Have you a Piñata that needs filling up with candy? Not sure what candies are the best place inside? Besides, this colorful cardboard animal is going to be bashed around a bit! Well, you’ve come to the right place because today, I am going to be sharing with you some of the best options – and also advising you on the types of candy you really are going to want to avoid.
Contents
Best Candy For A Piñata
Traditionally, Piñatas are filled with candy mainly because Piñatas are a children’s party activity but also because, hey, it’s candy. Why wouldn’t you fill the Piñata up with it?
By making your own Piñata, you get to decide what candy to fill it with. Specific types of candy are better suited for storing in Piñatas, which we’ll talk a bit more about later.
For now, here is my top 5 list of candies for a Piñata!
Jolly Rancher Lollipops
For me, lollipops are the essential candy for a Piñata. My favorite lollipops are Jolly Ranchers.
Jolly Rancher is a product line of Hershey’s, which, as we know, do not mess about when it comes to producing quality candy.
Jolly Ranchers are particularly known for their gummies, sour bites, and hard candies.
Today, it is their lollipops I’m raving about.
Why? Space is an issue when it comes to lining the stomach of a Piñata with candy.
Jolly Ranchers lollipops are a perfect size!
You can fit plenty of them in your Piñata whilst also leaving space for plenty of other candies to join the party too.
They’re colorful, which fits into the party theme, and they come in a variety of tasty flavors, including watermelon, cherry, and even pink lemonade.
- Delight in a burst of powerful fruity flavor with this assortment of original flavor JOLLY RANCHER Treats.
- Fill candy bowls for everyday snacking or special occasions with this sweet and fruity treat.
- Each piece of cherry, watermelon, green apple, and blue raspberry flavored candy is individually wrapped for a conveniently portable snack.
- Made with natural and artificial flavors, JOLLY RANCHER Hard Candies are a fat-free food.
- This product ships as one 5-pound box.
Sour Patch Kids
Boy do I love sour candy. My favorite line is Sour Patch Kids, made by a candy company called Mondelez International.
These, too, colorfully fit into a party environment whilst coming in a variety of brilliant flavors that combine sour and sweet.
Watermelon is my personal favorite. Again, they are of a great fun little size that makes them perfect for filling a Piñata with.
- One 240 count package of SOUR PATCH KIDS Big Individually Wrapped Soft & Chewy Candy
- SOUR THEN SWEET assorted candy in various fruit flavors
- Soft and chewy candy is a fat free food that's two times bigger than the original
- Bagged candy that's perfect for snacking on after lunch or at the movies
- Individually wrapped candy great for party favors and holiday treats
Haribo Gummy Bears
Gummy Bears would be described by many as another essential Piñata candy.
When I concur with this belief, I am talking about the mini bags of Haribo Gummy Bears.
These bags are nice and small, so they fit into the Piñata in vast quantities very easily. They’re also diverse in terms of flavor and color.
Their fruity tastes are delicious; it’s no wonder they’re so popular after all these decades.
- These delicious HARIBO gold bears are as fun to play with as they are to eat; The packs are individually wrapped for simple portion control and distributing, so you can leave them in a bag, candy dish or desk drawer for snacking any time
- Tasty gummies offer a burst of flavor
- Perfect for on the go, parties, birthdays, favors, lunches, snacks
- Contains five fruity flavors: Lemon (yellow), Orange (orange), Pineapple (white), Raspberry (red), Strawberry (green)
Airheads
Every Piñata needs some chew bar candy in its belly.
My favorite to use is Airheads.
Like all the other great candies on this list, Airheads also come in a variety of flavors, including blue raspberry and white mystery!
That’s the kind of candy you want in your Piñata – those that offer mystery!
- CONTAINS: Unwrap the fun and play delicious with this 60-count, six-flavor bulk variety pack of Airheads individually wrapped full-sized candy bars
- Product Note: Exposure to heat or sunlight may lead to melting/damage of product. Hence customers are expected to be available during the product delivery
- INTRO: Get crafty with your treats at playtime. Airheads are the chewy non-melting candy sure to satisfy any sweet tooth
- FLAVOR: Your taste buds can’t get enough of these flavors: Cherry, Watermelon, Blue Raspberry, White Mystery, Grape, and Orange
- OCCASION: Stash a few in lunch boxes, dress up a wedding candy bar, do some crafts with the family, or stock up for concession stands
Taffies
The final candy on today’s top 5 list is the Taffy.
A delightful wrapped chewy candy that is bite-sized so perfect for fitting into your Piñata.
Plenty of flavors are on offer to help mix up the candy contents of your Piñata.
These include strawberry and banana flavors. You can buy different sizes of Taffies.
The smaller, the better, as remember, we want to fit as many different candies as possible into our Piñata.
- ORIGINAL: Experience Now and Later's Original formula. A bold, fruity flavored bite-sized chew that starts out hard and softens in your mouth over time to become chewy.
- LONG-LASTING CHEW: Now and Later's long-lasting chew is perfect for taking the much needed pause in your day
- BOLD FLAVORS: Experience a burst of bold, fruit flavor in every piece of Now and Later candy
- INDIVIDUALLY WRAPPED: Individually wrapped pieces packaged in 4 count slugs, these fruit chews can be enjoyed both Now and Later
- FUELING GENERATIONS: Born in Brooklyn in 1962, Now and Later is the long-lasting chew that has been fueling generations as the cornerstone of the corner store
How Much Candy Do You Need For A Piñata?
How much candy you’ll need will depend on how big your Piñata is.
