There's nothing very romantic about stuffing my face with fondue.
P.S. A fondue kit in the pantry is always good for one of those sudden, illogical fondue-craving moments.
I won't dare to speak directly concerning your face, Argus, nor the stuffing thereof, but I happen to differ in thinking cuisine (including Fondue) can be downright romantic — sexy, even.
It's in the eye of the beholder, I guess.
Anything like this?
More like this:
but with cheese.
Actually, I must confess that I am today... Heavy thunderstorms have dramatically cooled off the air here, providing a nice opportunity to use up some precious cheese and introduce a friend to the pleasure that is Fondue. Sorry for the broken rule, but conditions like this are few and far between during the Texas summer...
so how popular is fondue in switzerland? i hear about it alot, can you get it at like any restaurant? does everyone have it at home? i just got me a set, i like it
It's VERY popular! So popular that Swiss even pretend it's a Swiss thing. But it's not, it's originally from the neighbouring Savoie and Franche-Comté region. You can get it in specialized restaurants as well as in restaurants where tourists are asking for it all the time. The Swiss do it at home, of course. As I said, it's VEEEERY popular. This long thread is proof for it being POPULAR
If you have ever seen those big blocks of Raclette cheese on sale and don't feel like raclette, but don't want to pass up such a good deal, you can make Raclette cheese fondue. It's a nice change!
My recipe (similar to all other fondue recipes posted):
1 1/2 cups (or just a little more than a third of a 750 bottle) wine
500 gm raclette cheese, grated
~1 1/2 tbsp cornstarch
1/4 cup fresh chives, chopped
fresh pepper, raclette spice
bread, and I also like cauliflower, broccoli
Heat wine till hot. Mix cornstarch with cheese. Add cheese to hot wine in small batches, whisking to incorporate. Let mixture heat to boil. Add chives, pepper, raclette spice. Move to fondue heat and enjoy!
of course, you can add garlic, and kirsch... whatever you like...
Wow !!! Did s/he enjoy it? And digest it well?
Well, in spite of it's having been one of my better productions, made with 3-to-1 Appenzeller-Gruyère, our guest is apparently not much impressed with cheese in general ( ). The family devoured it, though.
It was one of those funny situations in which we all wanted to be polite, but his guy kept chatting away, waving his fork around, and I had to remind him: "The stuff will be eaten whether you are eating or not, and you are surrounded by hungry people who love it." He got the message and ate his fill, but ultimately deferred to my teenage sons who eat like teenagers and (politely) cleaned the pot out. They seemed almost insulted when he turned up his nose at the crust I scraped from pot afterwards (they call it "dessert").
I assume it digested well for our guest, as it certainly did for the rest of us. I doubt that he will want to join us for another Fondue, however.
Hope someone can help... I have spent ages searching online but could not find the answer to my question:
Can you keep and reuse an open container of gel fondue fuel (Sicherheits Brennpaste), if it is only half used?
I have the Landert ones and it doesn't give any such advice on the box, or online. Seems a shame to waste it - however, it might be dangerous to keep/reuse so want to make sure... Thanks!
They'll keep, covered over, for a bit but the alcohol will evaporate over time and you'll just be left with the gel which won't burn very well.
A couple of weeks or so should be fine.
Wrap it in cling film and it will keep, just make sure its cold before wrapping.
Wow, there are so many Fondue types out there... not sure if anyone has tried it, but the absolute BEST fondue I ever had was at a small restaurant called Le Gruyerien in Chene Bougeries Geneva:
Only ate once, but my GOD was it delicious. BEST fondue by FAR! The little extras that came with the food (when we ordered) were fabulous too, the dried meats, mini potatoes, etc... delicious.
There's a great Fondue place at the foot of the large church in Lausanne too, a lot of choice down to tomatoe spiced fondue and more. Yum!
At home, I try to get the more exotic and "good" cheeses, because it can occasionally be a little hit and miss to make a good fondue alone, so at least if I get the best kirch, white wine and cheese, the chances are I'll make a better meal
This is actually an interesting thread.
I had eaten some good fondues in different restaurants, but for me the better is mine, as it's a recipe my dad made and before him my grand dad....
I just add more garlic because I love garlic....
and I love to wet my bit of bread in my wine glass before get it in the *caquelon*
and now, it's the perfect time to get trained again to make a fondue....
I agree completely with this - the best fondue is always the one made back home.
As for wetting your bread: Try dipping it in Kirsch instead of wine. I'm sure you'll like this, too!
And another "secret" tip: If your fondue didn't feeed the whole family/invitees sufficiently, just before finishing, trow one or two eggs in the caquelon, stirr and season with pepper. You never had better scrambeled eggs before!
I LOVE cheese fondue but have never tried the Chinoise fondue. I would like to , can anyone tell me what it is like. I have also seen the Chinoise fondue kits in the freezer compartment at the supermarket but wouldn't know what to do with it? ie. what do you dip the meat into?
I have found that the best way to keep these is to reseal the foil lid back on with electrical insulating tape. Even then, with it inside a closed plastic bag, it starts to evaporate in a couple of weeks.
The only answer is to have another fondue
Everybody mentions the 'moitié-moitié fondue, but nobody mentions the fondue vacherin... A lot creamier, softer in taste and more digest...
For 4 p.: 1 clough of garlic, 2 dl water, 800 g grated Vacherin Fribourgeois AOC if possible from different tastes, 300 à 400 g bread cubes 2-3 cm, 300 to 400 g small boiled unpeeled potatoes, pepper.
Have the cheese at room temperature at least for 2 hours.
Rub the caquelon with the garlic. Pour the water and heat till 50° C.
Add the cheese and turn the cheese with a metal fork in an ample movement on a gentle flame until it becomes creamy.
Add pepper to taste and put it on a 'rechaud' with 1 little candle just to keep it on temperature. Temperature shouldn't be higher than 50°C.
Make a broth with boullion, sliced leeks,carrots and celery, cognac and a sprinkle of parsley.
Put in the fondue pot.
Dip the rolled meat into that using either fondue forks or chopsticks.
It cooks in a minute or two.
Serve with sauces, plain potato chips, small gerkins and pickled onions.
You can buy the sauces ready made - typically they include bearnaise and mustard based sauces.
I prefer this to cheese fondue.
I suppose it's a bit like Japanese shabu shabu.