Daniel Pfyl, hospitality management lecturer at Otago Polytechnic, shares some professional techniques to make your cooking easier. This month, he shows us how to make Swiss cheese fondue.
Fondues are a Swiss tradition, especially in winter. Pieces of bread on long forks are dipped in melted cheese and wine kept warm over a flame, but there are other versions, such as when meat is dipped in hot oil or, more recently, a steamboat style in which meat and vegetables are cooked in broth.
The cheese fondue pot is usually made of heatproof earthenware, while the meat pot is made of metal and is more bulbous in shape. However, if you don't have a fondue set, you can make it in a pot and serve it with a candle underneath, he says.
Cheese fondue can be served as a main meal or a starter and is good for a pot-luck meal.
Cheese fondue (käse fondue)
Serves 4
1 clove garlic
600g gruyere cheese, grated
200g emmental cheese, grated
350ml white wine
1 tsp lemon juice
4 Tbsp cornflour
1 Tbsp kirschfreshly ground pepper
a pinch of nutmeg
600g bread* cut into 3-4cm cubes
Method
1) Rub the inside of the fondue dish with peeled garlic, crushing it as you go, then discard the remains of the clove. This gives a subtle flavour. If you like garlic you can used a finely chopped clove in the dish instead.
2) Traditionally the cheese is ¾gruyere for flavour and ¼emmental for stringiness when melted, but some people like to include blue cheese or another variety. Cheddar tends to be fattier and you can end up with a fat layer on top.
Grate the cheese. It may look like a lot but it melts down. Put most of the cheese in the fondue pot.
Mix the the cornflour with a little water and pour over the cheese. Add the wine and lemon juice.
3) Put the pot over a medium to low heat and once the cheese starts melting, stir with a small wooden spoon in a figure of eight. It will become gooey at the bottom.
Add the rest of the cheese as space becomes available in the pot.
4) The mix will come together as it melts and integrates.
Cook slowly until it is of a coating consistency. It will thicken during the dipping and eating process.
Stir in the kirsch and seasoning just before serving. Kirsch (or kirschwasser) is a clear, colourless brandy made from cherries.
5) Put the pot on a frame with a candle or spirit lamp underneath to keep it at a low simmer, and serve with bread and other accompaniments, and wine or kirsch. Accompaniments for serving can include cooked potato cubes, cured meat such as thinly sliced prosciutto, gherkins, pickled onions, or slices of pear tossed in lemon juice to prevent browning.
6) To eat, everyone spears a piece of bread or potato or pear on a long-handled fork, dips and stirs it in the fondue then puts it on their plate to catch the drips before eating it.
7) At the end there will be a nice crusty layer of toasted cheese at the bottom of the dish.
Traditionally if you lose your bread in the fondue you have to buy the next round of drinks.
*French bread is good for this, and it's best if it is not too fresh or it falls off the fork.
• If you would like to request a particular technique we haven't already shown, please let us know. Write to Cooking 101, Editorial Features, Otago Daily Times, PO Box 181, Dunedin, or email odt.features@odt.co.nz with cooking 101 in the subject line.
To check earlier Cooking 101 columns visit: www.odt.co.nz and search for ''cooking 101''. More information on cooking from Otago Polytechnic can be found on www.otagocookeryl4.blogspot.com
