Fondue Revival

From cheese to caramel, dunk-and-dine meal makes a splashy comeback!

Flower children, baby boomers: Remember those fondue parties of the '60s and '70s? The nights we bonded around melted cheese bubbling away in a fondue pan over an alcohol flame, spearing chunks of bread, washing down hot bites with chilled jug chablis, while Bob Dylan sang "The Times They Are A-Changin'" in the background?

Well, fondue is making a big comeback. Sleek new fondue sets and beautifully revived traditional units are gracing the shelves and websites of cookware stores. Generation X is discovering, as I did back then, that fondue is a great vehicle for intimate, easy entertaining.

Today's take on fondue brings more choices. Swiss cheese is the classic, but, with a Latin variation, fondue bubbles to a new beat. The old-time meat fondue, beef chunks sizzling in hot oil, returns in a safer, fresher version that uses broth instead of oil. And an updated palate of foods to swish through the simmering broth, then into a bright array of dipping sauces, gives both French and Asian touches to fondue. For dessert, caramel-rich dulce de leche moves beyond routine chocolate fondue to another mantle for fruit and cake.

Fondue starts with a pan and a heating element (see "What's New in Fondue," page 106). The contents of the pan determine the foods to use for dunking or cooking, as well as the peripheral collection of sauces, if any. A single setup best suits a party of two to six--so all have ready access to the action. Multiply the scale of the event simply by duplicating the fondue arrangement at other tables. Long fondue forks or skewers serve as cooking and eating utensils. Each person needs a plate for collecting tidbits, and plenty of napkins.

As a fondue vet, let me share why I still like these parties: I do the shopping and chopping, my guests do the cooking and serving. Now that's easy:

Bouillabaisse Fondue

Bouillabaisse Broth

Rouille

Croutons

Swiss Cheese Fondue

Chili- Cheese Fondue

Bubbling Asian Fondue

Asian Broth

Chutney Yogurt

Cilantro Mustard

Ginger-Soy

Wasabi Cream

Dulce de Leche Fondue