The Swiss Fondue Tradition
The term “fondue” refers to several “French Swiss” communal dishes shared at the table in an earthenware pot ("fondue pot") over a small burner. The term "fondue" comes from the French "fondre" ("to melt"), referring to the fact that the contents of the pot are kept in a liquid state so that diners can use forks to dip into the fondue sauce or cooking broth. The sauce is usually warmed either by a separate burner containing an alcohol-based fuel or for more modern homes, electricity. Though cheese fondues are the best known kind, there are several other possibilities for the contents of the pot and what is used for dipping.
Swiss Fondue Etiquette
As with other communal dishes, fondue has standards of etiquette ranging from practical to amusing. Some people consider it rude to allow one's lips or tongue to touch the fondue fork, and with meat fondues, etiquette demands that you should use a dinner fork to remove the meat from the fondue fork. The "no double-dipping" rule applies here as well: once a taste has been taken of a dipped morsel it should not be returned to the pot. A popular fondue tradition states that if the dipped bread or fruit is lost in the cheese or chocolate, the person who lost the bread or fruit is required to buy a round of drinks for his or her tablemates.
It is said that Swiss cheese fondue was invented out of necessity. In the remote and isolated mountain villages in the Swiss Alps, people had to rely upon locally made food. During winter, fresh food became scarce. The Swiss found that melting stale cheese made it edible. Local Swiss wines and seasonings were added and the Swiss discovered that even dry and hard bread tasted delicious after it was swirled in the creamy melted cheese.
Swiss Fondue Varieties
Many varieties of Swiss fondue exist, each with a unique name and different blend of cheeses, wine and seasoning, depending on where it is made. They are all cooked in a fondue pot or “caquelon” rubbed with a cut clove of garlic. A small amount of potato starch, corn starch or flour is added to stop the cheese mixture from separating. The cheesy sauce is often diluted with Kirsch or wine... Cubed crusty bread is dipped using a fondue fork. The most common recipe requires dry white wine per person, and mixture of one hard cheese, such as Gruyere and one semi-hard cheese such as Emmental.
Well-known variations of Swiss Fondue include: Fribourg fondue served with potatoes instead of bread; Fondue de Suisse featuring sbrinz cheese; Appenzeller fondue; tomato fondue; spicy fondue featuring red, green and chili peppers and mushroom fondue.