Want to break the ice at a social gathering?
Liven up a party?
Get people laughing and bonding over a slightly silly experience?
Then pull out a tray of brightly coloured, fruity tasting alcoholic jellies and see the magic happen.
Whether it's our 15% alcohol Hard Jelly pots, or lovingly crafted home-made vodka jelly shots, these little pots of yumminess never fail to get a crowd excited and happy.
On our journey perfecting our vegan jelly recipe we studied the ins-and-outs of the humble vodka jelly shot made the traditional way - with store-bought ingredients.
And we got good at making them.
What follows is our sure-fire technique for creating easy & tasty vodka jelly shots at home.
What is a jelly shot?
In its simplest form a jelly shot is a liquor, most often vodka, mixed with store-bought jelly packs, poured into shot glasses and refrigerated to set.
The culinary chefs among us might consider making their own jelly from scratch using gelatin, fruit juices and sugar, but we don't recommend it for the casual consumer - it's tricky, time consuming and oh so sticky...
Frankly, it's not worth all the extra effort when it's so easy to either buy them premade or use jelly from a packet.
A brief history of jelly shots
Jelly was a pretty niche food until the 19th century when the invention of gelatin powders made it super-easy to make jelly at home and get consistently good results.
One of the earliest references to mixing alcohol with jelly was by a famous bartender called Jerry Thomas who included a 'punch jelly' recipe in his 1862 work 'How to Mix Drinks', in which he added fish-bladder derived gelatin to a fruit punch swimming with cognac and rum - yum!
The more modern form of jelly shots was born in 1950's America, where it's claimed a musician named Tom Lehrer was so frustrated about a booze-ban at the navy base he was assigned to that he invented the jelly shot as a way to sneak alcohol past his superiors.
We can only imagine how much booze he snuck into his wobbly invention - for our recipe, we'll keep the measures sensible so we don't spoil the taste.
Are jelly shots vegetarian and vegan friendly?
Unfortunately the base of store-bought jelly, gelatin, is an animal product.
That means it's not suitable for vegetarians or vegans.
Thankfully in that respect Hard Jelly comes to the rescue - our jellies use a vegan recipe.
What ingredients do I need to make jelly shots?
The ingredients to make jelly shots are surprisingly simple - jelly, hot water and alcohol.
You can get packs of jelly at any supermarket in various flavours, with the most common being strawberry, orange or raspberry.
The type of alcohol you use depends on personal tastes, but:
- Vodka is generally the go-to due to its neutral flavour.
- If you're looking for a flavour-forward alcohol, rum is a common choice.
- Other options include tequila, whiskey, brandy and gin.
To get the best results stick to a liquor that's around 40% alcohol by volume because:
- Any higher and your jelly might not set, as alcohol has a lower freezing point than water.
- Higher-proof alcohols don't taste as good and might overpower the fruit flavour of your jelly shots.
- Packing too much alcohol into a sweet little jelly can make it far too easy to over consume.
It can be temping to go as cheap as possible when buying alcohol for jelly shots.
After all, the sweetness will mask the sins of cheaper brands, right?
Unfortunately, cheaper alcohol brands often use less effective filtering during production, allowing more byproducts of the fermentation process to remain in the product, which increases the risk of a hangover.
Our Hard Jelly recipe uses premium multi-purified alcohol and we've never regretted the decision - so do your taste buds and your body a favour and do the same.
What equipment do I need to make jelly shots?
To make your jellies you're going to need:
- A whisk (or a fork if you're in a pickle).
- A measuring jug.
- Some way to boil water - like a kettle or saucepan.
- Small plastic or glass cups in which the jelly will set. We recommend buying plastic - the flexibility of the material allows easier removal of the set jelly.
Step 1: Dissolve the jelly
As it's the most common jelly in the UK, for this guide we're going to assume you're using a standard 135g pack of Hartleys jelly - it doesn't matter which flavour as they're all prepared the same way.
First, stick some water on to boil.
While that's heating, open up your pack of jelly and separate it into little squares.
You can use your fingers to pull it apart or plop it onto a cutting board and use a knife.
It doesn't need to be perfectly squared - just separated.
Place the pieces into the measuring jug.
Once the water is boiled pour half a pint (285ml) into the measuring jug.
Whisk until the jelly is completely dissolved.
Step 2: Add your alcohol
It's important to let the jelly mix cool for a few minutes before adding your booze - if the mixture is too hot it can cause the alcohol to burn off.
As you'll agree, a tragedy!
Don't worry about the jelly setting while you're waiting - it would take hours at room temperature.
Now, how much alcohol you add is up to you, but we wouldn't recommend more than 120ml because:
- Too much alcohol will overpower the taste of the jelly.
- It'll also stop the jelly from setting properly, and you might end up with a sweet and sticky vodka liqueur.
Top the mixture up with cold water to one full pint (570ml) once you've added your booze.
Step 3: Pouring into shot glasses
Once you've thoroughly whisked the jelly, alcohol and water into a single, beautiful cocktail of possibilities, it's time to pour it into your prepared shot glasses.
Pop them into the fridge and let them cool for three to four hours so they're fully set.
And then they're ready to serve!
Jelly shots can be safely stored for a few weeks in the fridge - the sugar and alcohol will help keep nasty bugs from growing.
But if you're going to be storing the shots longer term consider buying pots that have lids, or otherwise store the shots in a sealed container.
If you don't, the fridge can suck the moisture out of the jelly and make it a little lifeless.
How strong is a jelly shot?
If you stick to our recipe and use 120ml of vodka, your shots should end up at roughly 12% ABV.
That's about the same strength as the average wine.
While a couple of these shots won't get your drunk, their sweetness and ease of eating means you can overindulge quicker then you might expect, so please consume responsibly.
Pro tips
If you want to take your shots to the next level, you can try:
- Fruity bits: Try adding some small, chopped-up pieces of fresh fruit to each pot. Berries are a great choice. Stay away from pineapple though - the natural acids in the fruit will stop the jelly from setting. Note: if you're going to use fruit in your shots be sure to consume them within a few days otherwise the fruit can spoil.
- Mixing flavours: Get creative by using multiple flavours of jelly to craft mixed-fruit tastes, or even add food flavourings to give the shot an extra level of taste complexity.
- Flavoured alcohol: There are a ton of flavoured vodkas on the market - lemon, grape, cherry... even marshmallow! The combinations are endless.
- Rainbow shots: To create layers of different flavoured and/or coloured jellies, follow the recipe as above but only part fill each shot glass. Allow the jelly to set before adding the next colour/flavour. Repeat as many times as you like until your reach your desired effect.
