Buy Cheese Fondue online from igourmet.com! Cheese Fondue is an Alpine dish of a blend melted Swiss cheeses, white wine and a few spices served in a communal fondue pot. Cheese Fondue is eaten by dipping long forks of cubed bread into the fondue pot of melted cheese. The cheese for Cheese Fondue can be sourced in its original form or as a kit in a ready-to-heat pouch. The term "Fondue" derives from the French word fondre meaning "to melt".
The tradition of Cheese Fondue originated in the Canton of Neuchatel in Switzerland. The classic recipe calles for two or more varieties of cheese, including Emmental and Gruyere, which are melted then blended with white wine and spices. The dish is served from an earthenware pot called a "caquelon." or Fondue Pot In addition to Emmental and Gruyere, Tilsit and Appenzeller cheeses are often incorporated. In the correct proportions, When the melting cheeses are brought together they provide the perfect flavor for a delicious hot appetizer or meal.
Although Cheese Fondue dates back to the 18th century, it wasn't until the 1930s that it was promoted as a Swiss national dish. Cheese Fondue gained popularity in the United States in the 1950s, and its popularity peaked in the 1960s. Popular once again, today many variations of the traditional Cheese Fondue dish have spawned other offerings like chocolate fondue and meat fondue. Ready-to-heat packs, also known as Cheese Fondue Mixes or Cheese Fondue Kits, are available for sale in today's market as well. These mixes are generally made from all-natural, high-quality ingredients, packed using advanced technology to preserve freshness.
Traditional Cheese Fondue As A Meal: The Cheese Fondue pot, which is wide and shallow, is first rubbed with a piece of garlic. White wine, cheese and often kirsch, a clear cherry brandy, are added to the pot and stirred until melted. A small amount of cornstarch is added to prevent separation. Once it is prepared, cubes of crusty bread are dipped into the Cheese Fondue mixture using special long, thin forks, then brought to the plate, removed from the dipping fork and eaten with fingers or a dinner fork. A French baguette or any French or Italian style bread crusty bread works well with Cheese Fondue meal. The temperature of the Cheese Fondue should be kept hot so that the melted cheese is kept smooth but not so hot so that the Cheese Fondue burns. To keep the appropriate temperature a small burner is placed below the fondue pot on the table. This constant heat produces a thin crust of cheese at the bottom of the pot called la religieuse (meaning nun). It has a cracker-like texture and once the cheese Fondue is finished, la religieuse is often coaxed out of the pot and eaten. Cheese Fondue is traditionally served with a dry white wine or black tea.
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