Culinary Schools

Showing posts with label fondue. Show all posts

Home » Posts filed under fondue

North America Gets Cheesy with Raclette Grills

Yes, the fondue pot of the 70’s was pretty cheesy, but in this century, nothing is more cheesy than raclette. In recent years fondue pots have experienced a resurgence in popularity, and with them has come the raclette grill. Though not traditionally well known in the US and Canada, raclette is suddenly experiencing a boom in popularity.

Raclette is a semi-soft, relatively mild, easily melted cheese from Switzerland. The term also refers to the cooking method of melting cheese at a tabletop grill and serving with a variety of accompaniments.

Legend has it that the original method for melting the raclette cheese began when Swiss herdsmen settled down for the night in their camps. They placed a hunk of cheese near their campfire and as it melted, scraped it off onto a slice of bread.

Today, this same meal is mimicked but with much greater variety of foods, and with electric raclette grills that are much more convenient. Though the melting method has changed over the years, this simple and entertaining meal has remained just as enjoyable for entertaining evenings with friends and family.

There are several kinds of raclette grills that you can choose from. Traditional raclette grills hold a half- or quarter-round of raclette cheese on an angle, with a heating element melting the surface of the cheese, which drips onto a plate of dried meats and other accompaniments.

Today, the most common raclette sets include a cheese-melting element with a grill for cooking meats at the table. They provide up to 8 people with individual cheese pans and feature non-stick, dishwasher safe surfaces for convenience and easy cleanup. Perfect for entertaining!

Portable raclette using fondue-type burners are also available for camping and picnicking.

A raclette grill can provide not only a delicious, hot-off-the-grill meal, but also provide a lot of fun for family and friends. For optimum enjoyment, serve traditional raclette with a Fendant or other light-bodied dry white wine. If you are grilling meats, serve a wine appropriate for the meats.

A traditional Swiss raclette meal uses raclette cheese with the following accompaniments:

- baguette bread
- small cooked potatoes
- small gherkins
- pickled onions
- charcuterie meats such as salami or proscuitto

You can also get very creative with a raclette meal. A departure from tradition – but an adventure in taste – could include:

Raw meat for grilling and dipping into sauces:

- Italian sausage cut into 1/4” slices
- Chicken tenderloins cut into 1” pieces
- Beef tenderloin cut into 1/2” cubes
- Shrimp and Scallops

Thinly sliced cheeses:

- Brie
- Camembert
- Oka
- Cheddar
- Cambezola

Vegetables, blanched to al-dente, such as:

- Mushrooms
- Broccoli
- Cauliflower
- Asparagus

Here are two excellent recipes for dipping sauces for your meats and vegetables:

Pimento Sauce

3/4 cups mayonnaise
1/4 cup sour cream
2 tablespoons tomato sauce
1/2 cup canned pimentos or 1 red bell pepper, roasted with skin removed
Salt and pepper, to taste

Blend all ingredients in a blender. Season to taste. Serve chilled.

Cucumber Garlic Sauce

1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup plain yogurt
1/2 cup sour cream
2 gloves of garlic, finely chopped
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cucumber, peeled and finely chopped
1 tablespoon of finely chopped chives or green onion
1 teaspoon finely chopped parsley
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
fresh ground pepper

Mix well all ingredients. Serve chilled.

Posted in: cooking, eating, entertaining, fondue, food, grilling, raclette, recipes, swiss, switzerland | 0 komentar | |

Mongolian Hot Pot - More Uses For Your Fondue Pot

As much as you love your fondue pot, you can’t dunk bread cubes into hot melted cheese every night. On those nights when you need a break from cheese fondue, why not use the fondue pot for something else. Mongolian Hot Pot is a great meal that can be cooked in an electric fondue pot.

It is said that Mongolian Hot Pot was originated by the ancient Mongols who would cook their food in boiling water. They would season the water with the dry spices that they carried along with them on their many journeys and battles. Those Mongols probably would not recognize this Mongolian Hot Pot recipe but it's easy to make and delicious.

To make Mongolian Hot Pot you'll need a to fill your fondue pot with broth. Usually beef broth is used but you can substitute chicken or other broths for variety. Using your fondue forks you skewer meats and vegetables and cook them right at the table. Like fondue, this is a great meal for small dinner parties. All the of preparations such as cleaning and cutting the vegetables and meat into bite sized pieces, can be done before hand.

You'll need at least three dipping sauces to offer your guests some variety. Any less than that will become monotonous.

The vegetables and meat add flavor the broth while cooking in it. At the end of your meal you can add noodles or rice and serve it to your guests in a bowl. This after dinner soup is a special treat that your guests will remember and look forward to at future dinner parties.

