Easy Cheese Fondue Recipe (2024)

This easy cheese fondue recipe is a favorite retro recipe!

Swiss and Gruyere cheeses are melted together with a splash of kirsch for a deliciously dippable appetizer.

Perfect for New Year’s Eve, Christmas, or really, any type of gathering!

Easy Cheese Fondue Recipe (1)

Easy Cheesy Fondue!

  • Party Pleaser: Cheese fondue is a hit at gatherings, bringing everyone together around a pot of melty, gooey goodness.
  • Easy to Make: You don’t need to be a gourmet chef to master this delicious dish.
  • Prep-Ahead: Easily prepare it up to 2 days in advance and reheat for smooth, creamy perfection.
  • Equipment-Friendly: No fondue pot? Use a stovetop, ceramic bowl, or mini Crockpot.

Ingredients for Cheese Fondue

Cheese – The most popular cheese for fondue is gruyère cheese which is mild while the addition of Swiss cheese adds a bold flavor. You can vary the cheese mixture based on what you have, gouda or fontina are other favorites!

Kirsch – Kirsch is a cherry brandy and is a traditional ingredient in cheese fondue. It can be replaced with sherry or a dry white wine if you don’t have any. For non-alcoholic cheese fondue, use any clear fruit juice like apple cider, apple juice, or even lemon juice.

Cornstarch – A little corn starch helps to thicken the fondue and keeps the cheese from clumping.

PRO TIP: Shred blocks of cheese instead of using pre-shredded which contains additives and prevents the fondue from melting properly.

Easy Cheese Fondue Recipe (2)

How to Make Cheese Fondue

This recipe can’t get any easier!

  1. Gently toss the shredded cheese with with the cornstarch per the recipe below.
  2. Rub the inside of a saucepan with garlic. Add the wine and simmer.
  3. Slowly stir in the cheese, whisking until melted. Season and serve!
Easy Cheese Fondue Recipe (3)

Delicious Dippers for Fondue

  • Bread Cubes: chunks of French or sourdough bread, soft breadsticks, garlic crostini rounds
  • Chips: tortilla chips, pretzels or pretzel sticks
  • Vegetables: roasted broccoli or cauliflower florets, strips of bell pepper, carrot, or whole (cooked) baby red potatoes or fingerlings.
  • Fruit:cubed apples, seedless grapes, dried fruit, pineapple slices
  • Meat: meatballs, grilled steak, chicken, shrimp

Leftovers

Reheat cheese fondue in the microwave and loosen it up by adding a little milk and a dash of salt for flavor. Freeze cheese fondue in zippered bags and reheat it with milk and extra cheese to emulsify it again.

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Easy Cheese Fondue Recipe

A rich combination of Swiss and Gruyere cheeses melted into white wine, this is the perfect dish to bring guests together!

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Easy Cheese Fondue Recipe (10)

Servings 12 servings

Easy Cheese Fondue Recipe (11)

Author Holly Nilsson

Equipment

Ingredients

  • 1 clove whole garlic
  • 1 cup dry white wine
  • 8 ounces Swiss cheese or Emmental, shredded
  • 4 ounces Gruyere cheese shredded
  • 1 tablespoon cornstarch
  • 1 tablespoon kirsch optional but delicious, or sherry
  • teaspoon nutmeg
  • pinch of pepper
  • 1 loaf french bread for dipping

Instructions

  • Cut the garlic clove in half and rub the cut side inside the saucepan. Discard the clove (or save it for another use).

  • Add the wine to the saucepan and bring it to a simmer over medium heat, let simmer for 1 minute.

  • In a bowl, gently toss all shredded cheeses with cornstarch. Set aside.

  • Reduce heat to low and add cheese, a few tablespoons at a time gently stirring until melted before adding more. This should be done very slowly.

  • Once melted, stir in kirsh, nutmeg, and pepper.

  • Serve warm with bread for dipping.

Notes

Swap out half of the cheeses for mild cheddar to create a milder flavor.

Brie is another great creamy addition to fondue.

Nutrition Information

Calories: 140 | Carbohydrates: 3g | Protein: 8g | Fat: 8g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Cholesterol: 28mg | Sodium: 71mg | Potassium: 44mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 256IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 253mg | Iron: 1mg

Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.

Easy Cheese Fondue Recipe (13) Course Appetizer, Dip, Party Food

Easy Cheese Fondue Recipe (14) Cuisine American

© SpendWithPennies.com. Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited. Please view my photo use policy here.

