How To Bind Granola Bars Without Honey Or Sugar

Written by Bhavana Verma | September 29, 2025

When it comes to binding any dessert like laddoo, peda, chikki or cereal and nuts bar, the first thing you think of to use for binding is either honey or sugar or jaggery. In traditional recipes, it’s hard to imagine achieving proper binding without one of these staples. However, binding is absolutely possible even without these traditional sugary binding agents. There are several natural ingredients you can use that provide a stable structure and keep the ingredients together. Natural binders not only help provide structure, stability, and firmness, they also bring a unique natural flavor and sweetness that feels much more better than sugar and its counterparts.

Not all the time you want to make the treats sugary. While sugar and its substitutes like honey and jaggery do make the recipe sweet and firm, these ingredients do not come with an enjoyable flavor. With sugar, you can only make the treats sweet, but the treats will lack depth of flavor. When you opt for honey or jaggery in the name of flavor depth, you might end up adding it way too much just because you cannot achieve proper binding with a small amount. The result will be an overpowering flavor of molasses that overshadows the other ingredients and you can only end up tasting jaggery or honey all over. On top of that, all these sweeteners make the treat sticky, and the overwhelming sweetness may put you off.

But not anymore! There are tons of other natural options that can be a perfect binder for your frozen treats. No more relying on sugar and jaggery, now you can introduce better flavors into your granola bars and chikkis. Bonding agents can not only function as a binding agent, they can do a lot more than you have ever thought. Follow this guide to know what natural ingredients you can use to bind your granola bars while enhancing the flavor.

1. Dates (Medjool or Regular)

Dates can be a wonderful binder for granola bars. When you soak dates and grind them to a paste, it turns into a sticky base that can be a natural glue for your granola bars. This is because dates are naturally sweet, high in fiber, and very sticky. These properties make it perfect for binding dry ingredients together like oats, nuts, cocoa, coconut, and seeds. Along with sweetness, dates come with a deep flavor which makes every bite satisfying.

2. Nut Butters - Peanut, Almond, Cashew

Nut butters are enjoyed across the breakfast tables around the world for two main reasons — they contain a satisfying flavor and they are extremely gooey when chewed. All nut butters have this one property, that is they are gooey and chewy in every spoonful. You can scoop onto nut butters for hours and still want to crave for more. To use nut butters to make granola bars, just melt it slightly before adding it into the dry ingredients. If you want to make binding better, just add a mashed banana or date paste. Nut butters are high in healthy fats and protein, so it will make every bite comforting effortlessly.

3. Mashed Banana

Mashed banana is often added to baked treats because of its satisfying texture. Although mashed banana may not provide firmness in frozen treats, it becomes a strong binder when the treats are baked. To use mashed banana as a binder for your granola bars, add ½ to 1 ripe banana per batch. Only one banana is enough for a whole batch of granola bars. If you are making a frozen version, consider mixing mashed banana with dates puree to give it more stability.

4. Applesauce

Unsweetened applesauce is a perfect ingredient to bind granola bars when you want to make it gooey and chewy without much hardness. Applesauce provides just enough binding that gives you a perfect enjoyment. Adding ¼ to ½ cup applesauce per batch will help you get a stable structure in your granola bars. When stored in the fridge for long, the firmness enhances even more.

5. Soaked Chia Seeds or Flaxseeds

When chia seeds and flaxseeds are soaked in water, they become thick like jelly. This jelly can be a delightful binder to your granola bars when you want a mild to no flavor. With the use of chia seeds and flaxseed as your binder, you can let other ingredients shine through and make granola bars more nutritious. To use chia seeds or flaxseeds as the binder, mix 1 tablespoon of seeds with 2.5 tablespoons of water. Let it soak for 10 to 15 minutes until it becomes gel-like. This addition works immensely good with oats, dried fruits, and coconut.