Layered Pina Colada Jello Shots (With Coconut Cream Pudding)

4.63 from 27 votes
These layered Pina Colada jello shots have that tropical cocktail taste that is perfect for a summer party.
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These layered Pina Colada jello shots made with Malibu rum, Island Pineapple Jello and Coconut Cream pudding are the perfect summer party cocktail. They look and taste tropical, and all of your friends will love them!

I love making jello shots for parties and Pina Colada jello shots are perfect for summer get-togethers. That’s why I’m always looking for new versions to try, like this layered Pina Colada jello shot recipe and these white Pina Colada jello shots.

Best tasting Pina Colada Layered Jello Shots

As many of you know I threw a party for a friend of mine this past weekend, and my favorite “drink” to serve at parties is jello shots.

They are made in advance, can be pretty much color you want, and everyone loves them.

I have my list of tried and true jello shot recipes that I have served many times and know taste great, but this time I decided to try something different…layered jello shots.

Pina Colada flavored yellow and white layered jello shots

The tricky part of layered jello shots is that I still wanted them to taste great, not just throw some colors together that matched my decor.

So I started looking for inspiration from drinks that combined two juices together, and the first one I came up with was a Pina Colada.

It mixes pineapple juice and coconut milk (or cream) with rum to make a drink that reminds me of being on a beach in the Caribbean…perfect for a summer party!

This Pina Colada jello shot was by far the most popular jello shot I served at the party…it really does taste like a Pina Colada!

Ingredients

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Layered Pina Colada Jello Shots Recipe Ingredients

Since I’m all about making jello shots the easy way, I decided to use instant Coconut Cream Pudding mix* for the middle layer along with the two layers of Island Pineapple jello mix*.

Not only does the pudding add some great coconut flavor, but it also adds the creamy texture that a Pina Colada drink, which makes this jello shot even better.

I also went with a mixture of regular white rum and Malibu rum.

But if you don’t have both of these on hand, the jello shots would still taste good if you did all Malibu or all regular rum.

What Size Of Jello Shot Cups Are The Best?

Tall jello shot cups

I find it’s easier to do the layers if you use taller jello shot cups like these ones*.

With the shorter jello shot cups, you have to be really careful that you don’t fill them up too much with the first layer. Or you won’t have enough room to do the other layers.

In either case, you will definitely need 2-oz jello cups (or larger). The 1-oz ones are just too small to make layers in.

How To Make Layered Pina Colada Jello Shots

The First Layer

Fill the jello cups 1/3 full with pineapple jello

The first layer is a pineapple one.

Mix 1 cup of boiling water with the Island Pineapple jello mix.

Add 1/2 cup white rum and 1/2 cup of cold water.

I used regular rum for this layer, but you could also use coconut rum for all 3 layers if you want more of a coconut flavor.

Then fill the jello shot cups about 1/3 full. Putting the jello shot cups on a cookie sheet makes them easy to put in the fridge.

Chill the jello shots in the refrigerator until set, about 2 to 4 hours.

The Second Layer

Once the first layer is chilled and set, add the coconut pudding layer on top.

Mix a small (3.4 oz) box of Instant Coconut Cream Pudding with 1 3/4 cup milk and 1/4 cup Malibu rum.

Stir for 2 minutes.

I used instant coconut cream pudding so I didn’t have to wait for it to cool at all before doing the next pineapple layer.

If you use the Cook & Serve variety, you will need to wait until it is room temperature before putting it on top of the jello.  Otherwise the jello will melt and you won’t end up with any layers 🙂 (Although I’m sure it would still taste great).

Then spoon on top of the pineapple jello in the jello shot cups so they are about 2/3 full.

One note: The coconut cream pudding doesn’t seem to fill as many cups as the jello, so you may run out of it before you have filled all of the jello cups.  I just made a few pineapple-only jello shots with the leftovers.

The Third Layer

Finally, add another pineapple layer (made the same way as the first layer).

Since the pudding is pretty soft, you will end up making a hole in it if you pour the jello in over top of it. I found it worked best to use a spoon to carefully ladle the jello in over the pudding.

Pour any extra pineapple jello mix over the pineapple-only jello shots from the first step.  The two layers will mix together and no-one will be able to tell they were made separately.

