A Swiss classic for cold winter dinners. Traditionally cooked in a “Caquelon” pot and served on a candle-heated stove to keep the cheese from re-solidifying. The original version dips bread into the cheese; we will be using tiny meatballs, which are extremely tasty but dangerously filling.
- ⏲️ Prep time: 10 min
- 🍳 Cook time: 30 min
- 🍽️ Servings: 4
- 🔪Tools: pan, pot/caquelon, candle stove to keep it warm, fondue forks (optional)
Ingredients
- 800g/1.7 lbs of Swiss cheese (preferably 50/50 mix of Gruyère and Emmentaler)
- 600g ground meat (preferably lean, maybe 80% or 90%)
- 4 dl/1.5 cups white wine (optional, you can replace it with water and a shot of vinegar)
- 1 garlic clove (optional but recommended; we won’t eat the clove)
- 1 shot of Kirsch (cherry brandy, optional)
- 1 tsp lemon juice
- 1-2 tbsp starch flour (optional to thicken; can be replaced by 0.5 tsp xanthan gum for less carbs)
- Nutmeg
- Pepper
Directions
- Roll all of your ground meat into balls of about 1.5 cm/0.5 inch size. You want them small so you fill up on cheese and not just on meat.
- Cook your meatballs in a pan to firm them up; you can opt to keep them mostly raw inside if you prefer, but they might fall apart later if they’re too undercooked. Completely raw might work too if you handle them delicately.
- Grab a fresh pot or your caquelon and rub it out with two halves of your garlic clove. Discard them after.
- Put cheese, starch (optional), wine (or replace with water and a splash of vinegar), and lemon juice in the pot and melt while stirring constantly.
- Season with a bit of pepper and nutmeg.
- Serve right away.
- Stick meatballs on a fondue fork and stir them in the fondue until thoroughly coated.
Notes:
- The meatballs do not require any spice or salt. The cheese will have enough taste.
- The combo of meatballs and cheese is very filling; do not underestimate it.
- Alternatively to meatballs, you can use any low-carb option that fits your diet. Here are some ideas:
- Crispy fried duck skin
- Mushrooms
- Pork rinds
- Low carb bread
- Sausage bits
- Cubed chicken
- Oysters
- Shrimps
- Pickles
- Olives
- Cauliflower florets