The Fundamentals of Making Fondue
This emmentaler and gruyère fondue combines white wine, lemon juice, kirsch, and freshly homemade bread for a simple and delectable treat. It's far simpler to make than most initially realize and a great party snack or potluck dish to share. All you really need is a saucepan and a cheese grater. Although I am quite fond of my fondue pot? You don't actually need one to make fondue. The temperature controls on them tend to be a little bit finicky, too. So, I'd recommend making the fondue in a pot on the stove and then transferring it to the fondue pot to serve.
Equipment
- Cheese Grater
- Small Bowl or Large Plastic Bag
- Saucepan
- Fondue Pot (optional)
Ingredients
- 1/2 lbs. gruyère cheese grated
- 1/2 lbs. Emmentaler cheese grated
- 1-2 tbsp. corn starch
- 1 c. dry white wine (I used sauvignon blanc)
- 1 tbsp. lemon juice
- 1 tbsp. kirsch
- 1/2 tsp. mustard
- dash salt
- dash pepper
- bread, apples, and/or produce of choice for dipping
Instructions
Prepare Ingredients
- I served this particular fondue with bread. You can easily buy this or substitute apples or any other produce of choice! Although, if you would like to replicate this recipe, I have an entire article on this No-Knead Dutch Oven Bread.
Fondue
- Grate cheese into a small bowl and toss with cornstarch. Make sure that all of the pieces are lightly coated.This will help the cheese from separating when you cook it. If you're having a tedious time getting the cornstarch coated without clumping, add the mixture to a large Ziplock bag and shake.
- Meanwhile, add wine and lemon juice to the saucepan and bring to a simmer.
- Once the wine mixture begins to simmer, slowly stir in the cheese about 1/4 cup at a time. Make sure to stir constantly until fully incorporated.The key to a creamy fondue is adding in the cheese gradually. If it’s added too quickly, the mixture will separate!
- Once all of the cheese is incorporated and the mixture is smooth, stir in the Kirsch, mustard, salt, and pepper.
- Serve immediately.You can do this by transferring to a fondue pot and maintaining about a medium heat. The fondue needs to be just warm enough to maintain the consistency. Reduce slightly if it begins to simmer and increase the heat slightly if it starts to solidify. You will need to stir it occasionally and adjust the temperature while eating. The less fondue that's in the pot, the lower the temperature will need to be.Alternatively, place the fondue in any bowl of choice and eat quickly! Fondue will re-solidify at room temperature, but it's a lot less work to eat out of a bowl than it is to hand wash a fondue pot afterwards.
Tips, Tricks, & Notes
- Fondue can sit in the fondue pot for a little while before serving, as long as you maintain the temperature. If it begins to cool, reheating may cause separation. If it starts to simmer again, it may thicken too much. Make sure to stir occasionally and check in on it!
- If you have a teflon fondue pot, like mine, never stir with a metal or other abrasive utensil. This will scratch the surface and both leach chemicals into the food and make it no longer nonstick.