Crystal Sweet (Kohakutou) | The Recipe Critic

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This beautiful crystal sweet tastes nearly as good because it seems! Impressed by the Japanese sweet “Kohakutou,” it’s such a enjoyable deal with to make with the youngsters. It has an addictive crunch to it and will be made with any taste of your selecting!

I really like enjoyable actions with the youngsters that double as a tasty deal with! Nothing fairly lives as much as this crystal sweet (isn’t it stunning?!) however a couple of extra enjoyable recipes to attempt are: ice cream in a bag, snow ice cream, and scorching chocolate bombs!

Top-down view of crystal candy on a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Kohakutou Crystal Sweet Recipe

You’ll have seen this gem-inspired deal with popping up on social media. It’s really referred to as “Kohakutou” and originated from Japan! Translated, it means “amber sweet.” The wonderful thing about this crystal sweet is that it solely wants a couple of easy substances to make. This contains sugar, agar agar, meals coloring, and your flavoring of alternative! Plus, did I point out it’s vegan and gluten free? It’s the right candy deal with for anybody in your loved ones!

Kohakutou crystal sweet is made by coating small cubes of agar jelly with sugar. The sweet has a singular texture that’s chewy with a crispy exterior, and it’s normally fruit-flavored. Kohakutou is commonly served as a dessert or snack in Japan, and is fashionable for its stunning look in addition to its yummy style! The sweet is commonly packaged in small packing containers or baggage, making it an ideal reward! Give a bag of this to your neighbors they usually’ll love you endlessly.

Components Wanted

The BEST half about this crystal sweet recipe is all the easy substances it makes use of! It’s really easy to whip up with the youngsters. Simply ensure you have agar agar, that’s what’s going to provide the sweet a barely gummy texture.

Water: Water is a vital ingredient in making crystal sweet as it’s used to dissolve the sugar and agar agar powder.
Agar Agar Powder: Agar agar is a kind of seaweed-based gelatin. It’s used to provide crystal sweet its agency and barely chewy texture. It’s dissolved in boiling water together with the sugar to create the sweet base!
Granulated Sugar: Provides sweetness to the crystal sweet and in addition helps to create a crystal-like construction when it cools!
Flavoring: A small quantity of flavoring, comparable to vanilla, fruit extracts, or different flavorings, is added to the sweet combination to provide it yummy taste. Use your favorites right here! I used a spread pack of fruit oils from Amazon.
Liquid Meals Coloring: Provides shade to the crystal sweet. You’ll be able to modify how a lot you add in to make it vibrant or extra delicate like an actual gemstone.

Tips on how to Make Crystal Sweet (Kohakutou)

Crystal sweet is so enjoyable to make! It’s tremendous easy, actually the toughest half is ready a couple of days whereas it units! So, seize your loved ones and make a batch of this pleasant sweet! My youngsters like to customise the colours and flavors of their sweet. The method is so enjoyable!

Put together Components: Earlier than you start, ensure you have every thing out and prepared as a result of the sweet begins to arrange rapidly after cooking. Nevertheless many various flavors and colours you wish to use, frivolously grease small containers. I used small tupperware and do 2-3 flavors per batch. Have your meals coloring and flavoring able to go.
Agar Agar Combination: Add the water to a small pot after which sprinkle the agar agar in. Stir and let stand for five minutes.
Boil, Add Sugar: Convey the water and agar agar to a boil after which boil for 3 minutes. Add the sugar and stir. Cut back the warmth and simmer for 2-3 minutes.
Separate: Take away from the warmth and separate into the completely different ready containers. Transfer rapidly however fastidiously and add your flavoring and coloring to the sweet. In whole it is best to use about ¼ teaspoon of flavoring, so if you happen to select to do multiple taste persist with only a few drops of flavoring to keep away from it being too sturdy.
Swirl: Use a toothpick or wood skewer to swirl the flavoring and shade by the sweet.

