the most basic of cooking

I can cook deserts such as cakes and pies with no problem, but I can not cook jello. Why is it that it never thickens for me? Any ideas of what I could be doing wrong?

Reply to
Jess
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Water not hot enough, fridge not cold enough. Don't try quick-set until you've mastered the old way.

Reply to
Eric Jorgensen

Yes, Jello does not get thick when you cook it. It firms when you dissolve it in the proper amount of boiling water=20 (check package for amounts to use) and chill it.

Try it, it works.

To cut down on the time, only boil 50% of the liquid, dissolve=20 Jello-Powder as instructed on package, then add remainder of cold liquid.=

--=20 Sincerly,

C=3D=A6-)=A7 H. W. Hans Kuntze, CMC, S.g.K. (_o_)

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Reply to
H. W. Hans Kuntze

In one company I used to work previously we produce such kind of products and had understood a bit the mechanism of its jellification: Jello contains gelatine a protein material that need moderate heat to activate its gelling powers but not enough to disintegrate the tertiary and quaternary structural part of the gelatine protein. Therefore I agree with the idea of combining the hot water and the cold water. And not just pour boiling water to the powder. There are special vegetarian jelly mixes( containing carageenan etc instead of animal gelatine) where you can directly pour boiling water and still get a very good gel. If you cook it well just like any dish you are destroying the gelling power? If you follow what the procedures states then you will not get lost. If you still find out that the gel is weak then there are reasons unkown to the consumers. Indeed there are jelly mixes that have weak gelling power; that is due to the other factors that result in the blending of the jelly ingredient such as the sugar , the gelatine, the acidulant( either fumaric, adipic or citric acid or combination) and the buffering salts ; the trisodium or tripotassiumcitrate( depending if it's a low sodium or sugar free Jelly mixes).. The less know factors that inhibit is gelling power is acidity, the ratio of the ingredients that can be affected during the dry blending process. Therefore the excess acidity or buffer will tend to have an ionic effect on the gelatine protein and can hinder proper gel formation as well. I have noticed that in some equipment one whole batch the first and the last that comes out from the mixing or blending machine does not have uniform gelling power if compared to the in between. That is to be reblended with the new batch. Therefore if the dry mix have inhomogeneity you will notice that in some packet it jells really firm and in others its watery. One cause is due to the difference in ratios of the active ingredient present in the packet due to powder stratification during the packaging process in the packing and sealing machine. Another cause is The vibratory effect of the feeder will also affect the powder mix uniformity. Where what will result will be that there is more sugar than gelatine in the powder jelly mixes. And in another case the variation in dry mix weight as there are sealed and packed in high speed sealer. Another cause of variation is the amount of liquid you add to hydrate and gel it. If you add more you will get a weak gel; if you add less you get a firm gel. And a cup used to measure the liquid can have different meaning and volume to consumers as well?. These factors are the most common cause of variation in gelling consistency? Roy

Reply to
Roy Basan

Just follow the directions on the package.

Reply to
Mary

Follow the directions on the package -- exactly.

Put it in the refrigerator when you're done, and let it sit overnight.

It won't gel until it's cold.

Reply to
Alan Moorman

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