I have always wanted to. Last weekend at a thrift shop I found a book on Fondue for .10. Apparently there are different pots depending on what you put in them. I've only noticed the little ones with the candles. I guess those are used for chocolate since cheese and oil need to be hotter.
So, since Valentine's Day is coming, I told hubby I wanted to eat at The Melting Pot, I have never been. However, hubby won dinner and tickets to see George Strait and Martina McBride this Friday, so that's what we are doing instead. We will still check out The Melting Pot, maybe next month for my bday.
Since Vday is on a Tuesday and we have the kids, I decided to look for a fondue pot and surprise the kids with chocolate fondue after dinner on the 14th. I have seen tons of pots at Goodwill so last week I went looking and at my second store, found a BRAND NEW, UNOPENED box of Chocolate XPress for $4 (they are $29 online!!!). Its not really a fondue pot, but a double boiler that melts chocolate and comes with molds so you can make your own candies...bonus! But, you can also dip and eat like you can with fondue, so that's what we are doing to do. I didn't want to pay full price in case we end up not really liking it so I'm happy I found it!
So, do you fondue?
Cheryl, I wish I could come out! Thanks for the info, now I know who to message when I need info and ideas. I think we will venture out to do the cheese and meat. I will have to look for an electric pot. I don't want to mess with the flame ones.
I was wondering what kind of different things people dip...
OH, and 2-4 hours at the Melting Pot???!!! I had no idea it could take that long! We will definately have to go on a weekend we don't have the kids.
i love the melting pot I want to try that at home!
Desert suggestions that I loved at the melting pot
1. marshmallows rolled in graham crackers
2. fruit
3. brownies
4. cheescake
yummmmm oh if you're crafty they sometimes put in a little alcohol and light it on fire
Yes.
I love chocolate. Husband loved cheese. Imagine chocolate covered cheese a happy compromise and not too bad depending on the type of cheese.
Enjoy but not too much. ;-)
I go to the melting pot on occasion.......they have a happy hour which is actually fairly inexpensive. I really need to find a pot and a recipe for cheese........im not big on chocolate, but i love cheese. :)
I LOVE The Melting Pot. My husband and I go a few times a year. It does take a few hours which is another reason why we like it because it's more of an experience compared to any other restaurant. I have thought about doing it at home, I'm sure I will at some point.
For chocolate you can dip marshmallows, oreo cookies, graham crackers, strawberries, brownies. Do some searching online. Have fun!!! Try the restaurant sometime, I don't think you will be dissapointed!
I think it's fun :)
We love to fondue. But only do the choc and all the goodies. Have been to the melting pot one time and it was great....but plan for a nice 2-4 hour sitting depending what you get. I don't own stuff for it, but my friend has a choc fountain that has been passed around.........YUMMY
We did it last weekend for my birthday.
I wouldn't do it again with four kids and 10 adults. It's MUCH better with smaller groups. It was messy but we all loved it. Loved the variety of things we could cook but the CONSTANT worry about the hot oil made me nervous.
YES we fondue.
Love it.
We did that when I was a kid too.
I got a fondue pot from Amazon.
Electric.
This is the one I have:
http://www.amazon.com/Oster-Fondue-Pot-FPSTFN7700-022/dp/...
And you can use it for anything.
I got a Fondue book from Barnes and Noble too.
A bargain book.
Tons of recipes in it.
We don't do chocolate, but use it for cheese fondues. Or hot pot type fondues, with broth etc.
Many cultures use a "fondue" type pot for cooking many types of foods.
There are so many kinds of recipes.
I highly suggest, you get a Fondue cookbook.
It will really get your creativity with it, going.
Fondues are real easy.
Fun
Good
Tasty
My kids love it as well.
And per our Fondue pot and cooking, no, it does not take hours.
What we usually do is, use cheese in ours. Using Gruyere/Emmental cheeses, melting that together, you can add a tad bit of white wine, and then we cut into chunks some French bread, and have ham and boiled potatoes on the side. Really good and so simple. So simple.
When you melt cheese in the fondue pot, you need to cut it up into chunks first. So it melts better. And stir as it melts.
We do fondue with three pots. One for oil in which we dip all kinds of veggies and meats, one for cheese, and one for chocolate. We have used almost any type of food you can think of, any veggie out there, meats ranging from basic chicken and steak to pork, shrimp, and (once) alligator meat. My hubby's family has been doing it since he was young at Christmas, and we have kept up the tradition. Be sure to have some side dishes, we usually do rice or chips and dip, as it is a LONG process meal.
We love fondue, it is usually the family does when we get together around New Years.
