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The cheese fondue is one of the most typical Swiss dishes. Being a good Swiss, I had to develop a 100% vegan alternative. It took me a long time and a lot of experimenting to create a vegan fondue, with the right consistency and taste. Finally, I succeeded.
This fondue is super creamy and cheesy. Serve it with sourdough bread cubes and it's a guaranteed hit!
How to make vegan fondue
Before you start making the vegan fondue, I recommend you read this blog thoroughly. The preparation of the fondue is simple, but there are a few details you need to pay attention to.
Ingredients
To make a vegan fondue, you'll need the following 11 ingredients. Many of them you will already find on your kitchen shelf:
- potatoes
- cashews
- probiotic cultures or soy yogurts
- Soy milk
- white wine
- white wine vinegar
- nutritional yeast
- paprika powder
- tapioca starch
- garlic
- salt & pepper
How to replace cheese
Now that you've seen the ingredients list, you're probably wondering how we replace the cheese, right? The answer is simple: with fermented cashews-cream-cheese.
The cream-cheese will help us make an extra creamy and cheesy vegan fondue. And don't panic, I know it sounds like a lot of work, but it will only take you 15 minutes to make the cream-cheese!
Fermented Cashews-Cream-Cheese
As I just explained, cashew cream cheese is the base for our vegan fondue, but how do we prepare it?
First, we need to blend the cashews with water to a lump-free cream. Then we add nutritional yeast, salt and the probiotic cultures.
The probiotic cultures will fasten the fermentation of the cheese and give it a sharp/sour cheesy taste. Be aware that when you add cultures to the cream, it's best for it to be at room temperature because probiotic cultures die at 130° F (50 °C).
Once the cream cheese is ready, we put it in a glass container, cover it with foil and let it ferment for 24 hours at room temperature. After that, the cheese will have a slightly sour smell and an airy consistency. The longer the cheese ferments the sharper it becomes.
Probiotic cultures: where to buy & how to replace
To help the fermentation of the cashew-cheese, it's useful to use probiotic cultures. These will fasten the process and develop a delicious sharp taste.
You can find probiotic cultures -in form of powder or capsules (both work well)- in any pharmacy or health food store. These are the same cultures used to make yogurt.
If you can't find them, you can replace them with 2 tablespoons of soy yogurt (unsweetened!).
Tapioca starch: where to buy & how to replace
Once the cashew cheese is ready, we can proceed to the second part of the recipe, which consists in blending the cream-cheese with the rest of the ingredients until smooth.
One of the most important ingredients that we add in this part is tapioca starch. In fact, it's this starch that gives the fondue its cheesy texture.
You can find tapioca powder in any supermarket that sells Asian food. If you can't find it, you can also use the same amount of potato starch. The consistency just won't be as cheesy, but the taste will be just as delicious.
Fondue with/without alcohol
One of the most important ingredients for a fondue is white wine. However, if you prefer to avoid it, you can replace it with non-alcoholic cider/sour cider.
How to cook fondue
Once we have a perfectly smooth cream, we can cook it. We put the fondue in a caquelon and we slowly bring it to a boil, stirring constantly. The fondue is ready when the consistency is creamy and stretchy.
Caquelon
Fondue is usually served in a caquelon to keep the cheese constantly warm.
If you don't have a caquelon, you can also use a saucepan. In this case, however, the fondue tends to cool faster.
How to serve fondue
The great thing about fondue is that it can be eaten with different side dishes. The traditional version is served with cubes of bread.
In addition to the bread, I like to serve it with diced boiled potatoes, cornichons, and cooked vegetables (broccoli, cauliflower, carrots). Some people also like to serve it with fruits, such as sour apples, pears or pineapple.
These are just a few of the possible side dishes. If you need more inspiration, click here.
Fondue variations
With this recipe you'll prepare the vegan version of a traditional fondue. Still, there are many absolutely delicious variations you can try. These are my favorites:
- Truffle Fondue: Add 2 tablespoons of truffle oil to the fondue while it's cooking.
- Herbs Fondue: Add 2-3 tablespoons of finely chopped herbs (sage, chives, rosemary, thyme) to the fondue while it's cooking.
- Porcini fondue: Soak 80 g of porcini mushrooms for 10 minutes, then chop them finely and, while cooking, add them to the fondue.
- Chili fondue: Add 1 tablespoon of chili paste to the fondue during cooking.
- Wild garlic fondue: Add 2 tablespoons of finely chopped wild garlic to the fondue during cooking.
- Beer fondue: Replace the white wine with light beer.
Timing
For the preparation of this recipe you need two days. On the first day, you prepare the cashews cream cheese, which you let ferment for 24 hours. On the second day, you prepare the fondue.
I suggest that you follow this schedule:
- Day 1, 12:00: Prepare the cashew cream-cheese and let it ferment for 24 hours.
- Day 2, after 12:00: prepare the fondue.
Prepare fondue in advance
You can prepare fondue up to 2 days in advance and store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Fermentation continues, albeit slowly, which intensifies it's flavor.
How to store fondue
If you have leftover vegan fondue, don't throw it away. You can store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3-4 days. To reuse it, add a splash of soy milk and serve it as a topping for baked vegetables. It will be delicious!
Partyfood Vegan: over 70 sensational dishes for an unforgettable celebration
This recipe is part of my first cookbook "Partyfood Vegan: over 70 sensational dishes for an unforgettable celebration". Click here to preview the book and order a copy.
More Delicious Recipes
- How to Make The Best Vegan Shredded Chicken (Tiktok method)
- How to Make The Creamiest Almond Ricotta
- Extra Tasty Vegan Kabobs with Sweet Curry Marinade (Grill Recipe)
- Crispy & Flavorful Chickpea Cutlets
If You Try This Recipe...
Let me know! Leave a comment, rate it, and don’t forget to tag a photo #vegaliciosuly or #carlocao on Instagram. Cheers, friends!
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Equipment
- Strong blender
- Caquelon
Ingredients
- 250 g cashews raw ((9 oz))
- 2 tbsp nutritional yeast
- 130 ml water ((4½ fl oz))
- 1 tsp salt
- *1 tsp probiotic cultures
- 400 g potatoes peeled and cut into cubes ((14 oz))
- 400 g soy milk
- **2 tbsp tapioca starch
- 2 tbsp nutritional yeast
- 1 ½ tsp paprika powder
- 1 tbsp white wine vinegar
- 200 ml white wine ((6¾ fl oz))
- ***4 cloves of garlic
- salt and pepper to taste
- 800 g bread cut into cubes ((28 oz))
Instructions
- ****In a strong blender, blend cashews together with nutritional yeast, water and salt until perfectly smooth.
- Allow the mixture to cool briefly, then add probiotic cultures and mix shortly.
- Place mixture in a clean glass bowl, cover with plastic wrap and allow to ferment at room temperature for 24 hours.
- The next day, boil potatoes in boiling salted water for 15 minutes. Then rinse and put into a blender along with the remaining ingredients and the fermented cashew cheese. Blend until smooth and creamy.
- Pour the mixture into a caquelon and, stirring constantly, bring to a boil over medium heat.
- Season the fondue with salt and pepper and serve immediately with bread cubes or other desired side dishes.
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