The 12 Most Unusual Jell-O Flavors Of All Time

Jell-O is one of those ubiquitous, timeless American brands that feels like it's been around forever. You probably ate it as a kid, and so did your parents, and so did their parents. And while extravagant gelatin molds might seem like a relic of mid-century dinner parties, the concept goes back much further than you might think. Dating back to medieval Europe, gelatin was a luxury food because the cooking process required hours of simmering animal bones. That all changed in 1897, when Jell-O was invented by a carpenter named Pearle Wait in Le Roy, New York.

The advent of Jell-O coincided perfectly with the rise of domestic science — a movement that wholeheartedly embraced new kitchen technologies that made cooking faster and easier. Homemakers in the early 20th century were eager to swap traditional, labor-intensive recipes for premade products like Wonder Bread and TV dinners and use new contraptions like microwaves and refrigerators. Jell-O, with its quick prep and endless versatility, fits right into this new wave of cooking technology. And it wasn't just a simple dessert; it could be a vehicle for sweet and savory salads and meals, too.

Over its century-long history, Jell-O has tried just about everything to stay relevant in the kitchens of America, resulting in some rather bizarre flavor experiments over the years. But what might seem unusual today often made perfect sense at the time. A closer look at Jell-O's strangest flavors reveals that they weren't just oddities; they were reflections of the cultural, culinary, and marketing trends of their day.

Modern audiences are most likely familiar with the Jell-O instant chocolate pudding mix that became a staple of its product line. The chocolate pudding mix first debuted in 1936, and it's been a mainstay of the flavor selections ever since. But prior to that, the company initially released a chocolate-flavored gelatin in 1904 as one of its very first flavors.

Many words come to mind when describing chocolate: rich, creamy, decadent. Missing from that list are "gelatinous" or "translucent," and for good reason — chocolate-flavored gelatin seems visually and texturally uncanny. Still, at the time, Jell-O was an entirely new product, and consumers didn't yet have clear expectations for what it should look or taste like.

The chocolate Jell-O flavor lasted until 1928 when it was discontinued. Ironically, some of the earliest flavors that were discontinued in Jello-O's history include now-classic flavors like orange and peach. However, we have a strong feeling that the chocolate flavor will not be making a comeback in gelatin form any time soon, remaining firmly in the history books.

Coffee-flavored Jell-O first hit the market in 1908, a surprising addition to the brand's typically fruity and kid-friendly lineup. While it might sound unusual today, coffee gelatin itself wasn't a new invention. Recipes for coffee jelly date back to the early 1800s in England and the U.S., when it was served as a sophisticated dessert.

What makes this flavor stand out is how off-brand it seems for Jell-O, a company with a core identity built around family appeal. Coffee, with its strong and bitter taste, feels like an odd addition in comparison to modern flavors. That mismatch may help explain the brand's eventual focus on fruity flavors in the decades that followed.

During its brief shelf life, coffee-flavored Jell-O garnered a regional following in New England. For decades, Boston's iconic Durgin-Park restaurant served coffee gelatin as a traditional dessert, right up until the restaurant closed in 2019.

Coffee Jell-O was only sold for a short period, but coffee jelly lives on, most notably in Japan, where it's made with agar powder and served with milk or tea. You can recreate the Jell-O at home using unflavored gelatin and some fresh coffee.

Jell-O's original flavor lineup began with familiar fruity flavors, like orange, lemon, strawberry, and raspberry, and lime was eventually introduced in 1930. But in the early 1960s, the brand took a bold turn with the release of four official "Jell-O for Salads" flavors, including the infamous celery option.

While it may sound shocking today, the concept of savory Jell-O salad wasn't new. Home cooks had been making Jell-O salads since at least 1905, when a recipe called the "Perfection Salad," a mixture of cabbage, celery, and pimentos in lemon Jell-O, took the U.S. by storm. Before the official Jell-O salad line debuted, lemon and lime were the go-to flavors for these dishes — although home cooks would often add a splash of vinegar to tone down the sweetness of the mix.

So why celery? It makes sense when you think about its taste: Celery has a clean and fresh flavor, and it pairs well with a plethora of potential salad ingredients like chicken, olives, or shrimp. Celery Jell-O wasn't meant to be eaten on its own, but instead used as a base for the molded salads. On its own, it might not sound appetizing to modern audiences, but the flavor reflects the food trends of the first half of the 20th century.

