I’m going to cut right to the chase, General Mills’s Peanut Butter Chex cereal is the quintessential peanut butter cereal. As a peanut butter enthusiast, I’m always down for a good bowl of peanut butter cereal. I’m also guilty of eating peanut butter straight from the jar, so I’m well acquainted with the gloriousness that is peanut butter. PB Chex perfectly encapsulates the peanut butter experience. There is quite literally no better way to satisfy that peanut butter craving than this cereal.  

If you’re active at all in the cereal community, you know all the buzz and hype around this cereal. What’s currently widely being regarded as the top-tier, best peanut butter cereal out there, Peanut Butter Chex has a lot to live up to. As a peanut butter fanatic, I can honestly say it delivers! 

Prior to this review, my favorite peanut butter cereal was Post’s recently and tragically discontinued Nutter Butter Cereal. This cereal hit all the right spots. Its texture was crunchy and satisfying. The flavor was sweet, peanut buttery and delicious. The pieces had fun, peanut shapes and were perfectly sized, and above all, it was based on one of the most popular cookies of all time, the Nutter Butter. I still cry myself to sleep over the fact it’s no longer available.  

Since my first bowl of Nutter Butter Cereal, it was easily one of my favorite cereals of all time, and it’s because of this that I can’t believe PB Chex flattened me so immediately. I’ve never had a cereal that absolutely amazes me quite like this one, besides maybe Cinnamon Toast Crunch. 

Despite General Mills’s very extensive list of popular cereal brands, they surprisingly don’t have very many peanut butter cereals. The most notable ones that come to mind are Reese’s Puffs, the discontinued Peanut Butter Toast Crunch, and Peanut Butter Chex. I’m a big fan of Reese’s Puffs, and never got to try PBTC, so that leaves this one. 

Chex cereal has been around since 1937 and gets its name from the “checkerboard” shaped pieces. If you’ve ever enjoyed the complex joy that is Chex Mix, or ever poured a bowl of Chex cereal of any variety, you’re familiar with the light, crisp texture of these famous squares.  

This list of different kinds of Chex is baffling. The list contains Rice, Wheat, Corn, Honey Nut, Chocolate, Vanilla, Cinnamon, Blueberry, and Peanut Butter. Of all, Peanut Butter is the reigning greatest. 

All boxes of Chex cereal appear very similar with a base color in theme with whatever flavor it is, (blue for blueberry, gold for honey nut, brown for chocolate, etc…), the Chex logo, and a spoon with the cereal pieces on it on every box. The boxes also feature the General Mills logo, as well as boasting some nutrition facts. Peanut Butter Chex’s box also shows a banner advertising that it’s made with real peanut butter. 

PB Chex, like all other Chex cereals, is gluten free and contains no high fructose corn syrup. This Chex variety is made of whole grain corn, and lists whole grain corn, cornmeal, and peanut butter as its first three ingredients, which is a good sign. A cup is 180 calories and nine grams of sugar.  

The cereal pieces themselves appear just like any other Chex cereal and don’t look like anything special really. What you’ll notice right away is that some pieces look like normal Corn Chex pieces with no difference, and others look the same but with a tan colored substance caked on the outside. That’s the peanut butter and it looks and tastes as though someone quite literally took a Chex piece and rolled it in the Jif jar. 

There’s a pleasant hint of peanut butter aroma, but to get the full experience you’ve got to dig that spoon in. Dry, this cereal is perfect. Great for snacking, amazing flavor, and satisfying crunch. With milk, somehow this cereal is equally as perfect. The flavor isn’t diminished, the texture remains for a long time, and the milk afterward gains a hint of peanut butter and sweetened corn flavor. 

If you’re a peanut butter fan, this cereal is your new favorite, case closed. While cereals like Reese’s Puffs, Peanut Butter Cap’n Crunch, and Nutter Butter are a sweet peanut butter flavor, this has very little noticeable sweetness at all. It’s shocking how much this cereal tastes like its inspiration. It quite literally tastes like you’re eating a spoonful of crispy peanut butter. 

Instead of being sweet, you get the true salty, creamy peanut butter flavor that we all love. It balances out perfectly with the plain Corn Chex pieces interspersed throughout and makes for one of the most satisfying bowls of cereal I’ve ever come across.  

Cinnamon Toast Crunch will always be my favorite cereal of all time, but PB Chex instantly secured a seat directly below it from the first bite. Try this cereal. Just do it. You’ll thank me later.