Enjoy the refreshing and cool taste of chrysanthemum jelly that is infused with the aromatics of chrysanthemum tea. This easy chrysanthemum tea jelly dessert is perfect to enjoy after a hearty meal or if you’re looking to cool down during a hot summer day.
What Is Chrysanthemum Jelly?
Chrysanthemum jelly is a Chinese dessert dish consisting of white jelly powder infused with the flavors of chrysanthemum flowers. This light and cool dessert is typically eaten when you’re looking to cool down or if you had too much “hot foods” and now you’re looking to “cool down” and rebalance the yin and yang in your body. If you’re Asian then you know what I’m talking about 🤣. Sometimes you might see goji berries added in with the chrysanthemum jelly as well. This chrysanthemum jelly dessert recipe is packed full of chrysanthemum flavor and isn’t overly sweet unless you go overboard with the sugar syrup!
Ingredients
Chrysanthemum Jelly:
- Dried Chrysanthemum flowers 35g
- Yellow rock sugar 45g
- Water 1.5 L
- White grass jelly powder 50g
Sugar Syrup:
- Rock sugar 90g
- Water 200ml
Ingredient Notes
Dried Chrysanthemum Flowers: You can pick up some dried chrysanthemum flowers at most Asian supermarkets or Chinese herbal shops for cheap. These dried chrysanthemum flowers typically need to be washed, and strained prior to using.
White grass jelly powder: You can use any brand of white grass jelly powder that you find at an Asian grocery store but make sure that it’s white grass jelly and not black grass jelly or flavored jelly as we will be infusing the flavor of chrysanthemum with the white jelly.
Yellow rock sugar: I recommend using rock sugar as it is less sweet compared to using white granulated sugar and it also does not possess the molasses taste of brown sugar, making it the perfect candidate for making our sugar syrup. I’m using the yellow version of rock sugar as it produces a nice golden color that is perfectly suited for our chrysanthemum Jelly and is less refined compared to the white version but you can use the white version if you’d like.
Substitutions/Additions
- Rock sugar: You can substitute regular rock sugar with either white granulated sugar or brown sugar if you don’t have any rock sugar at home or you prefer using something else. Due note that if you do substitute rock sugar with another sugar, you may need to reduce the amount of sugar that you use as it may end up being overly sweet when used in the sugar syrup.
- Dried Chrysanthemum Flowers: You can substitute it with dried osmanthus flower.
- Goji berries/Wolfberries: Goji berries also go great with chrysanthemum as well and you will sometimes see people making chrysanthemum jelly with goji berries added in.
How to Make Chrysanthemum Jelly
- Wash and strain the chrysanthemum flowers and set them aside to dry.
- Add your water to a medium sized pot and bring it to a boil and then add in the rock sugar when it’s boiling and allow it to fully melt.
- Next add in the chrysanthemum flowers to the pot of water and allow it to brew for 1-2 minutes then strain out the liquid, set it aside and allow it to cool down.
- Now using a strainer again, weigh and pour out approximately 1.1L of the chrysanthemum tea into a pot. Don’t pour the excess pulp sitting at the bottom into the pot as you want your jelly to be nice and clear.
- Then add your white jelly powder to the pot with the chrysanthemum tea.
- Mix everything well together.
- Now place the pot on a stove and heat up the mixture on medium heat while constantly stirring the pot until it boils.
- Once the chrysanthemum tea jelly liquid boils, turn off the stove and continue mixing everything for an additional 15 seconds, and then remove the pot from the stove.
- Next, pour out the liquid onto a large container. I recommend using a large glass container instead of plastic so as to ensure that the container does not melt from the hot liquid. If you’re using a plastic container then wait a few minutes for the mixture to cool down first before pouring it onto the plastic container.
- Finally using a toothpick and spoon, pop and scoop out any bubbles that you see on the surface of the liquid.
- Let the chrysanthemum tea jelly liquid cool down before finally covering it with a lid and placing it in the fridge to solidify. Once the jelly has solidified, it is ready to be served. I recommend keeping the jelly in the fridge overnight before serving. Remove the jelly from the container and cut the jelly into square pieces or whatever shape you would like.
Sugar Syrup
- In a small pot, add your water and rock sugar.
