Recipe: Fondue How To
Neutrality.
Unsurpassed skiing.
Mustachioed Alpine dudes yodelling about throat lozenges.
Switzerland is known for many things, but our favourite is the incredible cheese. Not the weird-tasting plastic stuff from the deli counter. We’re talking about the greats, such as Gruyere, Emmenthaler, and Vacherin Mont d’Or.
One of the best ways to enjoy this most tasty of Swiss exports is through gooey fondue.
As a kid in the 70s, few things felt as sophisticated, delicious, and fun as an evening around the fondue pot. (Thankfully, cheese-laden bread cubes blunted the tips of the fondue forks for the occasional sword fight with my sister—so much for neutrality and sophistication.)
Fondues are back in vogue and just as delicious. Introducing your family and friends to a molten taste of the Alps is super simple and guaranteed to be fun.
We've got all the cheese and fondue equipment you need!
Feel free to take inspiration from the following recipe. You can also add slices of apple, cured meats, pickles, olives, and a few veggies to pretend you’re being healthy.
Once you’ve mastered this combo, feel free to substitute in other cheeses. The Swiss won’t be offended—they’re neutral.
Classic Cheese Fondue
1 garlic clove, peeled
400 g Gruyère cheese, grated
200 g Emmental, grated
200 g Appenzeller, grated
4 teaspoons cornstarch
1 cup dry white wine (or a hoppy beer, if that’s how you roll)
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
1 1/2 tablespoons kirsch (cherry brandy)
Freshly grated nutmeg, to taste
Freshly ground pepper, to taste
- Slice the garlic clove in half. Rub the cut side of one garlic half around the inside of your fondue pot.
- In a large bowl, toss the cheese and cornstarch. Set aside.
- Add the wine and lemon juice to a large saucepan over medium heat.
- When the wine mixture begins to steam, carefully add the cheese mixture, half a cup at a time, while whisking gently. Continue until the cheese has melted and no lumps remain.
- Add the kirsch, pepper, and nutmeg, stirring gently until the mixture is well combined.
- Transfer the melted cheese mixture to your fondue pot and serve with hunks of crusty bread for dipping.
Serves 6-8
Fondue Sets
If you need some fondue equipment, we've got you covered with:
I guess if we were aiming to do a post on French fondue, we would have really messed this up. But we thought the many references to neutrality and Ricola made it clear this post was about Swiss fondue… ¯\(ツ)/¯
Luv you guys but you really messed this one up! For REAL Savoyard fondue the cheeses used are:
1. French, not Swiss Emmenthale
2. Beaufort
3. Comté
4. Reblochon (if you can find it)
As an added tasty twist, In Apremont, crushed tomatoes are added once the cheese is thoroughly melted to give the fondue a wonderful pink colour.
Don’t forget the Apremont white wine to serve with the fondue and also put about 1/4 cup of it into the fondue. Nutmeg to taste.
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