How to Make Jelly Beans

Co-authored by wikiHow Staff

Last Updated: March 24, 2023 Tested

Homemade jelly beans can be an adventurous and rewarding culinary project for anyone with a sweet tooth. The process is definitely time-consuming, and the resulting jelly beans won't be as shiny as their commercial counterparts. That being said, the flavor of homemade jelly beans can be just as good as—if not better than—the kind you buy in stores.

Ingredients

Makes about 150 jelly beans

Chewy Inner Bean

3/4 cup (180 ml) water
1-1/4 cup (310 ml) white granulated sugar
1/4 oz (7 g) unflavored gelatin
1/2 cup (125 ml) pulp-free juice
1/4 tsp (1.25 ml) salt
Food coloring (optional)
2 Tbsp (30 ml) cornstarch

Hard Outer Shell

2 Tbsp (30 ml) corn syrup
Food coloring
Liquid flavoring (optional)
3/4 cup (180 ml) superfine sugar
2 Tbsp (30 ml) cocoa butter, grated

Part 1

Part 1 of 4:

Making the Syrup

1
Combine water, sugar, and gelatin. Place the water, granulated sugar, and gelatin in a large saucepan. Stir to combine.
2
Boil the mixture. Place the saucepan on the stove over medium heat. Allow the gelatin mixture to reach a boil, stirring frequently.
- You'll need to stir the mixture with a wooden or plastic spoon as it heats up. Otherwise, the gelatin granules may gather together and form lumps.
- Once the mixture reaches a boil, use a wet pastry brush to wash down the sides of the pan. Doing so removes any sugar clinging to the sides and creates a smoother syrup.
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3
Cook to 230 degrees Fahrenheit (110 degrees Celsius). Insert a candy thermometer into the mixture as soon as it reaches a boil. Continue cooking the syrup until it reaches a temperature of 230 degrees Fahrenheit (110 degrees Celsius).^{[1]
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- With the stove heat set to medium, this process should take 20 to 25 minutes.
- Do not allow the syrup to reach temperatures much higher than this. If it does, the resulting jelly beans will become hard instead of chewy.
4
Set the saucepan in ice water. Fill a large bowl with cold water and add a tray of ice cubes. Place the bottom of the saucepan in this bowl and keep it there for 5 minutes.
- If you do not have a large enough bowl, you can fill your sink with ice water, instead.
- The ice water should stop the temperature from rising any higher.
5
Add the juice and salt. Pour the juice into the syrup and sprinkle it with the salt. Stir well to combine.
- You can use any flavor juice for this recipe. If you opt for a mild flavor, consider adding an extra squeeze of lemon juice to enhance it.
- Alternatively, you can use liquid flavoring or extracts instead of juice. Since these options are more concentrated, you'll only need to add a few drops instead of the full 1/2 cup (125 ml).
- You may also wish to enhance the color of these beans by adding a few drops of food coloring to the syrup, but doing so is not necessary since you'll be adding a colorful shell later on.

Part 2

Part 2 of 4:

Forming the Jelly Beans

1
Coat the molds. Spray the jelly bean molds with nonstick cooking spray.
- The molds should be evenly covered but not drenched. If you notice any puddles of cooking spray sitting in the indentations, use a clean paper towel to dab away the excess.
- You can use either plastic or silicone jelly bean molds. You may not need to coat silicone molds, but this step is strongly recommended if you decide to use plastic molds.
2
Pour the syrup into the molds. Use a spoon to carefully fill each mold indentation with the flavored syrup.
- Try to fill each mold completely. While it might create a mess, over-filling the molds will ultimately be better than under-filling them since the beans will be difficult to remove from under-filled molds.
3
Wait for the mixture to harden. Allow the syrup to sit at room temperature for four to six hours, or until the gelatin has firmed up.
- If you want to speed up the process, you can place the molds into a refrigerator for two to three hours. When taking this option, you should also place the filled molds into a freezer for 20 to 40 minutes after refrigeration to make them even firmer and easier to work with.^{[2]
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- Test the beans by touching them. They will have a definite solid form, but they should also feel sticky and gummy when pressed.
4
Remove the beans from the molds. Invert the mold and press on each indentation from the bottom side. Doing so should cause the jelly beans to pop out.
- Since the beans are so sticky, they may not pop out immediately. If the beans do not pop out, you can use a small spoon to dig them out of their molds. Most should hold their shape even if pressed in this manner.
5
Coat the beans with cornstarch. Place the jelly beans in a bowl and add the cornstarch. Toss to coat, then allow them to sit for at least four hours.
- The corn starch should absorb some of the remaining moisture, making the beans easier to handle.
- After drying the beans, you many need to toss them into a sieve to help shake away any excess cornstarch. This won't always be necessary, though, since much of the cornstarch will be absorbed by the beans.

Part 3

Part 3 of 4:

Creating the Hard Outer Shell

1
Combine the corn syrup and food coloring. Pour the corn syrup into a small bowl and stir in several drops of food coloring. Continue stirring until the color is evenly dispersed.^{[3]
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- If desired, you could also add a few drops of liquid flavoring. Make sure that the flavoring matches or accents the flavor used for the chewy inner portion of the bean.
2
Coat the beans. Spoon the corn syrup mixture into the bowl of jelly bean middles. Use a spoon to toss the beans until they're evenly coated.
- This sticky mixture will become part of the outer shell, so it's important to coat all sides of the all the beans. If you have difficulty doing this while all the beans are piled together, you may wish to transfer the beans into smaller bowls and toss each bowl separately.
3
Toss the beans in superfine sugar. Spoon all the beans into a bowl of superfine sugar. Use a spoon to toss them around, coating all sides evenly.
- The superfine sugar will help dry out some of the sticky mixture and prevent the beans from clumping together. It's also a crucial ingredient for the hard outer coating.
- Superfine sugar is strongly recommended. If you don't have superfine sugar, standard granulated sugar will also work, but the resulting shell will have a slightly grainy texture.
4
Place the candy in a jar with cocoa butter. Transfer the jelly beans to a large jar. Add some grated cocoa butter to the jar, as well.
- The cocoa butter will help prevent the beans from sticking together as they tumble.
- Using a large glass jar will be your cheapest option, but if you have a clean rock tumbler, that would work even better.
5
Tumble the candy for at least 15 minutes. Seal the jar and title it at an approximate 45-degree angle. Turn it in your hands for at least 15 minutes while maintaining this angle.
- Tumbling the candy polishes it, which should result in a smoother, harder shell.
- If you're using a rock tumbler instead of turning the candy by hand, you should let the candy tumble for roughly two hours. Longer tumbling will result in an even smoother coating.

Part 4

Part 4 of 4:

Finishing the Jelly Beans

1
Dry the beans. If the beans still feel tacky when you remove them from the jar or tumbler, spread them out over a sheet of parchment paper and allow the beans to dry overnight.
- As they dry, the coating should also become even harder.
- Depending on how sticky the beans feel, you may need to flip them over halfway through the drying process to allow both sides adequate drying time.
2
Enjoy your homemade jelly beans. Once the beans are dry, they're ready to eat!