How to Dissolve Gelatine
Ingredients
Directions
Soften the gelatin
If gelatin is covered with warm water and set in a warm place it will melt in fifteen or twenty minutes, but will develop the strong flavor of glue and spoil whatever it is added to.
A better way is to allow one cup cold water for two ounces (one package) of gelatin and let it soak until perfectly soft.
Cox's make will require two hours, Nelson's or Andrews' will be soft in from fifteen to thirty minutes.
Dissolve the gelatin
Then add a little boiling liquid stirring till all is dissolved, and the rest of the liquid should be added cold.
Gelatin never dissolves in cold water but only absorbs a certain amount.
If water is left it can be drained away without taking any goodness from the gelatin.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures. See the original page.
Explore the science
What each ingredient does
- Gelatin (in the method)
- Sets the liquid into a firm, jelly-like structure once dissolved and chilled.
- Cold water
- Hydrates the gelatin so it swells and softens before dissolving.
The step that matters
Soaking in cold water before dissolving. Gelatin must first absorb cold water and soften; adding it to hot liquid unsoftened can leave lumps. Warm water melts it too fast, giving a glue-like flavor and spoiling the dish.
“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.
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