Jello Shots 

Jello Shot 

A shot glass is a small glass designed to measure liquor known as "a shot", to be poured into a drink or person (usually people looking to get drunk fast) straight from the glass. The modern thick walled shot glass of today, was originated in the United States during the prohibition era.

A jello shot is made with the addition of an alcoholic beverage to the mix, comprising roughly a third of the liquid added after the gelatin has been dissolved in the boiled water. The principle is to substitute liquor for an equivalent volume of part of the water.

Dry gelatin contains colloidal proteins. These proteins are chained together which is broken with hot water and then reformed as a semisolid colloidal suspension with the added water. Pure alcohol cannot be used for jello shots as they evaporate when heated.

You can make jello shots with almost any type of alcohol, but you need to adjust the ratio of alcohol and water in order for the shot to set properly. As the alcohol proof goes up you have to add more water in to the jello shot for it to set.

The mix is poured in to shot glasses or cups of any color. Many people like jello shots in paper cups so that they can turn the cup inside out to free the jello. If you are serving jello shots in shot glasses, you need to provide knives, forks, tooth picks etc. to consume the shot from the glass. Applying heat on the glass will help the jello shot to slide free.

While planning a jello shot party, it is better to dilute your shots with more cold water and less alcohol. As the alcohol contained in the jello is absorbed slowly by the body, even regular drinkers will find it difficult to know how drunk they are.