Orange and Cranberry Jelly – Agar flakes

Agar flakes are a Japanese ingredient made from sea vegetables.  They are also called agar agar.  A 28g box cost me £5.89 at my local health food store, so it’s not a cheap ingredient.  A tablespoon of agar flakes weighs about 2 grammes, though, so the cost of the agar in this recipe is about 42p, which isn’t bad.

Orange and Cranberry Jelly (Serves 4)

250 ml orange juice
250 ml cranberry juice
½ tablespoon plus ½ tablespoon agar flakes
Sliver of orange peel to decorate

1. Start with the orange juice layer.  Pour 250ml orange juice into a small pan.  Sprinkle over  ½ tbsp agar flakes, but do not stir.  Turn the heat on under the pan.  Heat without stirring for 1 minute.  Turn down the heat and simmer the liquid for 3 minutes, stirring occassionally until the flakes dissolve.
2. Pour the mixture into the bottom of 4 cocktail glasses and leave to set for about 30 minutes.  (This jelly doesn’t need to go into the fridge to solidify). 
3. Next repeat the process with the cranberry layer.  Pour 250ml of cranberry juice into a small pan.  Sprinkle over  ½ tbsp agar flakes, but do not stir.  Turn the heat on under the pan and heat without stirring for 1 minute .  Turn down the heat and simmer the liquid for 3 minutes, stirring occassionally while the flakes dissolve.
4. Pour the cranberry juice over the orange layer, which should now be solid.  Leave to set at room temperature.  Decorate with a sliver of orange peel.  Best eaten on the day it is prepared.

This recipe produces a firm jelly, without much wobble.

It is a bit of an unusual texture.