Little Fondue Secrets
Before serving any Fondue, the best starter to serve is some dried meat (e.g. Air- dried beef Grisons style, “Mostbröckli” smoked beef slices or smoked ham), vegetables with Quark dip or a light, fresh crispy lettuce 😉
A real fondue consists of cheese melted into wine to make a bubbly sauce 😉
The Cheeeesy “Fondue” is usually made up of 2 or more types of cheese. A good moderately aged Gruyère (aged at least 8 to 12 months) could be one of them, since it has such a great flavor 😉
Or…Actually, Gruyère could serve as the base of all Fondues 😉
The bread you dipp must be dense white bread with a nice crust & it should be thick-cut and on the drier side but not crispy 😉
The longer cooking time means that the fondue will be much creamier, less «stringy» and a layer of fat will not form on top of the cheese 😉
If the fondue should become lumpy, or the liquid separate from the fat, the following should be tried: put the fondue back onto the stove, stir it thoroughly with a wire whisk and add 1/2 teaspoon constarch. It may also be diluted with up to 1/2 glass wine (warm first). This should bring it back to a creamy consistency 😉
Vacherin Fribourgeois does not make the sauce stringy 😉
It’s important to keep the heat going. If the heat should go off the cheese will turn quickly to an uneatable gooey blob 😉
If the fondue becomes too thick because of the continuous cooking and evaporation of the liquid, it can be thinned by adding some wine (warm first) 😉
If the mixture is too runny – add more cheese 😉 Is mixture too hard? add more wine 😉 too soft more cheeeese 😉
For the mildest fondue, use all Emmentaler cheese. For a medium fondue, use half Emmentaler and half Gruyere. If you like a stronger flavor, use two thirds Gruyere and one third Emmentaler. The strongest fondue is made from well-matured Gruyere 😉
Cheese cut into small dice melts better and more smoothly than grated cheese. The latter tends to form lumps when cooking 😉
Remember that the cheese takes a while to melt, and if at the beginning, you turn up the heat too high in a fit of impatience then you will scorch the bottom of the cheese and have black chunks floating around in it — so be patient and keep stirring and folding so it does not burn the bottom! 😉
Since cheese, depending on its kind and age, absorbs liquids differently, you may have to adjust these quantities a little. Start with less wine rather than more–you can always add some 😉
Stay away from water when preparing fondue, use flavorful liquids such as wine and broth – dry wines work best 😉
Be extra carefuI 😉 f you are eating your fondue in the company of Swiss people, NOT to let your bread drop off your fork, or you may have to pay a forfeit. There’s no knowing what this might be….;) In keeping with their democratic tradition the other eaters will get together and determine the punishment jointly. One possible forfeit if you were in a ski hut could be that you’d be made to run round the hut barefoot in the snow… 🙂
Bread dipped in a touch of kirsch just before it is dipped into the fondue pot warms the spirit as well as the heart. And it is important to continue the Swiss tradition of the “dropped” bread. If bread is dropped into the pot – you must kiss someone at the table for good luck. This could be fun but optional depending on the company you keep. 😉
The “Blue Cheese” Fondue has a STRONGER taste than most cheese Fondue
As you get to the end there will be a layer of burnt cheese in the bottom of the pot. Optionally you can crack an egg into the pot and scramble it into the burnt cheese to finish with a few bites of cheese omelet 😉
Winter fruits, any citrus fruits, like grapefruit, blood or regular orange, etc. could be a nice refreshing ending to the meal 😉
Of course it also helps to have the right ambience. A snowy night sitting by a warm fire surrounded by wood paneling with the smell of wet wool from your snow covered cloths 🙂
EnJOY! 🙂
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