Orange Jello Salad is light, refreshing and makes the perfect side dish or dessert! Made with orange jello, tapioca pudding, whipped topping, mandarin oranges and crushed pineapple.
We LOVE jello! I’m guessing you feel the same too! Be sure to check out our AMAZING COLLECTION OF JELLO RECIPES here.
I grew up eating this Orange Jello Salad on a pretty regular basis. It was a family favorite recipe that I have made dozens and dozens of times. Easy enough to make for a family dinner, but yummy enough to bring to parties or to serve on holidays and other special occasions!
What is Orange Jello Salad?
Orange Jello Salad is made by cooking orange jello and tapioca pudding together on the stove. Then you fold in Cool Whip, mandarin oranges and crushed pineapple. The jello is chilled in a 9X13 pan and then you can cut and slice the individual servings when ready to serve. If you’ve never used tapioca before…don’t worry! I have never used it in anything else either, but it really does make this jello salad amazing!
CAN I USE A DIFFERENT FLAVOR OF JELLO?
The best part about this recipe (and many other Jello recipes), is that you can use any flavor of Jello you want! I really like strawberry jello mixed with the strawberries and crushed pineapple, but raspberry works really well too! In my family we almost always made it with orange jello – that seemed to be the favorite flavor and it’s easy to keep mandarin oranges on hand.
Ingredients in Orange Jello Salad
Tapioca pudding – You will need 6 ounces of tapioca pudding mix. This can be found near the Jello and the other pudding mixes at the store. It usually comes in 3 oz boxes, so you will need two of them.
Orange jello – You will need one small box of orange jello. The small boxes are 3 ounces.
Water – You will need 2 cups of water to boil and cook the tapioca and jello in.
Cool Whip – You will need a large container of Cool Whip (16 oz). Make sure it is completely thawed before folding it into the jello mixture.
Mandarin oranges – You will need a 15 ounce can of mandarin oranges to fold into the salad. Make sure to drain them well. I usually get another can of mandarin oranges so that I can use some to decorate the top – that’s totally up to you!
Crushed pineapple – Use a small (8 oz) can of crushed pineapple and make sure to drain it well. I’ve often made the salad without the pineapple, so if you don’t love pineapple, you can definitely leave it out!
How to make Orange Jello Salad
Add jello and pudding to boiling water, continue to boil, stirring constantly for about 10-15 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature.
Fold in Cool Whip, mandarin oranges and pineapple and chill overnight. Pour into a 9X13 and then slice the Jello to serve. Once the jello salad is set, you can garnish with whipped cream and/or more mandarin oranges if desired.
Orange Jello Salad
Ingredients
- 6 oz Cook and Serve Tapioca pudding
- 1 small box orange jello
- 2 cups of boiling water
- 16 oz Cool Whip thawed
- 1 can 15 oz mandarin oranges, drained (+ more for garnish on top (optional))
- 1 can 8 oz crushed pineapple, drained
Instructions
- Add jello and pudding to boiling water, continue to boil, stirring constantly for about 10-15 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature.
- Fold in Cool Whip, mandarin oranges and pineapple and chill overnight. Pour into a 9X13 and then slice the Jello to serve. Once the jello salad is set, you can garnish with whipped cream and/or more mandarin oranges if desired.
Nutrition
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HOW DO YOU STORE JELLO SALAD?
This particular jello salad recipe stores very well in the refrigerator for up to 3-4 days, but is not ideal for freezing.
CAN YOU REPLACE THE COOL WHIP IN ORANGE JELLO SALAD?
If you can’t find Cool Whip where you live or you prefer not to use it in recipes, you can use stabilized whipped cream instead. If you just use regular whipped cream, the consistency will be too light and the cream will not hold up very well when mixed into the jello salad. It’s very simple to make your own stabilized whipped cream and it just takes a few minutes!
See Homemade Whipped Cream recipes here.
HOW DO YOU MAKE STABILIZED WHIPPED CREAM?
To make stabilized whipped cream, you will need the following ingredients:
- 4 ounces of cream cheese (softened to room temperature)
- 1/3 cup powdered sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream.
- Beat the cream cheese with the powdered sugar and vanilla until soft and smooth.
- In a separate bowl, beat the whipping cream just until soft peaks form.
- Add the cream cheese mixture to the whipped cream and beat until stiff peaks are formed. Store in the refrigerator until ready to use.
A little tip for making whipped cream faster. Use a metal bowl for whipping the cream and place the bowl in the freezer for about 30 minutes before you make the whipped cream. This will significantly decrease the amount of time that you will need to beat the whipped cream – the process will go much faster!
LIKE JELLO RECIPES? SO DO WE! CHECK OUT OUR FULL COLLECTION OF JELLO SALADS AND JELLO DESSERTS HERE:
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Orange Jello Salad is light, refreshing and makes the perfect side dish or dessert! Made with orange jello, tapioca pudding, whipped topping, mandarin oranges and crushed pineapple.
Juanita says
Since I live alone I was wondering if I can freeze this?
Nicole says
No, I wouldn’t recommend freezing this recipe. The consistency just doesn’t turn out right after it’s thawed. Sorry 🙁
Justine says
I loooooove orange flavored dessert. This one was so good! I loved the tapioca in it, it gave it a really fun texture.
Allison says
Just like the version my grandma made during my childhood. Thanks for sharing!
MATret says
Apparently, Jello is not making the instant Tapioca pudding at this time(?) I have seen it in the past, but cannot find it. Can I substitute another pudding for it or maybe the Minute Tapioca brand? I have had these types of Jello salads, but not one with tapioca. I really like tapioca, so would really like to try it!
Nicole says
The recipe requests the cook and serve tapioca pudding, but you can replace it with any other flavored pudding if desired. I recommend vanilla or similar.
Pat says
I use to make this as it is my sons favorite. However I can’t find the tapioca pudding any more. Any ideas on where to get it. It doesn’t appear Jello makes it any more. 😢
Nellie says
I can consistently find it at my local Kroger store…do you have one of those close? It’s the Kroger brand version, but works great!