Learn how to make easy homemade Alcohol Gummy Bears.
This simple and affordable 2 ingredient recipe features your favourite spirit and store bought gummy candies.
Boozy Gummy Bears are the perfect adult snack to enjoy on a movie night with popcorn and chocolate.
Alcohol Gummies made with Gummy Bears, Big Foot or Gummy Worms, make for a fun cocktail decoration at an adults-only Halloween party.
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What Are Alcohol Gummy Bears?
Gummy Bears are small, fruit gum candies. The candy is roughly 2 cm long and shaped in the form of a bear. The gummy bear is one of many gummies, popular gelatin-based candies sold in a variety of shapes and colours.
The gummy bear originated in Germany, where it is popular under the name Gummibär. Hans Riegel, a confectioner from Bonn, started the Haribo company in 1920. In 1922, inspired by the trained bears seen at street festivities and markets in Europe through to the 19th century, he invented the Dancing Bear, a small, affordable, fruit-flavoured gum candy treat for children and adults alike.
The success of gummy bears has spawned the production of many other gummy candies made to resemble animals and other objects, such as rings, worms, frogs, snakes, hamburgers, cherries, sharks, penguins, and peaches.
In the United States and Canada, Haribo gummy bears are sold in five flavors: raspberry (red); orange (orange); strawberry (green); pineapple (colorless); and lemon (yellow).
The traditional gummy bear is made from a mixture of sugar, glucose syrup, starch, flavouring, food colouring, citric acid and gelatin. However, recipes vary, such as organic candy, those suitable for vegetarians or those following religious dietary laws.
When you soak gummy bears in your favourite spirit, they absorb the alcohol and transform into chewy and fruity Boozy Gummy Bears.
Homemade Alcohol Gummies
There are two main methods you can use to make homemade Alcohol Gummy Bears.
- Gummy Bear Tray: The more time intensive method requires you to make the gummy bears from scratch using gelatin that sets in a bear shaped mold. If you like to call yourself gourmet this version might be best for you. It’s time consuming but can be a fun kitchen project if want to create your own DIY alcohol gummy bears.
- Soaking Method: Our favourite way to make Alcohol Gummies is by purchasing gummy bears and letting them soak in alcohol. Gelatin in the gummy bears absorbs the alcohol, giving them a burst of boozy flavour after they double in size.
I like to purchase Gummy Bears at Bulk Barn when they are on sale or in bulk from discount big box stores like Walmart or Costco.
While we’ve made Alcohol Gummy Bears in this recipe you can use any gummy candy. Feel free to buy a few different gummy candies and test out the recipe to see how they turn out. Gummy Worms, Big Foot, Swedish Berries, Sour Patch Kids and Fuzzy Peach are other favourites.
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Best Spirits For Alcohol Gummies
When making this Alcohol Gummies recipe at home you’ll want to find the ideal spirit to pair with your purpose.
Traditional Alcohol Gummies are typically soaked in vodka as it’s a flavourless and colourless spirit. This allows the flavour in each gummy bear to shine. When you bite into the soft Boozy Gummy Bears you’ll taste the alcohol but mostly the flavours the candy company has selected to represent each colour.
You can have fun with the recipe by using flavoured vodkas like citrus vodka, vanilla vodka or watermelon vodka.
We also recommend making Alcohol Gummies with gin, tequila blanco or white rum. You want to use a spirit that has as little colour as possible so the gummy candies maintain their distinctive colour.
We suggest using an affordable brand when making DIY Boozy Gummy Bears. Don’t waste your Grey Goose or Belvedere on this candy recipe.
Another option is Everclear, a neutral grain spirit, characterized by its clear, colorless quality with a very high concentration of ethyl alcohol. Everclear is typically added to soft drinks, energy drinks, fruit juice and iced tea, and is sometimes used in place of vodka, or other 80-proof spirits in Jello shots or homemade Alcohol Gummies.
