I was feeling very sick for the past few days and needed a boost of Vitamin C. So this idea of Orange Jelly came to mind. This orange jelly is 100% made from freshly squeezed orange juice with very little added sugar. It’s so healthy and refreshing and best of all I can eat it guilt free!
Cooking Tips:
- Mix the agar-agar powder, sugar and water well before cooking to prevent the jelly from forming clumps while cooking.
- While cooking, mix often so that the jelly powder does not clump up while cooking.
- Off the stove before adding the orange juice. After adding the orange juice, do not switch on the stove. If the fresh orange juice is heated up, the jelly will turn bitter and the orange juice will clump up.
- The texture of this jelly is on the soft side. If you prefer your jelly to have a firm texture, add 1 gram of agar-agar powder.
- In my video, I used navel oranges, I only had that in my fridge :D. But I would recommend using valencia orange as you get more juice from it.
In this recipe, I used agar-agar to make the jelly. The jelly turns out soft and melts in the mouth! Agar-agar has stiff/firm texture, less springy and jiggly compared to gelatin or konnyaku powder. It is also known as “kanten” in Japan. As agar-agar is widely available in Asia, we use a lot of agar-agar to make jelly. Agar-agar also helps to reduce internal body heat.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
What is Agar-agar?
Agar-agar is extracted from seaweed and is plant-based. It works like gelatin and is often used to make jelly, especially in Asia. Being plant based, it has become very popular amongst vegetarians or vegans as a substitute for gelatin. It is odorless and does not contribute much taste to the jelly, perhaps just a slight hint of fragrance.
Agar-agar comes in powder form or strips. You can substitute agar-agar powder with agar-agar strips if preferred.
My jelly texture is too soft/firm, can I change the texture?
Yes, you can. The texture of the jelly is based on the ratio of water/liquid to agar-agar powder. So if you prefer softer texture, reduce the jelly powder or vice versa.
Why does my jelly not set?
Not enough agar-agar powder used. Different brand of jelly powder have different liquid to agar-agar powder ratio. Generally the ratio is 1g powder = 100ml liquid but may differ from brand to brand.
Agar-agar starts to activate its gelling properties when the liquid is heated above 80-90°C. So it is necessary to make sure the liquid is cooked until it is boiling. Then leave to cool to room temperature. It will start to solidify below 40°C.
What is the texture of agar-agar?
Agar-agar texture is more stiff compared to gelatin. Hence it is not so jiggly and springy.
Orange Jelly 橙燕菜果冻
Ingredients
- 3 grams agar-agar powder 燕菜粉 3克
- 100 ml water, room temperature 水，室温度 100毫升
- 300 ml orange juice (about 4 oranges) 橙汁 300毫升 （4个澄）
- 12 grams sugar (adjust sugar to taste and sweetness of the oranges, this recipe is not sweet so feel free to add more sugar to your liking) 12克糖（这个食谱不甜，根据口味和橙子的甜度调整糖）
Instructions
- Place agar-agar powder, sugar and water in a pot. Mix well so that the jelly powder does not clump up while cooking.
- Cook on low heat until it comes to a boil. While cooking, mix often.
- When it boils, off the stove, add in the orange juice. Mix well.
- Pour the mixture into heat proof containers. Remove air bubbles, then let it set.
- Place in the fridge to chill, about 1-2 hours. Serve cold.