Cheese fondue is an icon of Swiss cuisine and a dinner party staple. While it may seem like 

a simple dish, getting the texture right can be a challenge for optimal mouthfeel, dipping and 

flavor  release.  This  requires  the  perfect  balance  of  cheese,  wine  and  starch.  Now, 

researchers reporting in ACS Omega reveal how to use these key ingredients to produce 

deliciously melted fondue.

Once a fad of the 1970s, fondue has made a resurgence in recent years. And on a cold 

winter night, there's nothing better than dipping a piece of bread into warm, gooey cheese. 

But that's only part of the picture. Traditional versions also include wine and seasonings, as 

well as starch for cohesion. Chemically speaking, fondue is a multiphase system of colloids 

that require just the right inputs to achieve cheesy perfection. One wrong move could leave 

the preparer with an unappetizing bowl of separated cheese solids and oils. So, to gain further insight into the flow of fondue, Pascal Bertsch, Laura Savorani and Peter Fischer 

wanted to assess the effect of starch and wine on the dish.

The researchers started with equal amounts of two traditional fondue cheeses—Gruyère 

and Vacherin—in water. The addition of a potato starch slurry prevented irreversible 

separation of the dish. To mimic the effects of wine, they added a mixture of water and 

ethanol. This decreased the viscosity of the fondue, which is required for optimal mouthfeel 

and dipping coverage. They also incorporated acid to study the effect of lowering the pH, and 

this generally had the effect of lowering the fondue's viscosity. The researchers also explored 

alternative thickening agents. Less carrageenan and xanthan gum were required compared 

to the amount of potato starchneeded, but it was carrageenan that provided the creamiest 

results. Overall, the study shows that a few minor tweaks can result in cheesy perfection 

every time the fondue pot is brought out.