Refrigerate until the jello has set (about 2 to 4 hours) and enjoy!

Pina Colada Layered Jello Shots Recipe

Other pina colada jello shots you might like

If you don’t want to go through all the work of creating layers, or don’t want to use pudding, you can try one of these other variation:

  • Easy pina colada jello shots – This recipe is the easiest one of the bunch. It uses only pineapple jello and malibu rum, which means it is fast and inexpensive to make for a crowd.
  • Creamy pina colada jello shots – Try this one if you want an upgraded version of the easy recipe. It uses pineapple jello and coconut milk with the malibu rum for a creamier taste.
  • White pina colada jello shots – This version does not use pineapple jello. Instead, it combines coconut milk with pineapple juice and unflavored gelatin to create a flavor that’s pretty close to the real thing.

Other Jello Shots Recipes You Might Like

Or browse through all of our jello shot recipes.

Layered Pina Colada Jello Shots Recipe

4.63 from 27 votes
Servings: 36 jello shots
Prep 30 minutes
Chilling Time 8 hours
Total 8 hours 30 minutes

Ingredients
  

  • 2 3-oz boxes Island Pineapple Jello
  • 1 cup White Rum
  • 1 3.4 oz box Coconut Cream Pudding
  • ¼ cup Malibu Rum
  • 1 ¾ cup Cold Milk
  • Water

Instructions
 

First Pineapple Layer

  • Pour 1 package of the Island Pineapple Jello into the mixing bowl.
  • Bring the water in the kettle to a boil.
  • Add 1 cup of boiling water to the pineapple jello and mix until the crystals are dissolved.
  • Add ½ cup of the white rum and ½ cup of cold water to the jello.  Note:  Depending on how strong you want your jello shot to be, you can change the amounts of rum and water.  Just make sure that when you add them together, the total amount of liquid comes out to 1 cup.
  • Pour the jello into the bottom 1/3 of the jello shot cups.
  • Let cool in the refrigerator until set, 2 to 4 hours.

The Coconut Layer

  • For the coconut cream layer, mix the Coconut Cream Jello Pudding, ¼ cup Malibu coconut rum and 1¾ cup milk in a mixing bowl.  For this portion of the recipe, you really can’t put more than about ¼ cup of rum in with the pudding mix or it won’t set.
  • Stir for 2 minutes until the pudding mix has thickened a little.
  • Pour over the top of the pineapple jello layer in the jello shot cups.  Each cup should be about 2/3 full.
  • Let the shots sit for a few minutes so that the pudding thickens while you are making the second pineapple layer. Note: The coconut cream pudding doesn’t seem to fill as many cups as the jello, so you may run out of it before you have filled all of the jello cups.  I just made a few pineapple-only jello shots with the leftover ones.

Second Pineapple Layer

  • Pour the second package of Island Pineapple Jello into the mixing bowl.
  • Bring the water in the kettle to a boil.
  • Add 1 cup of boiling water to the pineapple jello and mix until the crystals are dissolved.
  • Add ½ cup of the white rum and ½ cup of cold water to the jello.
  • Let the jello mix cool completely.  Do not rush this step.  Pouring even slightly warm jello over the pudding mix will cause it to liquify.
  • Pour the jello over the top of the pudding mix.  To prevent making a hole in the pudding, I held the spoon up over the top of each jello shot cup.  Then poured the jello into the spoon so that it would overflow onto the pudding.
  • Pour any extra pineapple jello mix over the pineapple-only jello shots from the first step.  The two layers will mix together and no-one will be able to tell they were made separately.
  • Refrigerate for at 2 to 4 hours.
Nutrition Facts
Layered Pina Colada Jello Shots Recipe
Serving Size
 
1 jello shot
Amount per Serving
Calories
59
% Daily Value*
Fat
 
0.7
g
1
%
Cholesterol
 
1.2
mg
0
%
Sodium
 
52.9
mg
2
%
Carbohydrates
 
7.5
g
3
%
Protein
 
0.8
g
2
%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Nutrition values are estimates only, using online calculators. Please verify using your own data.

courseDrinks
cuisineAmerican
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Pina Colada Layered Jello Shots

This post was originally published on August 18, 2016 but was updated with new content on March 19, 2024.


