Fondue (as seen on MasterChef)

This famous mountain dish is perfect for icy winter days.  The best way to make it is using a special fondue set.  You can use any combination of cheeses, although purists argue a real fondue only has one type.  The Swiss often thicken the melted cheese with cornflour mixed with kirsch, but this is not included in French versions.  When I visited Marcel Petite at the old fort of St Antoine, this dish was prepared with a combination of young and aged Comté.

Ingredients

1-2 garlic cloves, peeled and slightly crushed
400ml dry white wine
700g Comté, grated (800g before rind is removed)		 Sea salt and freshly ground pepper
400g crusty bread (yesterday’s is best)

 



Method

Rub the inside of the pot with the cloves of crushed garlic, then discard.  Add the wine to the pot and bring to a simmer.  Slowly add the cheese and melt it, stirring in a figure-of-eight motion so that it doesn’t stick.  Stir over a gentle heat for 5-10 minutes, until thick.  The consistency can be adjusted by adding more cheese or white wine (or cornflour pre-mixed with white wine). Season with salt and pepper.

Before serving, turn the heat to minimum.  Place the pot in the middle of the table and use long fondue forks to dip pieces of crusty bread into the fondue mixture, remembering to touch the bottom to ensure the mixture does not burn.  In Switzerland, if the bread drops off your fork while doing this, it’s your turn to supply the next round of wine.

Fondue can be accompanied by cornichons, steamed potatoes, cured and smoked meats, green salad and of course plenty of dry white wine to aid digestion.  If you are pressed for time, you can simply prepare fondue on a conventional stove and move it to the table when the cheese is almost melted. Recipe Serves 4.

 

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