Episode
The Strange History of Jell-O: Gelatin, Bone Broth, Jell-O Shots & Aspic.
- Podcast
- Family Tree Food Stories
- Published
- Aug 13, 2026
- Duration seconds
- 2247
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Summary
Why Jell-O Is Back, and Suddenly Hotter Than Ever. Jell-O is back! But not just in the form that you might remember. Gelatin and Jell-O are suddenly everywhere again: in bone broth, collagen powders, cocktail jellies, and high-end food art, and they've got a very devoted online following that is recreating old recipes and inventing new ways to use and eat them. In this episode of Family Tree Food Stories , Sylvia France and I ( Nancy May ) dig into the unusual history of Jell-O, gelatin, aspic, bone broth, and even ancient Jell-O shots. We're sharing how gelatin made it from the medieval banquet tables and 50-ton showpieces to those lime-green molded “salads,” we remember so well. Why Utah’s official love affair with it is so strong that they gave it a full week on the state calendar to celebrate it! We're also settling a few kitchen-table arguments: No, gelatin is not made from horse hooves. No, fresh pineapple is not your friend when you want Jell-O to set. And no, buying a $40 tub of collagen does not automatically make you healthier, younger, or mysteriously more interesting at brunch. Well.... maybe we might test that one. The real story is this: gelatin never disappeared. We simply changed the name, the packaging, and the price tag. Yesterday it was Grandma’s tomato aspic. Today it is “functional wellness” and $115 designer Jell-O shots. Same old wobble, similar tastes, and a much higher price! Key Things You'll Learn: FAQs What is Jell-O really made from? You might be surprised here. Is gelatin the same as collagen? They are closely related, but no. Why is gelatin making a comeback? Retro cooking, homemade bone broth, collagen culture, cocktail jellies, and food-as-art have made this old ingredient fashionable again. Everything old is new again, even in the kitc…