The Crunchy Snack That Guy Fieri Never Travels Without

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If anyone knows a thing or two about travel, it's Guy Fieri. His award-winning show "Diners, Drive-ins and Dives" has left him circling the United States for years. While he eats unique and delicious meals at the restaurants showcased on the show, what does he eat while he is actually on the road? In an interview with GQ, Fieri spilled on his travel essentials — and his favorite crunchy snack is Corn Nuts.

A true All-American snack, Corn Nuts have a fascinating history that started as a post-Prohibition Era bar nibble. As a native Mexican crop, corn made its way into American diets before the United States even became a nation. Corn Nuts are modeled off the first version of corn, known as parched corn, which was essentially dried-out, hardened kernels. Today's Corn Nuts are made out of starchy, waxy corn kernels fried into the crunchy, ultra corn-y, and salty snacks we know and love. While corn tortilla chips and Fritos are among the most popular snacks in the country, we still ranked Corn Nuts as the best corn-based snack of all. No snack compares to Corn Nuts' crunchiness, and no other corn snack has captured the essence of corn better. It is easy to finish an entire bag, and with how much they work your jaw and teeth, they are bound to keep you awake and alert on long road trips. Like most snacks, the company has expanded their lineup to include numerous flavors from ranch to white cheddar to Mexican street corn.

While you stock up on Corn Nuts for your next long road trip, you might want to buy a few extra bags because they are a versatile ingredient you can add to other snacks, meals, and recipes. They are a great garnish to bring a savory crunch to soups and salads. They will also upgrade a cheesy corn dip, like Korean corn cheese. You can also smash Corn Nuts to use as a seasoning dust or breading. Just as corn flakes, and even hot Cheetos, have been used to coat fried chicken, corn snack dust might just be the next best breadcrumb swap. If you are a fan of cornbread stuffing, Corn Nut dust will enhance the flavors in a similar way. This snack is also a great addition to homemade trail mix and pairs with other staples, such as nuts, sesame sticks, and wasabi peas.

In addition to Corn Nuts, Fieri's other go-to road trip snacks are almonds and jerky, which round out the carby crunch of Corn Nuts with protein and fat-rich meat and nuts. We have tasted and ranked plenty of beef jerky brands, finding that the absolute best bag to pick up at the store is Country Archer. Not a meat eater? Try one of these vegan jerky brands instead. Roasted almonds are hard to beat, with no seasonings needed. That said, Good & Gather has plenty of flavored almonds that we love. Chocolate-covered almonds would be a good sweet variation to complement the salty Corn Nuts and umami-rich beef jerky.