Easy Cheese Fondue Recipe - I Heart Naptime (2024)

FAQs

What is the best cheese to melt in fondue? ›

Best Cheese for Fondue

This fondue recipe calls for Gruyère and Swiss cheeses because they're creamy, buttery, and melt smoothly. Other good choices include Gouda, fontina, and Emmental.

This beloved dish, once thought of as cold weather fare for sharing, is transformed into a decadent make-ahead treat for one. Processing the fondue in a blender is an optional step, but does help ensure a smooth texture upon re-heating. Reheating and serving in coffee mugs helps retain the fondue's heat.

Like any other food fad, the fondue was not meant to last as a trend. By 1999, amid allegations of corruption and concerns over the high costs of cheese subsidies and fondue's decline in popularity, the Schweizer Kaseunion collapsed.

Raclette is a specific type of cheese melted with direct heat, with the melted layer of cheese being scraped off and put over accompaniments. Fondue is a cheese sauce and can be made with a variety of cheeses, aromatics, wine and/or brandy. It's made in a pot and the accompaniments are dipped into the sauce.

When cheese gets too hot, its protein, called casein, can coagulate into a toughened mass, squeezing out liquid and fat. This is probably what happened with your fondue last year. Pots specially designed for cheese fondue insulate the cheese from the heat.

What is the best melting cheese? Cheeses with more moisture and lower melting points - cheddar is one of the most popular choices, but Swiss and Gruyère are also terrific options.

Cheese should be shredded and tossed with flour or cornstarch to aid in thickening and to improve the viscosity of the fondue. A good rule of thumb is to use one tablespoon of flour or cornstarch per pound of cheese.

Fondue rules

You must not double dip, and never put your fork directly into your mouth.

Alternatively you could use a dry non-alcoholic white wine or light beer. If non-alcoholic wines are also not an option then the wine can be replaced with either milk or a 50/50 mixture of milk and chicken or vegetable stock (broth).

Broth. Chicken or vegetable broth is a great white wine substitute, as it adds both liquid and flavor. If using a store-bought broth, opt for low-sodium or no sodium so that you don't throw off the salt content of the dish.

What cheese is best for fondue? ›

The best all-around cheeses for fondue are fontina, Gruyère, and gouda. If you aren't sure what to pick, use even amounts of these three. Together are lush and complex. For classic Swiss cheese fondue (meaning one like what you would find in Switzerland), a mix of traditional, firm mountain-style cheeses is best.

Bread is an excellent choice for cheese fondue because it soaks up the warm cheese and creamy flavors, creating a delicious combination. There are so many options to choose from for this classic side, such as French baguettes, sourdough, breadsticks, bagels, croutons or pretzels.

Bread is the most popular dipper for cheese fondue. There are many excellent options to choose from. French bread, breadsticks, and croutons are always favorites, but also consider multigrain bread, rye, sourdough, pumpernickel, and even bagels.

Bread is the main accompaniment, although boiled potatoes, charcuterie, and cornichons or other pickles can also be served. Veggies, fruit, and boiled eggs are not traditionally used in Swiss fondue. Take a piece of bread and spear it firmly on your fondue fork so that the crust is on the outside.

There are four commonly prepared types of fondue. They are cheese fondue, chocolate fondue, oil fondue (also known as meat fondue), and broth fondue.

The trouble is, fondue — especially cheese fondue — can be incredibly unhealthy. A classic fondue starts with rich cheeses blended with a little spice and some white wine to create a thick, savory sauce for dipping chunks of bread and other morsels.

Like fondue, raclette is a typical après-ski meal invented in the Valais and Haute Savois regions of Switzerland and France. The French word itself means "to scrape," and raclette has been a tradition in Europe for hundreds of years. Raclette is both the name of a type of Swiss cheese and the name of the dish itself.

The cheese: If you can't find cheese specifically made for raclette, use any really good melting Swiss cheese, such as Gruyere or even Appenzeller. Make sure the cheese has a flat surface to melt in front of the fire.

Fondue might be Switzerland's national dish, but fondue savoyarde hails from the French Alps region of Savoie.

Never let fondue boil, which will cause the cheese proteins to curdle and the oil to separate. This recipe also calls for a slurry of kirsch and a little bit of cornstarch, which will also help to prevent the cheese and wine from separating.

What is the etiquette for eating cheese fondue? ›

Cheese fondue is eaten with a long-handled fondue fork, one fork per guest. Cubed bread is speared and dipped into sauce served in a communal pot. Because the sauce is shared by everyone at the table, and the fork is redipped into the sauce many times, the tines of the fork do not pierce the cubes all the way through.

Too much starch could make the fondue too sticky and too much wine, which lowers the pH, could make it too liquidy. Many Swiss add baking soda to their fondue, which can increase the airiness of the dish by releasing carbon dioxide.

Can I Use Mild and Sharp Cheddars Interchangeably in Recipes? Mild cheddar melts more smoothly than sharper (older) cheddars, so swapping a sharper cheese in a recipe that calls for mild could result in a greasy, curdled mess.

Cheddars, gouda, brie, and gruyere are all some of the best cheeses for melting. When you're looking for high-temp cheeses that won't melt as easily, opt for the classics — high-temp mozzarella, swiss, or cheddar. For some additional flavor, you can try pepper jack, habanero, or bleu high-temp cheese.

Monterey Jack is the cheese goddess of melting. With a high fat and moisture content, this semi-hard American cheese will melt on cue for baked pasta, grilled cheese sandwiches, and any quesadilla it lays its eyes on.

Gruyere is a classic addition because it melts much like Cheddar, but has a lovely nutty flavor. Other classics include Gouda, Muenster, Parmesan, fontina, Havarti and Monterey Jack. Brie works well too, just make sure you remove the rind before mixing it in.