How To Make Boozy Gummy Bears
This Alcohol Gummy Bears recipe is quick and easy to prepare. Prep takes just 2 minutes but you do have to wait 24 hours for the candy to soak in the spirit before they’re ready to eat. Be sure to make these a day before you’re planning on serving them.
- Purchase your favourite gummy candy. Drop 1 cup of the gummies into a large 4 cup measuring cup.
- Select your prefered spirit and cover the gummy bears in alcohol.
- Store uncovered for 24 hours.
- Strain vodka soaked gummy bears with a sieve and place on a cooling rack to dry. Ensure the alcohol gummies do not touch to avoid sticking.
- Use the leftover flavoured vodka in your favourite fruity cocktail.
- Serve Alcohol Gummy Bears in a shallow dish at a party with popcorn, chocolate and some of your other favourite snacks.
- You can also skewer the gummies with a cocktail pick and serve them as a garnish on a boozy drink. A great idea for an adult Halloween party.
What To Serve with Alcohol Gummy Bears
Alcohol Gummies can be enjoyed as a party snack or as a cocktail garnish.
When hosting an adults-only party we like to serve Boozy Gummy Bears in a small dish with toothpicks so guests can serve themselves. They’re a little bit slippery so have lots of napkins on hand.
If there are kids at the party we suggest storing them by your bar so they are not mistaken for candy.
If you’re hosting a party and looking for snack ideas you may also enjoy these sweet and savoury recipes:
- Peanut Butter Flapjacks
- Marshmallow Fluff Fruit Dip
- Blueberry Lemon Muffin Tops
- Smoky Albondigas Tapas Spanish Meatballs
- Lebanese Spiced Minced Beef Stuffed Pita Arayes
- Buchimgae Buchu-Jeon Korean Chive Pancake
- Zeytoon Parvardeh Marinated Persian Olives
- Chanachur Chivda Bombay Mixture Namkeen
- Burrata Bruschetta Crostini with Tomato Chutney
- Cheesy Bacon Potato Skins
- Viral TikTok Air Fryer Pasta Chips
- Air Fryer Pizza Rolls
- Tater Tot Poutine
- Air Fryer Nachos Recipe
- Best Nuts and Bolts Recipe
Storing Alcohol Gummy Bears
Alcohol Gummies should ideally be eaten as soon as they’re ready but will last for 48 hours covered and stored in the fridge.
You will probably need to rinse them in water to separate them, as they’ll stick together over time.
You May Also Enjoy These Cocktail Recipes…
- Easy Whiskey and Coke Cocktail
- Easy Whiskey and Sprite Cocktail
- Sparkling Gin and Lemonade Cocktail
- Negroni Spritz Cocktail
- Vodka Blood Orange Cocktail
- Brunch Rum and Orange Juice Cocktail
- Clarified Gin and Milk Punch Cocktail
- Batida de Coco Brazilian Coconut Cachaça Cocktail
- Wheat Beer and Whiskey Cocktail
- Ginger Whiskey Pear Cocktail
- Italian Prosecco and Gin Cocktail
- Tommy’s Margarita Cocktail
- Mexican Mule Tequila Cocktail
- Raspberry Gin Fizz Chambord Cocktail
How To Make Easy Homemade Alcohol Gummy Bears
Easy Homemade Alcohol Gummy Bears
Equipment
- measuring cups
- Sieve
- Cooling Rack
Ingredients
- 1 cup Gummy Bears
- 1 cup Vodka
Instructions
- Put the gummy bears into a glass measuring cup.
- Pour vodka over the gummy bears until they are covered.
- Leave gummy bears sitting at room temperature, uncovered, for 24 hours.
- Remove gummy bears from the vodka and place on a cooling rack to dry. Be sure to leave space between each alcoholic gummy bear so they don't stick together.
- Use leftover vodka in your next fruity cocktail.
Nutrition
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