Homemade Sorrel Jello
I was never that kid that got excited when the jello mold came out. You know the one. The Bundt dish would appear. The scene switches to a kid’s head pops up just a little to see the result. He gets all excited that is his favourite jello snack. Cue close up of his tongue sticking out to lick his cheek. Yea…not me. I was more of the kid that gave you the side eye that you were wasting time with this wiggling thing.
Needless to say I never got the appeal of jello – it just sit wrong with me. It was squishy, it jiggled and ma’am that does not taste like strawberry. Until I had this idea to make a jello from scratch well in my adult years [yes I’ve resolved to calling myself an adult now]. This is the part where I say the plan was that I’d make it, probably not like it still and then let it sit in the fridge till I threw it away. Solid plan, I know. Yet the opposite happened, as you would’ve probably guessed since I’m writing this post.
I love sorrel/roselle and though generally a Christmas treat in the Caribbean, I drink it year round [takes sip of sorrel as I contemplate my next sentence]. So, sorrel was a natural selection for me to try my hand at homemade jello [no lie, thought I would’ve come up with a wittier sentence than that].
One tip I would definitely encourage is making your Homemade Sorrel Jello at night. I’d love to say something worldly here about night temperatures impacting the texture and taste of the final product. Unfortunately it’s really just about human nature. It’s almost impossible going in the fridge during the day, see the mold and not be tempted to tap the surface to see if you’ve made progress. If you have no urges to tap unset jello, please let me know as I may have to re-evaluate my adult card.
I used Knox Unflavoured Gelatin that I ordered from Amazon and that night I was concentrating actually reading the label for instructions. Quite frankly, it was not the time to fuck it up and stray from an equation, as I tend to do. The hope of me ever trying any food that jiggled ever again, rest in one bowl…well actually multiple mini molds, cause pictures haffi tek and we fancy 💁🏾♀️.
This Homemade Sorrel Jello is a refreshing taste of a home-y favourite drink with the whimsy of that jello you had as a kid. You…not me. I’m sure this recipe will work for other Caribbean esque drinks. Look out for my soursop adventures next!
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup dried sorrel
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 1 tsp whole clove
- 1 tsp grated ginger
- 1 bayleaf
- 1 tbsp rum* optional
- 1 tsp allspice *optional
- 3/4 cup of granulated sugar
- pinch of pepper
- 1 1/2 tbsp unflavoured gelatin powder
Instructions
In a medium pot, add the sorrel, cinnamon, clove, ginger, bayleaf, rum and 3 1/2 cups of water.
Simmer on medium heat for 30 - 45 minutes.
Add sugar, stir until the sugar is dissolved.
Taste that it is to your required strength. Strain the mixture, reserving the liquid.
In a bowl, add 1/2 cup of ice cold water, and sprinkle the gelatin over. Stir till combined.
Pour the still hot sorrel liquid over the gelatin mix and stir until the gelatin is fully dissolved.
Pour into individual molds.
Place in the fridge until set and firm, roughly 5 hours.