The Piñata is the key here. After all, if you buy too much candy, then there’ll be plenty of other occasions to eat it.
What you need to do is get a Piñata that is big enough to contain enough candy to keep your guests happy.
If you’ve got lots of guests, then you might need multiple Piñatas.
A situation where the Piñata gets broken before some of your guests get to have a go wielding the bat is a disastrous one, I can tell you.
Let’s look at a case study.
You’ve got 8 to 10 children coming round for a birthday party.
A 16 to 28-inch Piñata would, in my opinion, be best suited for your party needs.
This Piñata will contain up to 2 pounds of candy which could be somewhere in the region of 100 individual pieces of candy.
But fundamentally, a basic rule of thumb is if you can fill the Piñata, whatever size it is, to the top, then you can do it.
Just know that the more candy inside the Piñata, the harder it will be to get through it.
This might be suitable for adults, but for children, it might be a little too tough an ask!
As soon as you tear through the Piñata, it will be easier to carry on destroying it!
But too much weight will create problems.
If your Piñata is showing any of the following symptoms, then you should probably decrease the amount of candy inside it.
Problematic Piñata symptoms:
- Difficulty hanging up
- Difficult to break through
- Hurts to hit as too solid
What Types Of Candy Are Best For A Piñata?
The types of candy you want for your Piñata are wrapped, preserved well, and come in a variety.
Wrapped
The candy inside your Piñata must be wrapped for several reasons.
Firstly, you don’t want the candy inside your Piñata getting stuck together.
Secondly, you don’t want your candy to get dirty.
Let’s say you’ve stepped up to the Piñata with your stick, bat, hammer or machine gun, or whatever it is, ok?
You’ve absolutely whacked the thing to another planet, the best shot your muscles could have produced.
The Piñata has no hope.
Its stomach has been carved open by your immense power, and out falls the candy, which in this case is unwrapped, onto the floor.
Now you’ve got to enjoy whatever is on the floor with that candy.
If you’ve got carpet, great, you can enjoy some fur on your candy.
So that’s why I would advise that you only use wrapped candy.
That way, once the candy spills out of the Piñata, it will be protected from dirt and germs by its packaging, ready for you to enjoy clean and fresh.
Variety
Where is the fun in beating up a Piñata when all it gives you over and over again is the same candy?
If you’ve stuffed your favorite branded chocolate bar inside, you’re still going to want something different after each blow you deal.
So it’s good to have a variety of candies to enjoy as a reward for taking that Piñata down.
That’s why my top 5 list contained different types of candy that came in a variety of flavors.
Your guests want to enjoy a variety of candy, so give it to them.
Also, what happens if you feel the Piñata up with narrow candy contents and some of your guests don’t like that candy?
The more variety you have in your Piñata, the more chances there is something to enjoy for everyone.
Preserve Well
A Piñata isn’t the most convenient storage facility for candy.
So, you need candy that is preserved well whilst in the Piñata.
Especially if you’re making the Piñata a day or two before your guests come round, candies that go off or even melt are not ideal for a Piñata.
That’s why, once again, wrapped candies are the most suitable.
What Candy Doesn’t Work Well In A Pinata?
Candy that is too big and/ or melts isn’t ideal for putting in a Piñata.
Melts
This is especially an issue if you live somewhere that is hot.
The hotter it is, the more chance there is of your candy melting.
Unfortunately, as we know, chocolate melts very quickly and easily.
So chocolate isn’t the best candy to put inside your Piñata.
Knowing this, it goes without saying that whatever candy you have inside your Piñata, it’s best to keep it stored in a cool and dry place before the beating to avoid any melting candy.
Too Large
The candies on my top 5 list were all small. There’s a reason for that.
The smaller your candy, the more you can fit inside the Piñata, which means the more variety you’ll have on offer for your guests.
If you have large candy, then the Piñata won’t contain as much.
Let’s face it; nobody wants one big piece of candy each after the Piñata’s demise.
Everyone wants lots of candy instead!
What Can I Put In A Piñata Besides Candy?
As well as candy, you can also put other edible items as well as toys.
Partiers expect candy in a Piñata. But that doesn’t mean you can’t put anything else in it.
It’s your Piñata, so if it can fit, then go for it.
You can even put in other edible items as long as they’re wrapped, well preserved, and fun!
Let’s go through some other popular Piñata fillers.
Bubblegum
It’s small, wrapped, well-preserved and fun because who doesn’t love gum?
Mix things up by throwing a couple of packs of bubblegum in.
Toys
The key here is obviously to keep the toys small. They have got to fit into the Piñata with everything else, after all. Here are some examples:
- Mini balls
- Spinning tops
- Yo-yo’s
- Stickers
- Water guns
- Bottles of bubbles
- Toy cars
- Finger puppets
- Glow sticks
- Plastic animals
- Slinkies
- Rubix cubes
Finally
Hopefully, after reading this, you’re going to treat your guests to a thrilling Piñata bashing session.
Even the Piñata is a lucky guy. He gets to enjoy all those great treats in his belly…
…until you obliterate him and reclaim those treats!
Hello, I’m Matthew, a candy expert and enthusiast with over a decade of experience in the candy industry. My passion for candy started at a very young age. Since then, I have worked in numerous, large candy stores, and have been fortunate enough to try out hundreds of brands of candies, different types and flavors. In addition to my work, I enjoy sharing my extensive knowledge with others, and decided to create Sugar Stand in order to do so. My mission is to make the world a sweeter place, one candy at a time.