The word fondue is borrowed from the French. Translated from French, it means "to melt." And the homeland of the dish is Switzerland. It was the Swiss who came up with to melt the hardened cheese, lowering it into wine and heating it on a fire. The traditional ingredients of fondue are cheese and wine. But this dish was so fond of and became popular that cheese alone with wine was no longer enough. How to make fondue? Let's try to cook the dish yourself.
Cheese fondue at home
Ingredients: hard cheese (400 g), emmental cheese (300 g), white bread (or loaf), lemon juice (teaspoon), starch (teaspoon), dry white wine (glass), cherry juice (glass), walnut ground nutmeg (pinch).
Cooking. Grate cheeses (both). Cut the bread into slices (pre-cut the crust). We melt the cheese on a fire and add starch to it. Gently stirring, pour in a thin stream of juice and wine. Add the nutmeg and continue to heat. Served hot only. Pieces of bread (or loaf) are dipped into the mass.
Cheese with fondue mushrooms at home
Cheese fondue with champignons. Ingredients: hard cheese (500 g), champignons (chopped and fried in butter, 150 g), a glass of milk, two eggs, butter (70-80 g), ground white pepper, a glass of white wine, white bread (or loaf )
Cooking. Grate the cheese and melt it (to a temperature of 60 degrees, not higher). Beat eggs with milk and slowly, not forgetting to stir, pour into warmed cheese. Add butter and mushrooms. Gradually, stirring, pour the wine. Bread (loaf) is cut into large cubes, dipped in the resulting hot mass.
Chocolate and fruit fondue at home
Chocolate fondue. Ingredients: a large bar of chocolate, 3/4 cup cream (fat content from 30% and above), rum (or liquor, or brandy, 25 g), apples, oranges, bananas, strawberries (200 g each).
Cooking. We clean bananas, apples and oranges. Cut them into slices or slices. We warm the chocolate in the fondue bowl. Pour in rum with cream. Slices of fruit are dipped in the resulting chocolate cream mass.
Caramel fondue at home
Extraordinarily tender and refined dish. Very suitable for a romantic evening.
Ingredients: assorted fruits (you can take absolutely any - pineapple, pear, mandarin, kiwi, banana, apple, peach), caramel (condensed milk is allowed - 1 can), heavy cream (preferably separator), vanilla.
Cooking. Peel the fruit, cut into slices or cubes. Pour caramel and cream into a saucepan, heat it up (but do not bring it to a boil, it is advisable to use a dissector), add vanilla and pour into cups.
Dip the fruit slices into the mixture.
We limited ourselves to only a few, the most simple, affordable and tasty examples of cooking. And finally, some recommendations on how to choose a set for fondue and how to cook fondue at home.
Today, there are hundreds of different variations of cooking fondue at home. Before choosing a kit, consider which fondue you prefer. If chocolate, then ceramic (or clay) fondue is more suitable. For cheese (or butter, broth), steel and cast iron are more suitable. Steel looks more aesthetically pleasing, but cast iron will be much more practical, and it keeps the temperature better. Forks are very important. Choose authentic, protected. For cheese (chocolate) fondue one fork is put, but for meat - two (one we dip a piece in butter, and then remove this piece). If the fondue is made of ceramics, then an ordinary candle can serve as a source of fire. But for a metal burner is a must. A temperature controller is required in the burner.
When preparing a cheese dish, add a drop of starch (the cheese will not separate), you can add a little lemon juice to the wine (then it will melt faster). It is better to mix in a zigzag fashion (this also speeds up the melting of cheese).
Each guest needs to put a scallop (plate) and put a special fork (or two, depending on what type of fondue).