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Fondue (fr. fondue – melted, melted, stretching) is a Swiss hot sauce for snacks and meat. It is a hard cheese melted in white wine with the addition of seasonings and spices. After heat treatment, the sauce becomes non-alcoholic (all alcohol evaporates).
It is believed that the first fondue recipe was invented by Alpine shepherds. Going high into the mountains, they took with them only products with a long shelf life: bread, cheese and wine. To keep warm, the shepherds heated the cheese with wine in a pot, and the resulting thick brew was spread on bread. Over time, fondue has turned from a simple peasant dish into a gourmet dish and a hallmark of culinary Switzerland.
fondue cheese
It can be used as one kind of cheese, or a mixture of several varieties. There is no single standard, each region has its own set. For example, in Geneva, for making fondue, Gruyère and Raclette cheeses are mixed in equal proportions, and the traditional French recipe provides for a combination of Beaufort, Emmental and Comte cheeses. Closest to the classic fondue are equal parts of Emmental and Gruyère.
It is only important that the cheese is fresh, of high quality and melts well, and salty, spicy or sweetish shades are a matter of taste. Fondue is often made at home from Parmesan, Mozzarella and Suluguni, which are more affordable in Russia.
Wine
Any medium priced dry white wine is required. Budget brands may contain additives (for example, too high a concentration of sulfur) that smell bad when heated. In some recipes, 20-30 ml of cherry moonshine – kirschwasser is heated along with wine. Strong alcohol helps to melt the cheese faster.
Sometimes wine is replaced with beer or champagne, but such variations differ significantly in taste from the classic cheese fondue.
Other ingredients
The choice of spices is at the discretion of the chef. Usually nutmeg or saffron is added to fondue.
Often bread with a crust, pieces of fried meat, boiled potatoes, carrots, broccoli and even grapes are dipped into the hot cheese mass. Any product that goes well with cheese will do.
Chocolate fondue is a separate dish that has nothing to do with cheese.
Classic cheese fondue recipe
Ingredients:
- hard cheese (one or more varieties) – 500 grams;
- dry white wine – 250 ml;
- starch – 2 tablespoons;
- garlic – 1 tooth;
- salt – a quarter of a teaspoon;
- nutmeg – a quarter teaspoon (optional);
- baguette (regular bread, crackers) – to taste.
Technology of preparation
1. Grate all the cheese on a coarse grater. Put in a deep bowl, add starch, mix. Thanks to the starch, the consistency of the fondue will be homogeneous and the dish will not delaminate.
2. Cut the garlic clove in half. Rub the bottom and sides of a cheese-melting pan with garlic cloves.
3. Pour wine into the pan, put on low heat. Boil.
4. Gradually add the cheese (in 4-5 batches), stirring with a figure-of-eight each time, until the cheese is completely melted.
5. After all the cheese has melted, add salt and nutmeg. Stir, remove the finished fondue from the stove.
6. Cut the bread into slices so that it is convenient to put them on a fork and dip them into the cheese mass. There should be a crust on each piece. Instead of bread, you can use pieces of fried meat, vegetables and grapes.
Table etiquette rules
Since all guests eat fondue from the same pot, etiquette rules have been formed that allow you to comply with hygiene standards.
- It is forbidden to touch the fork with lips and tongue, removing a piece from it. Also, do not touch the part of the fork that is dipped into the cheese sauce with your hands.
- Securely fasten a piece of bread (other treats) on a fork so that the snack does not fall into the bowler hat or on the ground. After dipping in the sauce, leave a piece for 3-5 seconds over the bowl until all excess sauce drains back.
If the treat fell into a bowler hat or on the floor, then according to the old Swiss tradition, the offender must fulfill one common desire of all those gathered at the table.