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