An odorless, tasteless and colorless thickening agent, which when dissolved in hot water and then cooled, forms a jelly. It’s useful for many purposes such as jelling molded desserts and salads, thickening cold soups and glazing chaud-froid preparations. Granulated gelatin is the most common form of unsweetened commercial gelatin on the market. It’s packaged in boxes of 1/4-ounce envelopes and is also available in bulk. Generally, 1 envelope of gelatin will jell 2 cups of liquid. It’s important to soak gelatin in cold liquid (whatever the recipe directs) for 3 to 5 minutes before dissolving it. This softens and swells the gelatin granules so they will dissolve smoothly when heated. Not as readily available as granulated gelatin is leaf (or sheet) gelatin, which comes in packages of paper-thin sheets. Four sheets of leaf gelatin equal one package of powdered gelatin. Leaf gelatin must be soaked longer than granulated gelatin and is therefore not as popular. This product is often called for in jelled European dessert reci-pes. It can be found in some gourmet and bakery supply shops. Sweetened gelatin dessert mix is also available in various artificial fruit flavors.