- Heat up the mixture and occasionally stir the liquid until all of the rock sugar has dissolved with the water.
- Remove the pot from the stovetop once all of the rock sugar has dissolved.
Note: If you’d like the sugar syrup to be more thicker and darker, you can continue cooking the sugar syrup until it reaches the desired thickness.
Tips
- Strain out the chrysanthemum pulp when pouring out the chrysanthemum tea. This will make your chrysanthemum jelly look nice and clear.
- Use a toothpick and a spoon to scoop out and pop any bubbles on the surface of the chrysanthemum jelly when pouring it out onto a container to make the surface look nice and smooth
Common Mistakes Beginners Make
- Pouring the excess pulp out along with the chrysanthemum tea leading to jelly that does not look nice and clear and has a bitter taste. Do not pour out the pulp that is sitting at the bottom of the pot after brewing the chrysanthemum tea.
Storage Tips
The chrysanthemum tea jelly dessert can be stored in the fridge for up to 1 week in an airtight container.
Frequently Asked Questions (F.A.Q.S)
Can I Use Agar Agar Powder Instead of White Jelly Powder?
No! The recipe was made and tested using white jelly powder exclusively and the water ratio has been designed to work with white jelly powder only.
Can I Use Gelatin Powder Instead of White Jelly Powder?
No! See above.
Why Is My Jelly All Lumpy and Not Smooth?
Did you fully dissolve and mix the white jelly powder well with the liquid prior to pouring it out onto a container? To prevent this from happening, make sure that the white jelly powder has been fully dissolved and that you have been constantly mixing it in the pot while heating up the liquid to a boil.
Why Does My Chrysanthemum Tea Jelly Taste Overly Bitter?
Make sure that you do not pour the excess pulp that is sitting at the bottom of the chrysanthemum tea out along with the chrysanthemum tea. This will lead to it being more bitter. When pouring out the chrysanthemum tea, stop once the liquid no longer looks clear, and discard the pulp. Also, the chrysanthemum tea jelly is meant to be eaten along with the sugar syrup and not by itself.
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Chrysanthemum Jelly Dessert
Ingredients
Chrysanthemum Jelly
- 35 g Dried Chrysanthemum flowers
- 45 g Yellow rock sugar
- 1.5 L Water
- 50 g White grass jelly powder
Sugar Syrup
- 90 g Rock sugar
- 200 ml Water
Instructions
How to Make Chrysanthemum Jelly
- Wash and strain the chrysanthemum flowers and set them aside to dry.
- Add your water to a medium sized pot and bring it to a boil and then add in the rock sugar when it’s boiling and allow it to fully melt.
- Next add in the chrysanthemum flowers to the pot of water and allow it to brew for 1-2 minutes then strain out the liquid, set it aside and allow it to cool down.
- Now using a strainer again, weigh and pour out approximately 1.1L of the chrysanthemum tea into a pot. Don’t pour the excess pulp sitting at the bottom into the pot as you want your jelly to be nice and clear.
- Then add your white jelly powder to the pot with the chrysanthemum tea.
- Mix everything well together.
- Now place the pot on a stove and heat up the mixture on medium heat while constantly stirring the pot until it boils.
- Once the chrysanthemum tea jelly liquid boils, turn off the stove and continue mixing everything for an additional 15 seconds, and then remove the pot from the stove.
- Next, pour out the liquid onto a large container. I recommend using a large glass container instead of plastic so as to ensure that the container does not melt from the hot liquid. If you’re using a plastic container then wait a few minutes for the mixture to cool down first before pouring it onto the plastic container.
- Finally using a toothpick and spoon, pop and scoop out any bubbles that you see on the surface of the liquid.
- Let the chrysanthemum tea jelly liquid cool down before finally covering it with a lid and placing it in the fridge to solidify. Once the jelly has solidified, it is ready to be served. I recommend keeping the jelly in the fridge overnight before serving. Remove the jelly from the container and cut the jelly into square pieces or whatever shape you would like.
Sugar Syrup
- In a small pot, add your water and rock sugar.
- Heat up the mixture and occasionally stir the liquid until all of the rock sugar has dissolved with the water.
- Remove the pot from the stovetop once all of the rock sugar has dissolved.
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