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This easy strawberry jello salad recipe with Cool Whip makes a vintage pink dessert salad perfect for spring, summer and any holiday gathering.
Strawberry Jello Fruit Salad
I found this fun retro recipe for strawberry Jello salad among my grandmother’s old recipes a few years ago. Like most vintage dessert salads, it’s more of a dessert than a salad. It’s pink, sweet and kind of fluffy. And it’s loaded with strawberries, which is always a good thing! Plus it’s also super easy to make. But it is super popular, especially around holidays and potluck season and especially with those of you who grew up with this classic side dish.
I first published this easy recipe in 2017, and I just recently updated the instructions to help make the Jello set better. Be sure to watch the video to see how it’s made.
If you like fluffy Jell-O salads, try this strawberry pretzel salad and lime Jello salad from my husband’s mom or this orange Jello salad or cranberry salad next!
Ingredient Notes
Here’s what you need to make it. Full amounts are in the printable recipe card below.
- Strawberry Jell-O — the large family size box or 2 smaller boxes.
- Hot water and cold water — to dissolve the gelatin. No need to boil water — it just needs to be very hot.
- Cool Whip — or any non dairy whipped topping. Real whipped cream does not work in this type of recipe.
- Frozen strawberries — helps the Jello set faster
How to Make Strawberry Jello Salad
Basically, you just start out like you’re making regular Jello. You mix the gelatin with hot, then cold water, and then you put it into the fridge to thicken up a little bit. It takes anywhere from 45 minutes to an hour for the Jello to start to thicken up — at least in my fridge! It’s not supposed to be completely set — just thicker.
Now, take a whisk or use an electric mixer, and whisk the Jello mixture until it turns foamy. This takes just a couple of minutes, especially if you use a mixer. Then, you stir in your thawed Cool Whip. You can use the mixer until it gets blended. It’ll look very pink and foamy. Now, gently fold in the strawberries, and pop the dish into the fridge to firm up.
It takes about 3-4 hours for the Jello salad to set and be firm enough to eat. You can serve it in slices, like a cake or scoop it out with a spoon. You can also get creative and add some sliced strawberries for decoration!
Recipe Tips
Make sure you are using the regular large 6-ounce box of Jello. The sugar free variety comes in different sizes.
Use a long casserole dish to help the Jello set faster. If you’re using a large bowl, it takes longer to set. I usually mix everything in the casserole dish, but you can use a bowl and pour the mixture into a separate dish to serve.
Use plain frozen strawberries, not strawberries in syrup or sugar.
Fresh strawberries are fine, but slice them and refrigerate until ready to use so they’re not too warm.
You can also freeze fresh sliced strawberries instead of buying frozen ones.
Using an electric mixer helps whip the Jello up before adding the whipped topping.
Thaw the Cool Whip in the fridge before adding it to the Jello.
Storage
Store the salad in the refrigerator, covered with plastic wrap. It lasts about 3 days before it starts to get runny. It does not freeze well.
Strawberry Jello Salad
Ingredients
- 1 6-ounce package Strawberry Jello gelatin not sugar free
- 2 cups very hot water
- ¾ cup cold water
- 8 oz Tub Cool Whip thawed
- 1 pound frozen strawberries sliced
Instructions
- In a large casserole dish, mix the Jello with hot water and cold water until completely dissolved
- Refrigerate for about 45 minutes to 1 hour, or until Jello starts to thicken. It will still be a little runny
- Use a whisk or electric mixer to mix Jello until foamy and thick.
- Stir in whipped topping, then gently fold in strawberries, and refrigerate for 3-4 hours or until firm and ready to serve.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I know it’s not a healthy salad recipe, but hey, it does have fruit! And besides, I’m a sucker for vintage recipes — when you make them and taste them, it’s like stepping back in time. Who’s with me on that?!
I hope you enjoy it as much as we do. And if you grew up with this retro salad, let me know. Sign up for the weekly newsletter to receive more free recipes by email.
Happy Cooking,
Made this jello salad over the weekend and it was gone the next day. Tastes like my grandma used to make!
We had strawberry jello salad during the holidays growing up. Just made this and it tasted just like my grandma’s recipe, which I lost. Can’t wait to serve this at Thanksgiving and Christmas this year!
I have made this but after mixing in the cool whip, I turned it into a Graham cracker pie crust and put it in the fridge to set. Top with fresh sliced strawberries and whipped topping before serving.
Sounds good. Thank you for sharing!
My kids found this recipe while looking through the blog. WE made it last night and had it for dinner today! Boy will we be making this a lot!
I used whipped topping that was still mostly frozen and strawberries that were still partially frozen. My fluff started firming up before I was finished using the mixer. I also used a mixer to fluff the jello in the first step, but blended untill the jello had increased in size and was quite bubbly. Grandchildren love it!
Thanks so much for sharing this, Sharon!
Will this set up if you put on a cookie crust or pretzel crust?
I’m not sure since it’s not as firm as regular jello. I have a recipe for strawberry pretzel salad you can try.
Today I made this successfully with SUGAR FREE geletin. I used 2 packages, which say 4 servings each*. Package said when using in a mold, decrease the cold water by 1/4 cup, PER PACKAGE, so I used 2 cups of hot water total and only 1 1/2 cups of cold. I spread the jello into a 9×13 pan because I wanted to make sure it set properly. Once it was semi-firm, I transferred to a bowl for the whipping (with mixer). I’m glad I did, because on high, little red jello drops were flying around, and that stuff can stain. Sadly, only frozen strawberries I could find were 10 oz whole, but I tried to slice them while still frozen (a challenge). But I combined the whipped topping in first, then added the strawberries, then transferred it back to the clear glass 9×13 pan — I was serving for Easter dinner (with the meal) & wanted the festive pink to be visible – & thought I could get nicer square slices out of a square or rectangular pan. I was going to go with 9×9, then use a second pan if needed, but I was worried about it getting firm, as some others had, so I went with the bigger pan. Let set overnight and today it looks great! Cut a piece and it was firm as expected. Next time I will use a smaller container to end up with thicker slices AND make sure the strawberry pieces are smaller, since first piece I cut was right on a berry and serving piece looked gnarly when I didn’t fully cut through it. Personally, I think I’d prefer it with a graham cracker or pretzel base, but that would be WAY more work (& make it more like a dessert). This was VERY easy.
*and the sugar free jello package IS just .44 oz when you buy it — I think it only comes in a 4-serving package, & the sugar free weighs a LOT less then the full sugar
Thank you so much for sharing your tips, Mary!
Thanks! Will try the sugar free today
I made this recipe a lot as a kid in the 1970s, but we called it Strawberry Bavarian. I would put it in my Mom’s Jell-O mold and create a ring of it! It’s still a recipe I make today, as my husband loves it!🍓
This is such a pretty salad. I love the beautiful pink color.
Can you use this as a frosting for a cake
I don’t think it would work well as frosting.