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34 Comments

  1. yummy thats amazing just want to taste it as soon as possible i just love jello shots

  2. Where does one get those jello flavors? I’ve never seen them!

    1. Hi Kym…If you live in the South East, I bought them at Publix. But if they’re not in your local grocery store, you can order them from Amazon.

  3. Wal-Mart carries the Island-Pineapple Jell-O

    1. That’s good to know 🙂 Thanks for sharing!

  4. Do you need to eat this with a spoon? It seems like it could be a little messy with the pudding layer compared to a regular jello shot you loosen with your tongue or finger.

    1. Hi Jen…I usually use a spoon, but some of friends don’t. It is a little messier than your normal jello shot, but I think because the pudding is just one layer between the 2 jello layers, it’s still possible to just loosen it with your tongue/finger.

  5. Why use white rum and malibu? Can’t you just use one type of rum for the top and bottom layers?

    1. Hi Lisa…I usually like the taste the best when the flavor of the alcohol is the same as the flavor of the jello (that’s why I used Malibu rum for the coconut layer). But I’m sure you could use all white rum or all Malibu and it would still taste good.

  6. The best ones I’ve tried has been the Gel-Shotz Piña Colada flavor. They taste exactly like the cocktail, You should check them out!

    1. Thanks, Ann! They look like a good option, too 🙂

  7. I let the top layer of jello gell up a bit ….before adding ….worked out great.

    1. Thanks for the suggestion, Chris…that does sound like it would work well. I’ll have to try that next time I’m making these 🙂

  8. Joyce Cook says:

    How can I print the Pina Colada Jello Shot Recipe?

    1. Hi Joyce…you can use the print button at the top of the page. Hope that helps!

  9. Tonya Bratcher says:

    Hello…. the only thing available for coconut cream pudding was the cooking serve is that the correct pudding?

    1. Hi Tonya…I used the Instant Pudding (it doesn’t require any cooking). I haven’t tried the cook & serve but I think it would probably work, too. You would just need to make sure it cools before you put it on top of the jello.

      1. Love the recipe! It may be helpful to specify that you’re using instant pudding in your recipe. ?

        1. Thanks, Nikki! I’ll update it to include the instant part.

  10. Tonya R Bratcher says:

    Thank you for responding . It worked. Enjoy your week.

  11. Do you think I could do this with just two layers (pineapple on bottom coconut on top)? I’m lazy and just think the third layer would put me over the edge 🙂

    1. Yes, I think that would work fine, too…it all tastes the same going down 🙂

  12. Can I freeze these Jell-O shots?

    1. Hi Marilyn…I have never tried freezing them, so I don’t know if that would work or not. Sorry! If you try it, I’d love to hear if they turn out ok 🙂

  13. For the pina colana jello shots how long do you have to wait for the second layer to cool

    1. Hi Peggy…I used the instant pudding so it doesn’t need to cool (it isn’t hot). I’m not sure exactly how long you would need to wait if you are using the heat & serve pudding, but it should be about room temperature. Maybe 15 or 20 minutes?

  14. How much rum do you add to each layer?

    1. Sorry about that, Bev…somehow the actual recipe got deleted from the post. I added it back in there so it has the specific instructions for each layer. But to answer your question, I usually use 1/2 cup rum in each of the pineapple layers and 1/4 cup in the coconut pudding layer (it won’t set if you put too much alcohol in it). Hope that helps!

  15. Do you think Thai recipe would work with milk alternatives? Coconut milk or almond milk?

    1. Wanda Simone says:

      Hi Madina…On the pudding box, it says not to use coconut milk. I’m not sure about almond milk. I do have another pina colada jello shot recipe that uses coconut milk. You could substitute it for the middle layer if you don’t want any dairy.

  16. Chloe Redman says:

    5 stars
    I’m modifying this recipe to make bomb pop shots with berry blue and raspberry jello, vanilla pudding, and vodka. If they don’t taste good at least they’ll look cute for my friend’s bye-bye for basic party.

    1. Wanda Simone says:

      They sound tasty, Chloe!

  17. How long can I keep this in fridge? Can it be a week in advance?

    1. Wanda Simone says:

      Hi Nelsa…I usually make them a day or two in advance. I think they would be fine a week ahead, but I haven’t tried it so I can’t say for sure.