Dried Ginger: Ginger provides a powerful burst of spicy flavor, which means a small amount can transform the entire mix. Check the package carefully—some dried ginger products are heavily sweetened, while freeze-dried versions may contain little or no added sugar.

Now Build Your Own

Try combining 2–3 nuts or seeds + 1–2 dried or freeze-dried fruits + one crunchy ingredient + a small flavor accent.

For example:

Sacha inchi + sprouted pumpkin seeds + dried goldenberries + freeze-dried dragon fruit + cacao nibs + a few pieces of freeze-dried ginger.

And if you want a little traditional indulgence, add a small amount of dark chocolate. Rather than making chocolate the bulk of the trail mix, let it be an accent.

The real food hack is variety and portioning. Nuts and seeds are nutrient-dense, but they're also calorie-dense. Make the mix ahead of time and divide it into individual portions rather than eating directly from a large container.

You don't have to use every ingredient—or even find all of them. The idea is to discover a few new foods and build a trail mix that's more interesting than the usual handful of peanuts and raisins.

Nutrition note: Individual nutrient content varies by product and processing method. These foods can contribute to an overall nutritious diet but aren't intended to prevent, treat, or cure medical conditions.

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