First of all, I’m a little mad that I read that and therefore absorbed the idea. Second of all, how dare you! Now I’m curious about snot-based jello?!

The solidifying effect of animal gelatin is from the molecules twisting in a way that catches on to one another as they cool down. They form sites that allow for the phase-shift from liquid to solid as the temperature lowers. With mucins, the phase shift is more complex and we apparently don’t fully understand how it happens, but we think it involves polymerization stabilized by disulfide bridges and it’s definitely more complex than a temperature-based physical reaction like with gelatin.

So like … it depends on what you have in your kitchen? Maybe? Would it still be considered jello? Also, I couldn’t find a good answer on max viscosity of mucin gel formation so I’m unable to say whether it would be more like traditional jello or more like snot pudding.