Cheese Fondue Make Easy Cheese Fondue At Home Wellplated Com

Spoiler: homemade cheese fondue is EASY. You’ll feel inspired to throw a fondue party by the end! One of my best early memories in Milwaukee is making this cheese fondue recipe for my (now) girlfriends. We had recently moved to town, and I was looking to form deeper relationships. I wooed everyone via an invite to a fondue party. (This required upping the ante from my Pineapple Cheese Ball.) I still remember the giddy looks when I set the big, bubbly pot of fondue in the center of the table. These ladies are now my closest friends in town. Could it have been the fondue?

Why I Love This Fondue Recipe

Cheese fondue carries with it such a fun, communal aspect.

Hosting friends for fondue is a fabulous way to celebrate the holidays as a group. You can also make this recipe for a special occasion, Christmas dinner, or New Year’s Eve.Though it sounds fancy, this fondue is shockingly simple to prepare. (Can you stand at a stove and stir? Excellent! You can make cheese fondue.)It feels like a special treat.It is welcoming and cozy.

Fondue is exactly what I’d serve my guests at my charming Swiss chalet to warm them from the chilly alpine air if, you know, I owned a Swiss chalet. Besides being creamy, wonderful, and indulgent in the best possible “this is so worth it” kind of way, fondue also makes for stimulating dinner table debate. One of the guests drops a dipper into the pot—is it the person to the right or to the left she’s supposed to kiss when the breads slips from the fork? Discuss. The extent to which you allow these rules to influence the guest list at your next fondue party is at your discretion. Stick to these, and your dinner party will transport you to the Alps upon first bite.

Which Cheese Is Good for Fondue?

Fondue Rule #1: Use Good-Quality Cheese.

Even if you ignore all of the other tips, keep this one. It will be more expensive but worth it.Fondue truly is all about the cheese. The quality and types of cheeses you use will have an enormous impact on the final product.

How to Prepare the Cheese to Make Fondue

Fondue Rule #2: Grate the Cheese.

For quicker melting and a smooth fondue, grate—do not chop—the cheese.Grated cheese melts faster and more evenly than chopped cheese, leading to smoother results.

Fondue Rule #3: Toss the Cheese with Cornstarch Thoroughly

Cornstarch helps thicken the fondue and prevents the cheese from clumping. Lumpy bumpy cheese? Not in our pot!Flour can be used in a pinch, but I find cornstarch is the best option and leaves less of an aftertaste. Plus, it makes the fondue gluten free for those with dietary concerns.

Using Wine in Cheese Fondue

Classic cheese fondue does call for white wine. The acid in the wine will help keep the cheese mixture smooth and gives it an even texture.

Also, don’t forget to follow…

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. Gruyere cheese, Swiss cheese, and gouda all qualify.Cheddar fondue would work well, though its flavor would be less traditional. In this case, I’d use cheddar as one of the cheeses, then mix it with a more traditional cheese like Gruyère.Other Fondue Cheeses: Comté, Emmentaler (a variety of Swiss cheese), raclette, vacherin.

If you don’t have a grater blade on your food processor, the coarse side of a box grater like this one or a coarse microplane grater like this one work nicely too.

Fondue Rule #4: Use Good Wine

The taste of the wine directly impacts the taste of the fondue. You don’t need to crack the piggy bank, but make sure it’s a wine you’d enjoy drinking with dinner.For beer cheese fondue, swap the wine for 8 ounces of your favorite beer. This would be especially delicious with a cheddar cheese fondue.

How to Keep Cheese Fondue Smooth

Fondue Rule #5: Add the Cheese Slowly and Stir Constantly

This is SO important to make sure the cheese fondue you make at home is buttery smooth and tastes even better than a cheese fondue restaurant.

Resist the urge to dump all of the shredded cheese into the pot in large handfuls.Grab a small handful and sprinkle it into the pot.Stir constantly and wait for each addition to melt before adding the next.Don’t rush it—you won’t win. Just enjoy the moment at the stove at peace with yourself, the cheese, and the promise of a luscious fondue.

What to Dip in Cheese Fondue

Bread. The most classic and always delicious. Grab a French bread or baguette and cut it into 1-inch bread cubes so that it can be easily skewered.Apples. Tart apples like Granny Smith are dreamy dipped with cheese fondue. Instead of slices, which are harder to spear, cut the apples into cubes.Crudite. Cherry tomatoes, sliced red bell pepper, and carrots provide tasty, crunchy counterpoints.Bacon. Even better than you think it’s going to taste. Make sure you use baked bacon, so that it’s nice and crisp and won’t break off in the pot. Since bacon can be harder to skewer, direct guests to dip their slices right into the pot.

Roasted Baby Potatoes. Try these Oven Roasted Potatoes or Roasted Fingerling Potatoes. Or if you are in a hurry, potato chips.Steamed Broccoli. Like a shortcut broccoli cheese soup.Pickles. Surprisingly, addictively good. I recommend cornichons, which are the ideal dipping size and complementary flavor.

Which Fondue Pot to Buy

While you don’t have to own a fondue pot to make cheese fondue (I find it works best and is often required by the fondue pot manufacturer to cook the fondue on the stove, then transfer it to the pot anyway), using a real fondue pot does add extra flair to the experience.A fondue pot is also helpful because it keeps the fondue warm and melty. If you don’t use a fondue pot, you’ll likely have to keep returning a regular pot to the stove to rewarm it.

Storage Tips

To Store. Refrigerate leftover fondue for up to 3 days.To Reheat. Rewarm leftovers in a Dutch oven on the stovetop over ultra low heat. Stir often and thin with a bit of chicken stock as needed.To Freeze. While I’d encourage you to eat all of your fondue when its made, yes you can freeze fondue. Let cool completely, then freeze in an airtight container for up to 2 months. Let thaw overnight in the refrigerator before reheating.

Who’s ready to party?!

Brandy. My go-to. Cognac is the best-of-the-best, but a lower-level brandy such as Korbel works great too.Kirsch or a cherry brandy would both be scrumptious and add subtle fruity note.

Most fondue sets only come with four, but you can easily order a few supplemental ones. I like this set, which color codes the handles so that if someone sets their skewer down or drops it, they don’t get mixed up.

Fill a beautiful basket with a fondue pot, fondue ingredients, and dippers.For bonus points, include sterno (if needed) and extra fondue forks.