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Easy Cheese Fondue Recipe (17)
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About the author

Holly is a wine and cheese lover, recipe creator, shopping enthusiast and self appointed foodie. Her greatest passion is creating in the kitchen and making deliciously comforting recipes for the everyday home cook!
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Easy Cheese Fondue Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What is the best melting cheese for fondue? ›

The best cheese for fondue is a buttery, creamy cheese that melts smoothly. The best all-around cheeses for fondue are fontina, Gruyère, and gouda. If you aren't sure what to pick, use even amounts of these three.

How much cheese per person for fondue? ›

How Much Cheese Per Person for Fondue? Plan to purchase around eight ounces of cheese per person when serving fondue. An intimate date night meal for two would require about a pound of cheese, while a meal for four would require two pounds, a dinner party with eight guests would need four pounds, and so on.

How do you keep cheese fondue from splitting? ›

While the wine is heating, take your grated cheese (a food processor with the grating blade attached makes quick work of it), and toss it with cornstarch to coat. The cornstarch is yet more insurance to keep the fondue from breaking, coating the proteins and fat and preventing them from coalescing.

What type of cheese melts the easiest? ›

What is the best melting cheese? Cheeses with more moisture and lower melting points - cheddar is one of the most popular choices, but Swiss and Gruyère are also terrific options. Which melts better, mild or sharp cheddar? Mild cheddar melts more smoothly than sharper (more aged) cheddar.

Which two cheeses melt the best? ›

Alternatives: Monterey Jack and colby are also among the best cheeses for melting.

How much cheese do I need for 25 guests? ›

A good rule of thumb is 1 ounce of each cheese for every guest and about five types of cheese. For a party in which cheese is the main event, plan on buying 3 pounds for eight people, 6 pounds for 16 people, or 9 pounds for 24 people. If cheese is one of many items being served, plan on buying 3 to 4 ounces per person.

How many pounds of cheese do I need for 20 people? ›

CHEESE CALCULATOR
# of PeopleMain Meal6 oz. per personLuncheon4 oz. per person
52 lbs1.25 lbs
103.75 lbs2.5 lbs
207.5 lbs5 lbs
3011.25 lbs7.5 lbs
7 more rows

What is the best fuel for cheese fondue? ›

Usually fondue fuel is methyl hydrate, also known as methanol, methyl alcohol, or wood alcohol. Most fondue burners have a fiberglass batting inside them to soak the alcohol up and act like a wick, you do not want to overfill the burner because you do not want to spill burning alcohol and start a fire.

What vegetables are good in fondue? ›

Vegetables such as asparagus, broccoli, bell peppers, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, carrots, and zucchini are delicious if roasted first. Or steam some green beans, pearl onions, and radishes, or a variety of baby potatoes like Yukon Gold, fingerling, red, or purple.

What is traditionally served with cheese fondue? ›

1. Bread. Bread is an excellent choice for cheese fondue because it soaks up the warm cheese and creamy flavors, creating a delicious combination. There are so many options to choose from for this classic side, such as French baguettes, sourdough, breadsticks, bagels, croutons or pretzels.

Why add flour to cheese fondue? ›

When making cheese fondue, always use a thickener. Cheese should be shredded and tossed with flour or cornstarch to aid in thickening and to improve the viscosity of the fondue. A good rule of thumb is to use one tablespoon of flour or cornstarch per pound of cheese.

Why is my cheese not melting in fondue? ›

If the fondue has been over-cooked and the cheese is turning into hard lumps then adding a teaspoon or two of lemon juice should help to restore the texture. If the cheese has split and looks greasy but not lumpy then adding extra cornflour (cornstarch) will help to re-emulsify the mixture.

Can you make cheese fondue ahead of time and reheat? ›

This beloved dish, once thought of as cold weather fare for sharing, is transformed into a decadent make-ahead treat for one. Processing the fondue in a blender is an optional step, but does help ensure a smooth texture upon re-heating. Reheating and serving in coffee mugs helps retain the fondue's heat.

What is the best ready made cheese fondue? ›

When it comes to the best cheese fondue, there is one brand you can trust: Emmi. Both of the best fondue packets we found are made by them and, frankly, they aren't terribly different. You can't go wrong with either, but we found Swiss Knight (see #1) to be just a little bit smoother than the Emmi Original Fondue.

Does mild or sharp cheese melt better? ›

Can I Use Mild and Sharp Cheddars Interchangeably in Recipes? Mild cheddar melts more smoothly than sharper (older) cheddars, so swapping a sharper cheese in a recipe that calls for mild could result in a greasy, curdled mess.

Is Monterey Jack a good melting cheese? ›

Monterey Jack is the cheese goddess of melting. With a high fat and moisture content, this semi-hard American cheese will melt on cue for baked pasta, grilled cheese sandwiches, and any quesadilla it lays its eyes on.

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