Did you know you can make your own gummy bears with only a few ingredients? We are sharing this easy to make gummy bear recipe with you today. And we’re showing you two ways to make them! You can make them with fruit juice or with JELLO (flavored gelatin). Both methods are really easy to make homemade gummy bears. We hope you try them both!
RELATED: Homemade Fruit Popsicles
Gummy Bear Recipe
There are two ways you can make homemade gummy bears. We decided to test out both methods and share the recipes here!
Our kids actually preferred the JELLO version but they also liked the fruit version too. If you have gelatin, JELLO or fruit juice on hand you can easily make these!
The only thing you’ll need to get in advance are the gummy bear molds. Kids will not only love eating these gummy bears but they’ll also love helping to make them! Our 4 year old had fun using the droppers to put the recipe into the molds.
Gummy Bear Recipe – 2 Ways
We’re sharing two ways you can make your own homemade gummy bears. Let us know which one you try and which one is your favorite!
- Gummy Bears made with JELLO
- Gummy Bears made with fruit juice
How to Make Gummy Bears with JELLO
To make homemade gummy bears with JELLO you only need a package of JELLO and some gelatin. The easy thing with this recipe is that you don’t need to worry about how to sweeten it. Our kids loved this version because JELLO is sweet. We also love how bright and colorful the JELLO versions turned out. If you have extra JELLO boxes lying around the house this is a perfect way to use up the box!
Ingredients for JELLO version
- 1 package of JELLO (85g/3 oz size)
- 1 tablespoon of gelatin
- 1/2 cup of water
- gummy bear molds
Note: You can get Vegan Gelatin – this brand is a 1 for 1 replacement. Another option is Agar Agar Powder but we haven’t tested this with our recipes.
Directions to Make Homemade Gummy Bears with JELLO
- Pour 1/2 cup of water into a sauce pan set on low heat
- Add 1 package of Jello (85 size/3 oz size)
- Add 1 tablespoon of gelatin
- Mix until all dissolved and then remove from heat
- Using the dropper add into your mold
Tip: Try to avoid getting bubbles in your dropper when placing in the mold. If you end up with bubbles on the top, that’s ok but the bubbles will solidify that way. We had some bubbly ones and the kids still thought they tasted good.
- Place in fridge for 30 minutes or until solidified.
- Once they are hard from the fridge you can easily pop them out of your mold. If you find them hard to take out of the molds, keep longer in the fridge to make sure they are full solidified.
Gummy Bear Recipe With Fruit Juice
We tested a lot of versions with fruit juice. We tried different sweeteners and out of them all honey was our favorite. We didn’t try with regular sugar as we wanted this version to be sweetened naturally. Note: If you want to avoid all added sugar from using store bought juice you can make your own juice with real fruit instead using a juicer.
If you want to substitute the honey for regular sugar we would recommend you add a little bit of sugar to start and then taste-test before filling your molds.
Note: Reminder that honey should not be given to babies under 1 year old.
Other Sweetener Options
You can also use Stevia but only the liquid drops. We tried with the powder version and the recipe did not turn out. We also tested Agave syrup but we personally did not like the flavor. The final option to sweeten naturally is you can use maple syrup. However, we liked honey the best because it’s sweet but the flavor is not too overpowering.
For juices we recommend any clear juices – the ones we used are called Simply Lemonades. You can also use cranberry juice or apple juice.
Storage
Keep stored in the refrigerator and they should last at least one week (but will usually get eaten up before then!).
Ingredients for fruit version
- 1/2 cup of fruit juice
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 2 tablespoons gelatin
- gummy bear molds
Note: You can get Vegan Gelatin – this brand is a 1 for 1 replacement. Another option is Agar Agar Powder but we haven’t tested this with our recipes
Here are the directions for the fruit version – you can print the recipe off here too!
Gummy Bear Recipe
Video
Equipment
Instructions
Nutrition Estimate
Notes
More Fun Treats:
- For a healthy snack option for kids, see these fruit popsicles – kids love helping to make these and they are perfect for a hot summer day!
- Ice cream in a bag is also really fun to make with the kids!
- And for another fun snack idea for kids – try these yogurt bites or homemade Jello.
what can I used to preserve them longer, my grandchildren want to sell them at the flea market or church craft shows along with the slim they make
Keep them refrigerated. If you can store in a cooler maybe?
For the Jello gummy’s do you let the water boil and then put the ingredients in or no
You add all of the ingredients in and stir on low heat until everything is dissolved.
Hi
I have 2 questions regarding the fruit juice recipe:
1. If I want a more gummy bear texture, do I need to add more gelatine?
2. How can I get it to be sour (like the sour gummy snakes)?
Thanks!
Yes the more gelatin you add, the harder the final gummies will be. If you add in lemon juice it will make it sour. 🙂
if I make the fruit juice version, do I still need to keep them in the fridge?
