 | |
| Type | Jelly dessert |
|---|---|
| Place of origin | Japan,England |
| Main ingredients | Instant or fresh coffee, sugar andgelatin oragar jelly |
Coffee jelly (コーヒーゼリー,kōhī zerī) is ajelly dessert flavored withcoffee andsugar.[1][2] Although once common inBritish andAmerican cookbooks, it is now most common inJapan, where it can be found in most restaurants andconvenience stores. Coffee jelly can be made using an instant mix or from scratch. It is served in restaurants and cafés. Coffee jelly is also frequently used inbubble tea/coffees.
Recipes for coffee jelly appear in cookbooks published in England as early as 1817.[3][4] The earliest recipes call for coffee to be mixed with calves' foot jelly and sometimes call forisinglass or other clarifiers.[5] After the introduction of packaged gelatin, most recipes called for the gelatin to be dissolved in the hot coffee and then molded.[6]
In the early 20th century, coffee jelly was promoted as a healthier alternative to hot coffee, as it was thought the gelatin would absorb excess acid in the stomach.[7]
Jell-O launched a short-lived coffee gelatin mix in 1918,[8] but the dessert never gained widespread popularity outside of New England. Nowadays, coffee jelly may still be found in Rhode Island, Massachusetts and other New England states.Durgin-Park restaurant in Boston, which opened in 1874, still offered coffee gelatin made with leftover coffee from the previous day as of 2016.[9]
Japanese coffee jelly was developed during theTaishō period (1912–1926)[10] in imitation of European molded jellies. It appealed to modern young men with tastes for Western fashion and rose in popularity along with café culture.[10] Coffee jelly has remained popular in Japan and is still widely available.Starbucks launched a coffee jellyfrappuccino in Japan in 2016.[11][12]
Coffee jelly is made from sweetened coffee added toagar, a gelatinous substance made fromalgae and calledkanten in Japanese.[10] It may also be made fromgelatin rather than agar, which is more common in European and American cuisine.
It is often cut into cubes and served in a variety ofdessert dishes and beverages. Cubes of coffee jelly are sometimes added tomilkshakes, at the bottom of anice cream float, or to garnish an ice creamsundae. Coffee jelly is often added to a cup of hot or iced coffee, withcream andgum syrup added.Condensed milk is poured over cubes of chilled coffee jelly in a bowl.[13]
Coffee jelly appears numerous times throughout the mangaThe Disastrous Life of Saiki K. and its anime adaptation as the titularKusuo Saiki's favorite food.
