We’re in a Golden Era of Fancy Jell-O Shots
There was a time when the words “do you want a Jell-O shot?” were synonymous with fratty bonding rituals surrounding Flubber green masses in paper Dixie cups. What more could a Jell-O shot be, after all, than an amuse-bouche for a keg stand? Until recently, gelatin’s reputation in the United States was as a dated ingredient for midcentury aspics and jelly molds, if not as a boozy party trick. This straddling of extremes was part of Jell-O’s 20th-century identity crisis, a culinary Madonna-whore complex. By the turn of the millennium, Jell-O salads had long been deemed a kitsch, nightmarish fever dream, and jelly shots were probably most often dispensed at tailgating gatherings.
But the last Jell-O shot I took didn’t come in a dinky paper cup. It was a postmodern-looking, standalone cocktail jelly cube artfully made by Solid Wiggles, the Brooklyn-based culinary team at the helm of what one could call the fancy Jell-O-shot renaissance.
In lieu of mystery blue Jell-O shots in disposable cups, Solid Wiggles proposes more elaborate creations: say, a mango mezcal margarita jelly shot, complete with chile de árbol; or an aperitivo spritz jelly. It offers a lychee martini shot, a Hennessy colada shot, and an espresso martini jelly shot that looks like a glass tortoiseshell objet d’art — and these are just a few of its many wiggly offerings.
Solid Wiggles has experienced significant growth since its founding in 2020, when co-founder and pastry chef Jena Derman made the first batch as an experimental treat for a friend’s birthday. Currently, the team’s booze-filled jellies (there are nonalcoholic versions, too) can be found in bars and restaurants across New York City such as Shy Shy, Milady’s, Bad Roman, and over a dozen other locations.
While Solid Wiggles is undoubtedly the reigning jelly shot king, the concept of an aestheticized, sophisticated jelly cocktail shot has become more and more popular across the country. Vandell, one of LA’s hottest new cocktail bars, is known for its inventive drinks — but regulars also love its off-menu Jell-O shots, available upon request and served in tiny stemmed goblets. Oma’s Hideaway in Portland, Oregon, not only serves up Flamin’ Hot chicharrones and popcorn shrimp, but, in the words of its website, a rotation of evolving Jell-O shots with “a touch of sparkle and textural intrigue” befitting of the maximalist, black-light-poster-decorated Southeast Asian restaurant. In Chicago, jelly shots have taken on a particularly regional flair with Bub City’s Malört shots, made with the famously polarizing, intensely bitter liqueur that’s so beloved by the city. And artful jellies have also emerged in DIY home-kit form with brands like Gelée, and even taken over food Instagram, too, as seen from creators like @eatnunchi, @adventuresinjelly, and @thubuser.
This June, Derman and co-founder Jack Schramm of Solid Wiggles released their debut cocktail jelly cookbook, allowing gelatin lovers to bring the trend into their own kitchens (there will also be a DIY jelly-making kit available for purchase with the book).
“We’re definitely inspired by artists like Jackson Pollock and Andy Warhol,” says Schramm, who cites the importance of the visual component in making jelly shots. Schramm comes from an extensive bartending background; as Derman says, he was key in helping achieve the initial jelly liquid clarification that they needed to create their graphic jellies. When it comes to the booze-filled jellies’ rising popularity, Schramm says it’s likely a mix of nostalgia for Jell-O and a general curiosity about eating something that looks like a small work of art.
Solid Wiggles’ mastery of the Jell-O shot may sound niche, but that hyperfocus and attention to detail has proven to be its greatest strength. “I still don’t think either of us imagined that this was going to be the thing we’re doing,” Schramm says. “But it’s also allowed me to have a much healthier relationship with the food and beverage industry. [Making jellies is] a different [production] output and use of creativity.” Today, the Solid Wiggles team is made up of eight full-time employees and a rotating cast of delivery drivers.
When it came to making a cocktail jelly cookbook, Derman and Schramm wanted to create a guide that felt both accessible and aspirational. There are two levels: “Party Animal” (beginner) and “Party Pro” (more advanced). They also didn’t want the cookbook to look quite like anything else on the market. “What you won’t find are checkered-tablecloth picnic shots with the jellies on a plate,” Schramm says, explaining the team’s choice to go with photographer Hugo Yu for the glamorous, black-backdropped spreads. Yu had never worked on a cookbook before, but his eye for showstopping, macro product shots for luxury brands such as Loewe captured the Wiggles team’s heart. The result is a cookbook that doubles as an art book: a spread of highly-stylized jellies that could be equally at home on a kitchen shelf or in a 1970s-style conversation pit.
The thriving cocktail jelly culture of today has reinstated the dignity of molded jelly creations, giving them the allure that they perhaps once had on the tablescapes of 14th-century kings (after all, some of the earliest jellies date to medieval England). Jelly, this time, is for everyone. Most importantly, as Derman says, “It’s just fun. It’s the kind of thing you can go back to again and again because it’s a constant dopamine replenisher.”
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