I’m giving them out as party favors. Want to know if I need to inform guest so keep in fridge if not consumed.
Yes we recommend they be kept in the fridge.
Wow. I’ve tried several gummy recipes to try and make Lego gummies for my son’s birthday. They were all disasters because when I’d try to unmold them, they’d break all apart. I’d tired using cooking spray in the mold (tasted gross). I tried sitting the mold in warm water for a bit so they’d slide out (didn’t work) and I’d tired adding more gelatin. Yours was the only recipe that worked and it worked perfectly!
I was skeptical since it seemed like so little water, and because most recipes were dating to use boiling water, but your method barely got the mixture warm. But it created perfect looking gummies with the perfect texture AND it took only an hour or two to set (although I didn’t try with less time) whereas the previous versions weren’t hard enough to keep together even after 8 hours. Thank you so much for sharing your recipe!
It really helped me out because I wanted to make a cute and special snack for my son’s Lego birthday party and my niece and nephew are allergic to all of the major allergens. And this is so easy. Sorry, I know I’m rambling, I’m just so thrilled! ?
P.s. I had posted a question earlier that hasn’t even been approved yet, but I kept constantly stirring the gummy mixture, like you would with jello pudding, and eventually it did become less grainy and more liquidy.
That’s so great to hear Sharon, thanks for the positive feedback! 🙂
Thank you for this recipe. My family loved them. They liked the jello version best too but I liked the juice version a little better. I used a blue machine juice smoothie and it was awesome.
Hi,
I would like to know if I am able to reheat the jelly if I need too?
Thank you x
We haven’t tried that but don’t think it would be an issue.
This is great????
I see previous comments about keeping in the fridge but I was hoping to make and mail them to my grandson. Did you know if anything can be added to the recipe too allow for a couple of days for shipping?
I would be worried about mailing them since if they get hot they may melt. If you are in a colder climate they may be okay.
I’ve seen other recipes that use more gelatin. I’m sure the addition of gelatin would definitely add to the stability of the gummy.
We tested with more gelatin and found the texture a bit too hard for our liking but it’s definitely a personal preference! If you find it’s too soft test adding a little more in and that will harden them up more.
What kind of juice did you use?
We used Simply lemonade and cranberry juice. The Simply lemonade was our favorite – it gives it a more sour taste from the lemonade.
These look very yummy! Thank you!
If I make these the night before a birthday party will they be okay to set out for the party or do they need to be kept in the fridge? (Jello version)
They need to be kept in the fridge. 🙂
Why is it necessary to add more gelatin to the jello recipe, doesn’t the jello already have it in it?
If you just use the jello it will be jello. The extra gelatin is needed to make the gummies more like a gummy texture and not like jello.
where to buy mold for gummy bear
Hi Myrna – we link to the molds on Amazon in the post above! 🙂
Where can get the Gummy bear mold?
Hi Alma – we link to the molds in the post above from Amazon.
For the jello recipe it says half a cup of water. That’s less than normal package instructions. Does that mean we’re not to follow the package? Also is the extra gelatin so it’s more gummy like rather than jello?
Exactly Kelly, don’t follow the directions of your jello package or you’ll make jello. Put in only the 1/2 cup of water and the extra jelatin is what will give it more of a gummy bear-like texture. It’s not exactly the same since the store-bought kind has lots of other ingredients but it’s close! 🙂
I know it will depend on the mold used, but with the mold shown in the video, how many gummies does the recipe make.?
With the mold we used we filled about 2.5 of the trays with one batch. 🙂
Where can I purchase the mold?
We link to the molds on Amazon above in the post. 🙂
Where can I find the molds for gummy bears
We link to the molds above from Amazon in the post. 🙂
Hi, I’m just wondering, when you say stir until dissolved, do you mean until it’s like a thin liquid? I’ve been stirring it on low for several minutes now and it’s like a liquidy gel, but when I scoop a spoonful it still looks a bit grainy, but consistent/homogenous. Is it supposed to get hot? Cause so far the liquid is barely lukewarm. Thanks!
Yes you want it to be on low heat enough but hot enough for everything to dissolve so it’s not grainy.
I was wondering why they are only good for one week? I will be using juice recipe.
There are no preservatives in them so 1 week is about the time we’ve found they keep well.
What makes the store bought gummy bears ok out of fridge? I love this idea but it isn’t too practical if they will melt into a puddle in a container on way to school or on an putting for a treat.
They shouldn’t melt into a puddle if you leave them out, it just helps them keep longer. They don’t have preservatives like the store-bought kind do.
Love this! Once they are solidified do they have to be kept in the fridge? Thanks!
Yes sorry we forgot to mention they should be placed in the fridge! We just added that to the post. Thank you!