Can Leftover Fondue be Reheated Successfully?

IIRC, i've not had luck trying to reheat it( from chilled) over heat. I seem to remember the fat separating out. Has anyone tried putting it on bread in a low temp oven?Will it get silky melty? (I make my fondue w/ gruyere, white wine, kirsch, flour.) Thx much

LeBec Fin
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14 Comments

A C.
A C. January 17, 2016
So happy you enjoyed your sweet creamy white victory! Haha
 
LeBec F.
LeBec F. January 21, 2016
matt, i gotta tell you, you saved my as......er, fondue, again, tonight. I had decided to try a variation, using cornstarch instead of flour (which had worked perfectly well the last 30 years...) and the whole darn thing did..... not...... work. wasn't creamy; didn't come together like satin, phoooey. So first i added flour, and then, ta da, chef matt's secret fondue- saver. Darned if that heavy cream didn't just bring it all to the finish line in admirable form! So thanks again, matt. Another saved pot, another happy tummy.
 
William F.
William F. January 15, 2016
I use a double booked and it always seems to work out fine.
 
A C.
A C. January 15, 2016
Thank you so much for asking, I'm always happy to learn and or help! You're more than welcome to see more recipes and plating videos on my Instagram feed too !
 
LeBec F.
LeBec F. January 16, 2016
o.k. chef matt, you hot ticket you! i've been cooking all day and night, and had neglected to have any dinner for myself .......then, matt to the rescue! What i did:
--I had 1/2 cup of leftover fondue; I left it on counter all day , and tonight I put it in a small bowl, poured in 25-30% of its eye-balled volume- in heavy cream. Stirred, covered, nuked on low a few minutes, whisked w/ a fork, added a spoon of kirsch and heated again. VOILA!
My creamy dreamy fondue snack- just enough to let me fall asleep w/o gnawing hunger pangs! Thx matt, you're a champ :-}
 
A C.
A C. January 14, 2016
So to be clear. You want to put your leftover fondue in the sauce pan or pot depending on how much you have left. And pour in cream just halfway. As cooks we eyeball everything haha. You want enough cream just to loosen it up so you can heat it back to life. If you'd like its also possible to use water, but it's just not as creamy and delicious. Trust me I do this every single day.
 
LeBec F.
LeBec F. January 15, 2016
NOW i get it, matt; thanks! invaluable! (I hope Amanda H. or Merrill sees your post; it would be a great addition to their Fondue video feature from some time in the past.)
 
A C.
A C. January 14, 2016
This is definitely ingrained into my skull. I do this every single day at work. Start your fondue with some heavy cream at a low heat and whisk frequently. I'd use about 30% heavy cream to fondue for this. It will not break and always comes out silky smooth.

I cook for Tom Douglas in Seattle and Instagram
 
LeBec F.
LeBec F. January 14, 2016
this is a greattrick to know. have never seen it before. Just to be clear, are you saying that with my recipe: 14 ou/5 cups greated cheese; 1 1/2 c. wine, that i should start my fondue by heating 2.0 cups cream with the wine and then the cheese? that seems like an awful lot.
 
boulangere
boulangere January 14, 2016
Adding a bit of warm cream will usually resuscitate broken emulsions.
 
LeBec F.
LeBec F. January 14, 2016
thx nancy; it was fun to read the readers reviws on that link. I always get a kick when one person says "this cannot be________"
and the very next person says "YES, this can be ______" ! One reviewer uses her leftover fondue in omelets. Anyway, i'll try cornstarch next time; i've been putting cornstarch in alot of things (my polvorones, my croquetas de atun) in place of flour, though I simultaneously feel conflicted, after being very affected by seeing that documentary about Corn overtaking the world (it's in EVERYthing) via Monsanto.......
I can't imagine using only 2 tsp. kirsch for 16 ou. cheese, but, aside from that, the linked recipe you provided- was esp. valuable for all the Swiss cooks' thumbs up! thx,nanc.
 
Nancy
Nancy January 14, 2016
Glad the article was some help. Mostly linked it bc of the Swiss cooks' thumbs-up. Agree whole-heartedly with you about corn (maybe try arrowroot or potato starch instead) and too little Kirsch (add more).
 
702551
702551 January 14, 2016
Based on my own personal experience with reheating cooked cheese dishes, generally speaking I don't think cheese responds well to reheating.

This explains why dishes with cooked cheese are usually intended to be fully consumed at the original serving time.

If cheese did respond well to reheating, there would be a plethora of dishes that could be prepared in advance or would have copious notes saying, "oh, this was just as good/even better then next day." But those don't exist.

I suggest you be very deliberate about the portion size, taking into account the appetite/interest of the specific guests at your dinner table. Better to finish up the fondue and accompany with another dish that can handled as leftovers more gracefully.
 
Nancy
Nancy January 14, 2016
I remember reheating fondue and NOT getting the silky melty texture again but it was so good I hated to throw it out.
Two ideas - put it into some sort of vegetable or pasta casserole, where separation, if it occurs, won't matter so much.
Try making it with cornstarch instead of flour, as this Epicurious recipe (with lots of readers testing and liking) claims helps prevent separation.
http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/cheese-fondue-231492
 
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