Another member of Jell-O's brief but unforgettable salad flavor line, which debuted in the 1960s. While the exact ingredients remain a mystery, we imagine it tasted somewhat similar to vegetable broth — perhaps something like peas, carrots, and green beans in a gelatin format. Vegetables don't naturally have collagen, so it was most likely still made with some animal product.

A 1965 ad positioned these salad flavors as convenient bases for molded salads filled with any savory ingredients you could find in your fridge. "That's why it blends so well with the taste of meat, fish, and vegetables you put in salads," the copy reads, selling the image of a wobbly dinner contained inside a futuristic Tupperware mold.

Though savory gelatin salads may seem outdated to modern American audiences, they're still a staple in other parts of the world. In Eastern Europe, for instance, kholodets remains a popular traditional dish, made with boiled-down meat and served with horseradish or mustard. Jell-O salads might be past their heyday, but savory gelatinous meals are still served around the globe.

Another member of the salad line released in the 1960s, Seasoned Tomato Jell-O promised a more tangy, acidic base for Jell-O salads. While it would certainly stand out on a shelf today, tomato Jell-O took inspiration from an already-established dish prevalent in '50s kitchens, particularly in the Southern U.S.: tomato aspic.

Think of tomato aspic as a solidified gazpacho or a bloody mary, minus the booze. Typically, it's made with tomato juice and gelatin, particularly lemon Jell-O, with add-ins like hot sauce, Worcestershire, and vinegar to cut the sweetness. Served cold, tomato aspic can be paired with chicken salad, shrimp, sauce, or crackers as a retro and visually stunning appetizer.

Back in the '50s and '60s, the Jell-O company sought to simplify this cooking process by making the instant tomato Jell-O flavor. It has long since been discontinued, but you can still recreate it today with whichever type of gelatin you like and tomato juice. Like all Jell-O salads, there's an element of customization in tomato aspic that adds a homemade touch to its semi-instant preparation.

As the final salad flavor introduced in the 1960s, Italian Salad Jell-O was designed to be a base for molded salads filled with meats, seafood, or vegetables. The "Italian" part probably referred to the herbs in its seasoning blend, although what that tasted like is now lost to time.

The entire Jell-O salad flavor line was quietly discontinued by the mid-1970s. But why did these once-beloved gelatinous salads fall out of fashion? A big part of the answer lies in the changes in food and health trends in the '60s. Elaborate congealed salads gave way to simple raw vegetables in the form of chopped salads. Still, savory gelatin salads had a long reign as an "it" food, especially in the mid-century United States.

Jell-O launched its first sugar-free gelatin line in 1925 under the name D-Zerta. But it wasn't until the 1960s that Jell-O fully embraced the sugar-free diet trend as well as market it towards kids. In 1965, the brand introduced Mr. Wiggle, a colorful, animated character who advertised Jell-O's new line of sugar-free, candy-inspired gelatin desserts "made just for kids." These mixes were sweetened with artificial sweeteners rather than sugar, reflecting the growing health concerns around sugar in the American diet.

The flavors were clearly aimed at young palates, including Gumdrop Grape, Rockcandy Raspberry, and Jellybean Strawberry. But the real oddity was Candycorn Orange. A famously divisive Halloween treat, candy corn has been around even longer than Jell-O. The origins of candy corn begin in the 1880s, when candy maker George Renninger intended to make candy that looked like chicken feed but tasted sweet. 

The flavor of candy corn is akin to marshmallows, as both are made with corn syrup and vanilla flavoring, but the texture of candy corn is somewhat waxy, making it an odd choice for an orange-flavored gelatin mix flavoring. Mr. Wiggle didn't last long, but he's an entertaining footnote in the history of Jell-O's marketing attempts to win over both kids and their health-conscious parents.

One of the more whimsical and mysterious Jell-O inventions, Jell-O 1-2-3 debuted in 1969 and promised a magical dessert that separated into three distinct layers, all from a single mix. With the help of a blender, both hot and cold water, and a great deal of patience, home cooks could create a dessert with a jelly base, a custard middle, and a fluffy mousse top.

