Recipe Recommendation: Deconstructed Fondue

We usually think of deconstructed dishes as something best left for restaurants and Top Chef contestants. But this fondue recipe – made with just two ingredients and served with a shot on the side – may have changed our minds.

We had a chance to visit the home of Roth Käse USA cheese company in Monroe, Wis., last week. After a tour of the cheesemaking facilities, we sampled a few of their creations and a classic Alpine preparation: fondue.

Marketing Director Kristen Jaeckle, whose family founded the company, shared a few tips for what she likes to call "deconstructed fondue." This simple recipe has just two necessary components: cheese and wine. Well, in addition to a few things served on the side – hence the deconstruction.

The cheese is a mixture of aged Gruyère, young Gruyère and Fontina for its great melting properties.

Instead of adding the Kirschwasser to the fondue itself, Jaeckle prefers to serve it on the side, as a shot. In addition to the obvious fun factor, the drink is said to aid digestion. Nutmeg and fresh black pepper are also served on the side.

Here are a few more of Jaeckle's fondue tips:

Spend on the cheese, not the wine. This is a time when a cheap bottle of white wine will do the trick. Nothing too fruity or oaky. Try Pinot Grigio or a dry Riesling.
To help the cheese and wine come together, shred the cheese and soak it in the wine for 30 to 60 minutes before beginning the heating process.
Never stop stirring. Go front to back, side to side, to cover the whole surface.
If the cheese clumps, turn the heat to high for 3 to 4 minutes, stirring constantly with quick, short motions. Once it's broken up, return to lower heat.

Get the full recipe: Roth Käse USA: Veritable Alpine Fondue

More fondue tips
Fondue: Tricks of the Trade
Good Question: Tips for Fondue Party?

(Images: Joanna Miller)

Comments (5)

"Veritable" alpine fondue does not contain Fontina cheese and is not eaten with fruit.

It is either made "moitié-moitié" with Gruyère and Emmentaler or made with a blend of other Swiss cheeses such as Gruyère, Vacherin Fribourgois and Sbrinz.

One rubs the fondue pot with a clove of garlic and also adds a few cloves bit to the fondue mix along with some pepper, lemon juice and nutmeg. Important is a small spoon of cornstarch mixed with kirsch so the cheese and wine do not separate.

Fondue is classically eaten with bread, however some Swiss also eat it with potatoes.

Thanks schnubbu!! :-)
I almost strangled myself with my tea when I read about the Fontina.

The funny thing is that like with every traditional dish, everyone has a different recipe (for instance I had never heard about the lemon juice, I just add the Maizena, Kirsch, garlic and wine). However, there are some borders that should never, ever be crossed (like using italian cheese).

In the restaurants around here, people are getting creative and offering fondue with champagne, boletus, and even tomatoes! But the very best kind is the moitie-moitie made with Gruyere and Vacherin Fribourgeois, it is much lighter and creamier than for instance the fondue savoyarde.

Besides moitié-moitié, we often get local artisanal gruyères (when we go for the Dèsalpes in Gruyère for example, in the village of Semsales).

Also, the Swiss lady who used to own the Swiss restaurant on the Lower East Side made fondue with a mix of 4 cheeses, the surprise being the use of a Swiss raclette cheese (Belsano). I have made her recipe many times and love it, but of course it really all comes down to the Gruyère for me...

To be honest, I like the combination of Gruyère and Emmental, but a little bit of blue cheese like Roquefort gives it a whole new meaning...

http://lensandlentils.blogspot.com/2009/04/mayonnaise-real-thing.html