I have an excellent recipe book for mostly the chocolate/cheeses, but also for the tempura for dipping the meats and such.
You will have fun at the Melting Pot (very pricey though!!) and learn how to do it... but expect to come home smelling very smokey.
We love to fondue. We have several pots (and a large family). We have such wonderful memories of fonduing with the kids and friends. I have found a great cookbook for fondue called The Fondue Bible. Great recipes!
I have 3 fondue pots!! When are you coming to DC?! I have two electric ones and one sterno one. I don't like the sterno one as much...while I have control over the heat - the sterno does go out...urgh...
I have three pots for:
appetizer - cheese!!
main course - broth
dessert - chocolate
There are LOTS of recipes to try. For appetizers I use french bread and apples (green/Granny Smith work best because they are firm and meaty) dipped in swiss cheese.
For main course I use a vegetable broth for chicken, beef and shrimp.
For dessert - I use chocolate chips with evaporated milk...sometimes I use other types of milk. with bananas, strawberries, apples, rice krispy treats and marshmallows!!
So when you coming out?!?!?
LOVE to fondue!
Usually just my hubby and I, or another couple. Not so much with the kids.
For the meats: I usually heat the oil or broth on the stove first, then move to the flame. I do beef, chicken, pork, lamb and then have about 4-5 dipping sauces around. Makes a great slow dinner- lots of wine and talking!
Good luck and lots of good times!
Back in the day (1960's) when I was a little girl.. they were really popular. .. We used to fondue.. It is a lot of prep and clean up..
Everything is a little bite then you wait for the next bite. I find that we place a lot of the forks in there waiting for them to cook.. We end up eating a lot of bread with the cheese and lots of raw veggies with melted cheese becaue the broth takes a while to cook the meat.
The Melting Pot is the way to go. Go online and look at the prices so you do not freak out..
More dipping items:
pretzels, sticks and twists
my kids love to dip grilled pineapple
granola bites
Hi Mz Kitty
I don't fondue, per say, but we do chocolate dip. Every Valentines I have my husbands grandkids come over and they make their own tray of chocolate dipped goodies.
I got a chocolate melting pot from Walmart. I melt the chocolate then give each child a bowl of melted chocolate, a bowl of cut up fruit, vanilla wafers, and pretzel sticks. I let them go at it. They have a blast. Of course they eat 90% while they are doing it. But that's the fun of it. I take pics of all the cute chocolate faces. We have been doing this for about 4 yrs.
I am looking forward to it this year. Since my hubby passed my time with his grandkids has been sporadic. I miss them. This is my special tradition.
I hope you have fun with your Fondue pot!! It is great family fun!
Blessings
D.
We eat fondue all the time. I don't have a fondue pot so we just use our rice cooker. We heat up the cheese in a saucepan and just pour it into the ricecooker to keep it warm. It works really well and I don't have to clutter up the kitchen with another piece of equipment. Small crockpots would work also.
We do fondue with 2 electric pots (which were not very expensive), but not often as it's kind of a pain in the prep-work department. We don't do the chocolate/cheese variety, but rather the hot-oil-to-cook-your-meats-&-veggies variety, lol. My daughter especially loves it & asks us to do it on a regular basis, but like I said, it's kind of a pain & certainly a little bit pricey.
I make a couple of dipping sauces as well as a tempura batter for everyone to use on whatever they'd like. Here's what I cut up into bite-sized pieces & have ready to go in separate bowls for everyone to choose from:
boneless chicken
marinated steak
button mushrooms
zucchini
potatoes
peeled & deveined shrimp
string cheese cut in half (if you freeze it first, & dip it in the batter, it doesn't ooze all over the pot)
I feel like I'm definitely forgetting at least a couple of things. It is definitely fun, just creates a lot of dishes, but the kids love it.
Updated
We do fondue with 2 electric pots (which were not very expensive), but not often as it's kind of a pain in the prep-work department. We don't do the chocolate/cheese variety, but rather the hot-oil-to-cook-your-meats-&-veggies variety, lol. My daughter especially loves it & asks us to do it on a regular basis, but like I said, it's kind of a pain & certainly a little bit pricey.
I make a couple of dipping sauces as well as a tempura batter for everyone to use on whatever they'd like. Here's what I cut up into bite-sized pieces & have ready to go in separate bowls for everyone to choose from:
boneless chicken
marinated steak
button mushrooms
zucchini
potatoes
peeled & deveined shrimp
string cheese cut in half (if you freeze it first, & dip it in the batter, it doesn't ooze all over the pot)
I feel like I'm definitely forgetting at least a couple of things. It is definitely fun, just creates a lot of dishes, but the kids love it.
