What Is Jello and How Can I Use It?

Here's everything worth knowing about jello and how to pick it, what it is, how to store it, and what to use instead, plus 184 recipes to cook tonight.

What is jello?

Jello is flavored gelatin: a powdered mix of gelatin, sugar, fruit flavoring, and color that you dissolve in hot water, then chill until it sets into a wobbly, translucent dessert. Jell-O is the brand name that became the word, the way Kleenex did for tissue.

It is mostly a dessert and a kid's-party staple. The same set-and-chill trick also builds molded salads, layered cakes, and the jiggly buffet centerpiece your aunt swears by.

How to Use It

The package method is simple: stir one 3-ounce (85 g) box into 1 cup of boiling water until fully dissolved, then add 1 cup of cold water and refrigerate until firm, usually about four hours.

That standard ratio gives a soft, spoonable set.

For a firmer jello you can cut into shapes or stack in layers, use less cold water or stir in a packet of unflavored gelatin. Firm sets are what hold a Jello Rainbow Cake in clean stripes or suspend fruit in a Broken Window Glass Cake.

Beyond dessert, dissolved jello sets a Strawberry Jello Salad or a savory-leaning Molded Cranberry Relish. Chilled until just syrupy and not yet firm, it folds into whipped cream for a quick mousse.

The Pineapple Problem

Here is the classic failure: your jello never sets, staying soupy no matter how long it chills.

The culprit is almost always fresh pineapple. Fresh pineapple, kiwi, papaya, mango, and ginger contain protease enzymes that chop up the gelatin protein so it can never form a gel. Bromelain, the enzyme in pineapple, is the usual offender.

The fix is heat.

Canned and cooked pineapple are fine because canning denatures the enzyme, so use canned fruit in any gelatin mold, or simmer the fresh fruit for a few minutes first. The same rule covers the other enzyme-heavy fruits.

Substitutes

To replace flavored jello, use unflavored gelatin plus your own flavor. About 1 tablespoon of unflavored gelatin sets 2 cups of liquid, so bloom it in cold liquid, warm to dissolve, then sweeten and flavor with juice to taste.

For a vegetarian or vegan set, agar-agar works but behaves differently. It sets much firmer and holds its shape at room temperature, and it needs a hard boil to activate. Carrageenan and pectin can also gel fruit liquids, though none gives the exact soft, melt-in-the-mouth wobble of gelatin.

Buying & Storage

Boxed jello lives in the baking or dessert aisle in dozens of fruit flavors, plus sugar-free versions set with aspartame instead of sugar. The sugar-free boxes are smaller, so follow their own water amounts rather than the regular ratio.

The dry powder keeps almost indefinitely in a sealed box in a cool, dry cupboard; it loses a little flavor past its date but stays safe and usable.

Once set, jello keeps covered in the fridge for seven to ten days. It weeps liquid as it ages and will not survive freezing: thawed gelatin breaks down into a grainy, watery mess, so make it fresh.

Nutrition

Quick facts

Where to find jello: Jello is usually found in the candy section or aisle of the grocery store or supermarket.

Food group: Jello is a member of the Sweets US Department of Agriculture nutritional food group.

In Chinese

果冻

British (UK) term

Jello

en français

jello

en español

gelatina

How much does jello weigh?

Related

Sweets

Recipes using jello

There are 184 recipes that contain this ingredient.

Jello Any-Fruit Cake

A soft cake bottom, with a fruit filled middle topped with a tantalizing cinnamon topping. Learning how to make Jello fruit cake that use any fruit you have on hand including summery rhubarb with strawberry gelatin.

Blueberry Cheese Cake

Very amazing easy recipe for cheese cake with fabulous taste.

Easy Homemade Rhubarb Jam

Easy rhubarb jam made with just three ingredients: fresh rhubarb, sugar and a packet of Jello for instant flavor and color. No pectin, no thermometer, 20 minutes start to jar.

Margarita Jello Shooters

Jello shooters are a really fun way to get the crowd loose. Thanks to Lori, my neighbor, for this delicious recipe...just in time for the NFL season!

Grandma's Rhubarb Jam (Freezer Jam)

Grandma's three-ingredient rhubarb jam with strawberry jello for color and set. Freezer-jam method, no canning required. Macerate overnight, boil, jar, freeze.

Apple-Rhubarb Dump Cake

This Apple-rhubarb recipe with strawberry gelatin is super easy, just dump and bake. Reminiscent of a strawberry-rhubarb pie without the fuss of a crust, more like a rhubarb crisp.

