We're digging into the fondue with this post! A romantic, winter dish, fondue was popularized as a Swiss national dish by the Swiss Cheese Union (Schweizerische Käseunion) in the 1930s to promote and market the sale of cheese. This simple dish of melted cheese, white wine and aromatics isn’t just delightful to eat; it’s one of the most social dining experiences you can have. Gathering around the pot of steaming, bubbling cheese, conversation flows with this indulgent experience.
Fondue is an easily customizable dish that requires barely any effort to prepare and showcases a few select ingredients. Modern fondue – melted cheese and wine set in a pot over an open flame – dates to the late 1800s, with roots in the French Rhône-Alpes region near the Geneva border. Fast forward to 1930 when the Swiss Cheese Union declared it the country’s national dish – and the Swiss have not looked back since. Fun fact, fondue was introduced to Americans in 1964 at the World Fair.
To have a successful fondue experience, you need to have fondue pots, fondue forks, and small bowls or large platter for all your dippings. I purchased an electric Cuisinart fondue pot that comes with fondue forks. Click that link to view it. You can purchase it at most home appliance stores, but I got mine through Amazon. It works very well.
Bread is traditionally served with a pot of fondue, and I like to incorporate other stuff to make it into a meal. Roasted chicken, seared steak, chopped and roasted broccoli & cauliflower, grape tomatoes, sliced apples serving a variety of food is great for your palette. Learning how to fondue is ideal. First, fondue forks are used to pick up and swirl your bread, meat, veggies or fruits in a figure eight in the cheese bath. Doing this helps to mix the fondue and prevent it from crusting or sticking to the sides. Next, you lift the fondue fork and turn it in circles to remove excess cheese. You then place the fondue dipped item onto your plate. Yep, that's right, you place it on your place, and you then devour it with a fork. You are never supposed to eat off of the fondue fork. According to my research, if an item falls off the fondue fork into the fondue pot, you must pledge to do something cute/fun. For example, the person who drops the piece of food into the fondue pot can kiss the person next to him/her, take a drink, run around the house, etc. It's meant to be a pledge to do something fun and light to add to the fun of the entire experience.
Ingredients
1–2 Garlic cloves, peeled and chopped
1/2 lb Gruyere cheese, shredded
1/2 lb Jarlsberg or other Swiss-type cheese (Emmenthaler, Appenzeller, etc), shredded
2 tablespoons Cornstarch
1 cup Dry white wine of your choice
1 tablespoon Lemon juice
1 tablespoon Brandy or Cognac
1/2 teaspoon Dry mustard
Pinch Nutmeg, freshly grated
Dippers
Directions
Prepare your dippers by cutting them into cubes or slices ready for dipping. Some of our favorites include: Crusty bread cubes, such as French Bread (day-old works best), Apple slices, Pear slices, Grapes, Blanched or Roasted Broccoli, Blanched or Roasted Cauliflower, Grape/Cherry Tomatoes, Steamed baby potatoes
Combine both cheeses in a bowl. Add cornstarch and toss in cornstarch until well coated. Cornstarch helps to stabilize the sauce.
Turn on electric pot. If you are work with a pot on the stove, follow the same directions. Over medium heat, Add chopped garlic, white wine, lemon juice to the pot. Bring to a simmer.
Add shredded cheese little by little, stirring in a figure-8 continuously. Do not allow cheese to come to a boil.
When the cheese is melted, add in the final ingredients of brandy or cognac, dry mustard & nutmeg, and Serve Hot.
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