Fondue

Fondue (/ˈfɒndjuː/ or /ˈfɒnduː/;French pronunciation: ​[fɔ̃dy]) is a Swiss, Italian, and French dish of melted cheese served in a communal pot (caquelon or fondue pot) over a chafing stand (réchaud) heated with a candle or spirit lamp, and eaten by dipping bread into the cheese using long-stemmed forks. It was promoted as a Swiss national dish by the Swiss Cheese Union (Schweizerische Käseunion) in the 1930s, and was popularized in North America in the 1960s.

Since the 1950s, the name "fondue" has been generalized to other dishes in which a food is dipped into a communal pot of liquid kept hot in a fondue pot: chocolate fondue, in which pieces of fruit are dipped into a melted chocolate mixture, and fondue bourguignonne, in which pieces of meat are cooked in hot oil.

Etymology

The word fondue is the feminine passive past participle of the French verb fondre ("to melt") used as a noun. It is first attested in French in 1735, in Vincent la Chapelle's Cuisinier moderne, and in English in 1878.