Mongolian Hot Pot Recipe

Broth:
5 cups Beef Broth
2 Green Onions (chopped)
2 Garlic Cloves (minced)
About 5 Shiitake Mushrooms (chopped)
2 tablespoons Cilantro (chopped)
2 tablespoons Ginger Root (minced)
2 tablespoons Soy Sauce

Vegetable Platter:
8 Bok Choy leaves (cut into strips)
2 ounce Spinach leaves (cut into strips)
1 – 8 ounce Can Bamboo Shoots (drained)
2 Green Onions (chopped)
1 cup Broccoli Florets
4 ounce Egg Noodles (cooked)

Meat Platter
1 pound Beef Tenderloin (sliced into thin strips)

Arrange vegetable platter before guests arrive
Bring Beef Broth to a boil
Add Green Onions, Garlic, Mushrooms, Cilantro, Ginger and Soy Sauce Simmer for 15 minutes
Spear beef strips with fondue forks and cook in broth for 3-5 minutes
Spear vegetable strips and cook until tender
Dip cooked beef and vegetables into desired sauces

When all the meat has been eaten:
Add cooked Egg Noodles to broth
Add remaining vegetables to broth
Simmer for about 5 minutes
Serve portion to each guest in a bowl

Dipping Sauce Recipes

Sesame Sauce
2 tablespoons White Sesame Seeds
1/3 cup Soy Sauce
2 tablespoons Green Onion (chopped)
1 tablespoon Cider Vinegar
2 teaspoons Ginger (finely chopped)
1 teaspoon Water

Brown Sesame Seeds in frying pan or skillet
Chop Browned Seeds and a few drops of soy in food processor on high
Add rest of the ingredients and mix

Soy Wasabi Sauce
2 ounce Soy Sauce
2 tablespoons Wasabi

Mix until smooth

Spicy Oriental Sauce
2 tablespoons Soy Sauce
1.5 tablespoons Lemon Juice
2 Green Chili Peppers (chopped)
1 clove Garlic
2 teaspoon Sesame Oil

Add all ingredients and mix

Posted in: fondue, Mongolian Hot Pot | 0 komentar | |

Fondue History

Truly epic, fondue history starts with a recipe in Homer's Iliad (Song XI). Doesn't it stand to reason that the mixture described of Pramnos wine, grated goat's cheese and white flour was a fondue?

Well, whether that's what Homer was describing or not, fondue history states that the warm cheese dish originated in Switzerland but more specifically in the Canton of Neuchatel.

According to history experts, fondue consists of at least two varieties of cheeses that are melted with wine and a bit of flour. It's served communally out of pot called a "caquelon". Long forks are used by each guest to spear a cube of bread then the bread is dipped into the cheese and eaten.

How did cheese fondue get started?
?Well, before we get into the nitty gritty of cheese fondue, let's back up for a second. The word fondue is a derivative of the French word, fondre, which means "to melt". However, this is only a part of how the word fondue is used today.

In doing my research of fondue history,"fondue" has a much broader meaning. It refers to foods that are dunked, heated, or cooked in sauce, oil, or broth in a fondue (or similar) pot.

We know now, of course, that the Swiss take credit for the neighborly cuisine. They created it out of necessity, not because someone with too much time on their hands came up with a great idea for eating together!

Before the invention of the refrigerator, cheese and bread were made in the summer and fall to last through the winter. Both became extremely hard and inedible in that state. The bread became so much like concrete that it literally had to be chopped with an ax!

The Swiss realized that if hard-as-rock cheese was heated with wine over a fire, it softened and became deliciously edible. Bread that was too dried out to eat by itself, became soft and pliable when dunked in the melted cheese.

Once a necessity, the cooking method of fondue became a social custom of making the best of the long, cold Swiss winters by huddling around the fire with friends or family with a large pot of cheese and some hard bread. It's a tradition that has stood the years and travelled across the continents.

Fondue history states that the cooking method of fondue dates back to the 18th century when both cheese and wine were important industries in Switzerland. The simple-to-prepare meal used ingredients that were found in most average homes.

Most recipes we see for "traditional" Swiss style fondue are a combination of two cheeses used, Gruyere and Emmenthaler. They are combined because either cheese alone would make for a mixture that was too sharp or too bland.

Most recipes call for the cheeses to be melted in a dry white wine. This helps to keep the cheese from the direct heat as it melts, as well as to add flavor. Kirsch (a clear cherry brandy) was added if the cheese itself was too young to produce the desired tartness. Adding garlic gives the flavoring a good mellow taste, while the flour or cornstarch assists in keeping the cheese from separating.

Here's a delicious and easy recipe for traditional Swiss Fondue:

What you'll need:

- 2 cups shredded process Swiss cheese (1/2 lb unshredded)

- 1 1/2 Tbsp cornstarch

- 1/4 tsp salt

- 1/8 tsp dry mustard

- 1/8 tsp nutmeg

- 1/8 tsp pepper

- 1 cup buttermilk

- 1 clove garlic

- Dry white table wine

- Cooked ham cubes

- Toast triangles

Serve this version of Swiss fondue with ham cubes and toast triangles that are made ahead for swirling in the cheese mixture. You can also use fresh fruits such as apple and pear slices.

Start by tossing the cheese with cornstarch, salt, dry mustard, nutmeg, and pepper. Heat the buttermilk with the garlic in a double boiler or over hot water in the fondue pot. When thoroughly heated, remove the garlic and add the cheese mixture. Stir it until the cheese melts and is blending smoothly.

Heat the wine up a little and add gradually to the mixture, 2 Tbsp at a time. This keeps the fondue at a dipping consistency. Serve your guest and make sure each has a fondue fork to use with the ham cubes and fruit. Once you swirl the ham in the cheese mixture, place it on top of the toast triangle and eat until you can eat no more. Delicious!

Important: Feel free to republish this article on your website. However, you are not allowed to modify any part of its content and all links should be kept active.

For more great info on Fondue and other types of appetizers and appetizer meals, visit Easy Appetizer Recipes at http://www.easy-appetizer-recipes.com.

Culinary Schools

North America Gets Cheesy with Raclette Grills

Mongolian Hot Pot - More Uses For Your Fondue Pot

Fondue History

Popular Posts

Tag