Jell-O 1-2-3 was mostly discontinued in the 1980s, keeping it in a few select markets before it was discontinued again for good in the mid-1990s. Despite its relatively short shelf life, Jell-O 1-2-3 remains a fond memory for older generations reminiscing about the treats of yesteryear. It even appeared in a 1994 episode of "The Nanny" as an example of an old nostalgic treat.

These days, copycat recipes exist online using whipped toppings like Cool Whip to replicate the layered look. Still, none seem to capture the novelty and magic of Kraft's original formula. While it may never return to grocery store shelves, Jell-O 1-2-3 lives on as a symbol of whimsical kitchen chemistry.

For Jell-O's 100th anniversary in 1997, the company released a Sparkling White Grape gelatin mix with the tagline, "The Champagne of Jell-O." Packaged in elegantly designed boxes with gold accents, this flavor aimed to elevate the humble dessert into an extravagant celebration. How exactly does a block of Jell-O sparkle, you might ask? The trick was in the preparation. You mixed the powder with a fizzy drink like ginger ale, Sprite, or club soda, which added bubbles and a subtle effervescence to the final set.

Though not technically champagne-flavored, the pale yellow color and party-themed branding made it clear that it was meant for New Year's Eve or other festive occasions. It's implied you could spike it with real bubbly, too. While the flavor didn't last long on shelves, it reflects Jell-O's enduring impulse to reinvent itself with branding and new add-ins. 

Jell-O's wholesome, family-friendly image from the first half of the 20th century contrasts directly with another form of Jell-O popularized in the latter half of the century: the Jell-O shot. Mixing alcohol and gelatin is by no means a new invention. Aspics in the Middle Ages often included wine or sherry as an acidic complement to the savory flavors of meat, but it was only around the 1950s when this combination emerged as a tasty, fun-size method for consuming alcohol. The Jell-O brand ultimately embraced its newfound popularity with a younger crowd with the introduction of the margarita Jell-O flavor. 

Jell-O shots were not invented by the brand itself, but they did give Jell-O a slightly more rebellious reputation, far from its sparkly mid-century mold of domestic respectability, and instead associated with college campus parties and spring break benders. Leaning into this new identity, Jell-O released cocktail-inspired flavors sometime around the mid-2000s. While non-alcoholic out of the box, you can imagine just how easy it is to add tequila or triple sec and turn it into a truly artisanal Jell-O shot — just make sure you get your ratio of Jell-O-to-booze right. 

In the early 2010s, Jell-O introduced Mixchief Color Changing Jell-O as yet another attempt to capture kids' attention and reinvigorate interest around making Jell-O for a new generation. Much like Mr. Wiggle in the 1960s, Mixchief came with its own mascot: a quirky troll character named Ms. Mixchief. While far less wobbly than her predecessor, she brought a new, mischievous twist to the Jell-O cooking process, promising magical color-changing transformations along the way.

While the Mixchief flavors are nothing new, the interactive element adds some novelty to the traditional Jell-O cooking methods. The package instructions encourage cooks to say the magic words, "presto chango, make my Jell-O!" before putting the mixture in the fridge to set. Although the preparation process is essentially the same as regular Jell-O (just add hot water, stir, and chill), the magic came in the surprising transformations. The colors of the color-changing gelatins didn't match the flavors: Grape-flavored Jell-O appears bright red, and vanilla pudding turns into pistachio-green. The Mixchief line emphasizes more of a sensory experience that Jell-O's marketing has embraced in recent years. 

In recent years, Jell-O has come back to its roots as a kid- and family-friendly dessert. Similar to the Mixchief line, Jell-O Play is less about quirky flavors and more about adding extra fun to the experience of cooking. Introduced in the late 2010s, Jell-O Play functions as more of a toy than a snack. With products like Edible Slime and Build and Eat kits, the cooking process has shifted to tactile creativity. Everything is still edible, but it's more about molding, squishing, building, and playing with food rather than eating. It's a smart pivot of the product for kids, considering just how scrumptious-looking inedible products like Tide Pods and slime can look.

Jell-O Play appears to be part of a larger effort to make Jell-O relevant to a new generation of kids, who are growing up in an age of screens and sensory toys. The flavors are standard Jell-O classics, like strawberry for Edible Unicorn Slime, and lemon and lime for a buildable boat kit. With Jell-O Play, the brand returned full circle: It's not just a dessert, but a canvas for imaginative culinary concoctions.