Creamsicle Cake

If you can't find orange cake mix, use white or golden---just use orange juice in place of the water when preparing the mix, and add 1 tsp. of orange extract/flavoring. To the topping I also add 3/4 tsp. each of vanilla and orange extract. Garnish, if desired, with Mandarin orange segments.

Robb's Tropical Lime Cake

Tropical lime poke cake from a lemon cake mix and lime jello, soaked with a tangy lime sugar glaze that seeps into fork-pierced holes for moist, citrusy bites all the way through.

Sugar-Free Strawberry Pie

Try sugar-free, but scrumptious pie that's made with jello and strawberries!

Veggie Vomit

Veggie vomit is a Halloween gross-out lime jello salad with grated cabbage, carrots, crushed pineapple, and mandarin oranges. Kids love the gross name; the salad tastes great.

Orange Gelatin Dessert

Orange gelatin dessert with vanilla ice cream stirred into the Jello and layered with mandarin oranges. A creamy, dreamsicle-flavored retro treat with just 4 ingredients.

Penn & Teller Dessert

Penn & Teller dessert is a theatrical bleeding Jell-O mold for Halloween: thick red gelatin and whipped topping hiding a bag of fake blood that gushes when you cut in. A gory, show-stopping party prank dessert.

Lemon Supreme Chiffon

Lemon chiffon dessert with a graham cracker crust, fluffy lemon Jello and egg white filling, topped with sweetened whipped cream. A retro no-bake icebox treat.

Cherry Jubilee Salad

A retro molded Jello salad loaded with dark sweet cherries, pineapple chunks, and chopped pecans, spiked with red wine and nutmeg. Potluck royalty.

Cherry Coke Salad

Retro Southern Jello salad with dark cherries, crushed pineapple, and pecans set in cherry gelatin and Coca-Cola. Molded, chilled, and ready to steal the potluck.

Light & Fruity Fruit Pie

No-bake fruity Jello pie with whipped topping and your choice of fruit in a graham cracker crust. Light, fluffy, and ready in 30 minutes with no oven needed.

Kalakaua

Kalakaua is a Hawaiian-inspired pineapple Jello mold made right in the can. Lime gelatin poured over canned pineapple rings, chilled, and unmolded into a neat cylinder.

Yarborough Pie

Retro fruit pie with sour cherries, crushed pineapple, bananas, and cherry Jello in a graham cracker crust topped with whipped cream. A vintage no-bake dessert that brings the church potluck right to your kitchen.

Key Largo Cake

Key Largo cake made with tropical liqueur and fruit Jello baked into the batter, soaked with a boozy powdered sugar glaze, and topped with whipped cream and tropical fruit.

Jello Skating Pond Recipe

Jello skating pond dessert: blue jello set in a clear pie plate, topped with whipped cream snow banks, gummy bear skaters, and a wafer roll log. A winter craft dessert kids can build themselves.

Strawberry-Banana Jell-O Salad

Strawberry-banana Jell-O salad with banana pudding, whipped topping, fruit cocktail, and walnuts. A fluffy retro picnic salad that's more dessert than side.

Ralph's Retch

Ralph's Retch, a gleefully gross Halloween drink for kids: strawberry jello chopped into wobbly globs, layered with crushed ice and fizzy strawberry soda. A no-cook party gag that tastes like a sweet slushie.

Strawberry Ice Box Cake

Strawberry icebox cake layered with vanilla wafer crumbs, whipped cream, and Jello-marshmallow filling. A vintage no-bake dessert that sets up in the fridge with zero oven time.

Nasty Spider Cake

Halloween spider cake filled with green Jello that oozes when sliced, frosted black with licorice legs and gumdrop eyes. Gross, fun, and unforgettable.

Pineapple Orange Chocolate Cake

No-bake pineapple orange chocolate cake with orange Jello, crushed pineapple, and whipped topping layered over pre-baked chocolate cake. A retro icebox-style dessert that chills instead of bakes.

Delicious No Bake Key Lime Pie

No-bake key lime pie made with lime gelatin, sweetened condensed milk, fresh lime juice, and zest folded into a beaten egg-white cloud. A retro Florida pie that sets up cold without an oven.

Creative Cranberry Jello

Two-layer cranberry Jello salad with cranberry sauce and juice on the bottom and a creamy sour cream and walnut layer on top. A classic holiday gelatin side dish.

Jello Salad

Retro jello salad made with lemon gelatin, hot tomato juice, and hard-boiled eggs set in a mold. A savory vintage side dish served on a bed of lettuce.