Creating the Crystal Shapes

Chill: Cowl and refrigerate for 1-2 hours, till the sweet is agency. Then use a knife to pop the sweet out in a single piece onto a chopping board. It must be agency however sticky.
Reduce: Use a paring knife to chop the crystal sweet to no matter shapes you need. You’ll be able to trim, or “bevel” the sides so the items look extra crystal or gem like.
Add to Baking Sheet: Lay all of the sweet items out on parchment lined baking sheets.
Set: Then retailer in a cool, dry place for 5-7 days at minimal, rotating them as wanted so all of the items kind a crust on the skin.

6-photo collage of candy mixture being melted over the stove and then added to the mold.

Suggestions and Tips

Listed below are a couple of extra ideas to remember so your crystal sweet seems completely! Making this stunning sweet is so enjoyable, and you find yourself with a scrumptious deal with on the finish!

Utilizing Agar Agar: Agar agar is a vital ingredient for these candies and sadly doesn’t have a very good substitute. You’ll find it fairly simply on Amazon.
Use Liquid Meals Coloring: Liquid meals coloring is one of the best for this recipe. Airbrush meals colours are actually good choices for getting quite a lot of colours. Much less is extra!
Use Totally different Molds: Experiments with completely different molds. Spray silicone molds with pan spray and use a paper towel to absorb extra grease. Fastidiously pour the new sweet into the molds after including the flavoring and shade.
Thickness: When choosing a container needless to say the thicker the sweet is, the longer it’s going to take to crust over.

How Lengthy Does Crystal Sweet Final?

My youngsters all the time need to eat this sweet in a single sitting. For those who’re fortunate sufficient to have some left over, right here’s the way to hold it tasting good and contemporary!

At Room Temperature: Retailer in an hermetic container in a cool place for as much as 4 weeks.
Modify Texture: If you need tougher, crunchier sweet, let the sweet sit out for longer than 7 days earlier than transferring to an hermetic container.

Closeup of orange, yellow, green, blue, and purple crystal candy.

Earlier than you start ensure you have every thing out and prepared as a result of the sweet begins to arrange rapidly after cooking. Nevertheless many various flavors and colours you wish to use, frivolously grease small containers. I used small tupperware and do 2-3 flavors per batch. Have your meals coloring and flavoring able to go.
Add the water to a small pot and sprinkle the agar agar in. Stir and let stand for five minutes.
Convey the water and agar agar to a boil and boil for 3 minutes. Add the sugar and stir. Cut back the warmth and simmer for 2-3 minutes.
Take away from the warmth and separate into the completely different ready containers. Transfer rapidly however fastidiously and add your flavoring and coloring to the sweet. In whole it is best to use about ¼ teaspoon of flavoring, so if you happen to select to do multiple taste persist with only a few drops of flavoring to keep away from it being too sturdy.
Use a toothpick or wood skewer to swirl the flavoring and shade by the sweet.
Cowl and refrigerate for 1-2 hours, till the sweet is agency. Use a knife to pop the sweet out in a single piece onto a chopping board. It must be agency however sticky.
Use a paring knife to chop the sweet it to no matter shapes you need. You’ll be able to trim, or “bevel” the sides to make the items look extra crystal or gem like. If in case you have scraps from trimming the sides, chop them into small items and add them to a bigger one or kind them into their very own crystal cluster.
Lay all of the sweet items out on parchment lined baking sheets.
Retailer in a cool, dry place for 5-7 days at minimal, rotating them as wanted so all of the items kind a crust on the skin. You’ll be able to cowl them with a lid, however they’ll take longer to kind the crust.
As soon as the sweet has totally crusted, you could add edible gold luster mud or gold leaf if desired.

Serves: 4

Energy578kcal (29%)Carbohydrates149g (50%)Protein0.01gFats0.5g (1%)Sodium7mgPotassium4mgFiber0.01gSugar150g (167%)Calcium5mg (1%)Iron0.1mg (1%)

All dietary info relies on third get together calculations and is barely an estimate. Every recipe and dietary worth will range relying on the manufacturers you utilize, measuring strategies and portion sizes per family.