Fruity Pound Cake

Fruity pound cake with lemon Jello, white cake mix, and a fluffy instant pudding frosting with whipped topping. Classic 1970s shortcut layer cake.

Stewart's Salad

Stewart's Salad is a layered retro Jell-O salad with sugar-free lemon jello and pineapple, a fluffy cream cheese middle, and a golden pineapple-juice custard topping. A diabetic-friendly potluck classic.

Red Hot Salad

Red Hot Salad is a vintage molded gelatin salad with cherry Jell-O, Red Hots cinnamon candies, crushed pineapple, and applesauce. A sweet, spicy-cinnamon holiday side that jiggles and shines.

Red, White & Berry Blue

Red, white, and blue Jello parfaits layered with strawberry and berry Jello cubes and whipped topping in glasses. A festive, no-bake patriotic dessert for the 4th of July.

Red, White & Berry Blue

Red, white, and blue Jello parfaits layered with strawberry and berry Jello cubes and whipped topping in glasses. A festive, no-bake patriotic dessert for the 4th of July.

Infectous Fluid Frappe

Infectious fluid frappe is a creepy Halloween drink made from eggnog blended with lime Jello for a sickly green color, topped with cherry "blood clots" and nutmeg "plasma." Kids love it.

Spicy Apple Salad

Cinnamon candy apple Jello salad with applesauce and a cream cheese topping. A retro molded gelatin side dish with warm cinnamon heat and tangy lemon notes.

Mandarin Orange Jello Salad

Retro orange jello gets a creamy upgrade with whipped cream and sweet mandarin oranges in this nostalgic potluck favorite from Gram's kitchen. Ready in minutes with just 6 ingredients.

Cool 'N Easy Cherry Pie

A no-bake cherry pie made with cherry Jello, whipped topping, and a graham cracker crust. Light, fluffy, and chilled until firm. The easiest summer pie you'll ever make.

Lime Delight

Lime delight is a no-bake retro Jello dessert: lime gelatin and lemon juice folded into whipped evaporated milk, set on a graham cracker crust for a fluffy citrus fridge cake.

Molded Cranberry Relish

Molded cranberry relish with raspberry Jello, fresh cranberries, grapes, celery, and crushed pineapple. Served with a fluffy cream cheese and marshmallow whipped dressing. A retro Thanksgiving and Christmas centerpiece.

Fruity Cookies

Fruity Jello cookies made with a cookie press, using flavored gelatin for bright color and fruity flavor. A buttery spritz-style cookie in any flavor you choose.

Orange Fruit Salad

Orange fruit salad layers lemon and orange jello with crushed pineapple, marshmallows, sliced bananas, and shredded cheddar under a creamy pineapple custard topping. Retro potluck classic.

Orange Fruit Salad

Orange fruit salad layers lemon and orange jello with crushed pineapple, marshmallows, sliced bananas, and shredded cheddar under a creamy pineapple custard topping. Retro potluck classic.

Applesauce Salad

Applesauce jello salad -- A delicious jello salad, taken from The Monterey Coast Guard Officers' Wives Club Cookbook. My sister-in-law was the president of the club which put that cookbook together.

Lemon Snow Jello

Lemon Snow Jello with cream cheese, crushed pineapple, and whipped evaporated milk folded into lemon Jello. A fluffy, creamy retro gelatin salad topped with chopped nuts.

Jello Rolls

Jello rolls are sweet yeast rolls filled with dry Jello powder, sugar, and pecans, rolled up cinnamon-roll style, and drizzled with a powdered sugar glaze. A colorful, retro treat.

Fruit Sparkles

Fruit sparkles are a fizzy sugar-free jello dessert made with sparkling water or club soda and fresh fruit. A light, low-calorie summer treat.

Strawberry-Cheese Salad

A three-layer Jello salad with strawberry-banana gelatin hugging a creamy center of cream cheese, sour cream, and chopped walnuts. Retro potluck royalty served on crisp lettuce leaves.

Fruity Cereal Squares

Fruity cereal squares made with Trix cereal, Jello, corn syrup, and butter. A colorful, no-bake treat with just 4 ingredients that sets in 30 minutes.

Whipped Jello Cake

Fluffy whipped Jello cake with raspberry gelatin, crushed pineapple, and Cool Whip layered over angel food cake. A retro no-bake dessert that's light, fruity, and church-potluck approved.

Apple Snaps

Light gelatin dessert made with sugar-free Jello and chilled applesauce instead of water. Cinnamon adds warmth. Garnish with mint, apple slices, and cinnamon sticks for pretty presentation.

All 184 recipes