Classic Cheese Fondue {Alcohol-Free}
This is our family’s favorite classic cheese fondue recipe! Ooey, gooey, creamy and totally cheesy, it’s alcohol free and kid-friendly!
I am so, so, so (times 1,000) excited for today.
When I announce it is fondue night, my kids pretty much do cartwheels for 10 minutes straight.
It is one of our funnest and favorite family meals (and actually is one of the easier, quicker meals to put together; don’t let fondue intimidate you, it’s the simplest thing in the world).
Even though we eat dinner together 98.5% of the time, believe you me when I say that it isn’t always fun and giggles, as you can imagine. But fondue nights are totally and completely the best family dinner nights ever. We laugh and talk and really enjoy dinner together.
We’ve been doing the homemade fondue thing for years. But my modge-podge recipes have been less than stellar.
I’ve been trying to land on the perfect classic cheese fondue recipe for our family with that smooth and creamy and ultra-cheesy texture – and this is surely it.
Thanks to my friend, Kim, who shared her family’s amazing fondue (perfected by her husband who lived in Switzerland for a few years), I can honestly say I’ll never make another classic fondue recipe again; this one’s a keeper (all bets are off for how many variations of chocolate fondue I can come up with, though).
One of the reasons, fondue night manages to get us all rolling is because of this minor, little rule:
In our house, you better dip carefully because if your precious food ends up dropping into the fondue pot, your neighbor is going to get a kiss from your little lips.
Trust me, my boys don’t go around the house all huggy and kissy on a normal basis.
I’m pretty sure when they grow up, they’ll be able to say they got kisses from their siblings about the exact same number of times we ate fondue (which actually will account for quite a few smooches). I’m not entirely sure they’ll be willing to follow this rule when they are teenagers, but hey, 10 and under, and it’s still working for us.
It’s hilarious to see their reactions when they have to kiss each other on the cheek (usually consisting of “ooh, get it over quick, gross, yuck, gag!” while smiling the whole time, of course).
Back to the fondue though: this classic cheese fondue recipe is a dream. It’s creamy and cheesy and the texture is spot on. Just look how ooey and gooey it is.
And the cheese factor is through the roof.
Approximately .3 seconds after I snapped the picture below, one of the boys karate chopped through Jackson’s long cheesy monument with his fondue fork in order to have closer access to the fondue. You gotta act quickly in this house.
What to Dip in Fondue
We dip all sorts of glorious things in our fondue. Chicken sausages, steamed broccoli and other vegetables (like carrots and cauliflower), tender potatoes, lightly sauteed mushrooms, apples, and bread.
Lots and lots of bread. (I usually make this Rustic Crusty Bread and it’s so amazingly divine in fondue, it leaves me speechless.)
Fondue Pots
And can we stop for a second and talk about fondue pots? For years, I’ve used an electric Cuisinart pot. And…I hate to throw it under the bus and all, but I don’t really recommend it (although it does get pretty good reviews on Amazon, I must be picky).
When I bought it several years ago, I thought it would be better for our family because, you know, no real, live flame and all to entice five little kids to play and get burned with, plus you can make the fondue start to finish in the pot.
But the pot doesn’t heat evenly (meaning your fondue alternately simmers and then gets cold all while on the same setting) and the cord is super short and well, we just don’t love it (and rarely use it anymore)
My friend Kim has since given me this amazing Swissmar cast iron fondue pot (and I’ve loved it enough to gift it to several other people who love fondue as much as we do).
This classic cheese fondue can still be made start to finish in the pot and we use the gel to keep the flame going. I don’t know how I ever lived without it. It’s made fondue nights a thousand times better if that’s even possible.
Sidenote: Since I don’t cook with alcohol, I’ve always made non-alcoholic fondue recipes. They’ve been ok but not stellar until this amazing recipe. Whether or not you like to make fondue with wine, today’s recipe is perfect for our family (think: kid-friendly) and is really the best I’ve ever had! Since I haven’t subbed out the broth in the recipe for wine, I can’t give any tips, but there are numerous recipes online for more classic, wine-based recipes if you are looking for one like that.
One Year Ago: Refried Beans {Made in the Slow Cooker and Fat-Free}
Two Years Ago: Cheesecake Rice Pudding {Plus a Chocolate Version!}
Three Years Ago: Healthy Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
My Favorite Fondue Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 cups (228 g) lightly packed shredded Gruyere cheese
- 1 ½ cups (171 g) lightly packed shredded Swiss cheese
- 2 tablespoons (19 g) cornstarch
- 1 cup low-sodium good-quality chicken broth
- ⅛ teaspoon lemon juice (Important! Don't leave it out)
- 1 tablespoon finely minced or pressed garlic
- ¼ teaspoon ground black or white pepper
- ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
- Dash of paprika
Instructions
- Place both the shredded Gruyere and Swiss cheeses in a gallon-size resealable bag with the cornstarch and shake until evenly coated.
- In a stovetop-safe fondue pot (or in a regular saucepan or electric fondue pot), add the chicken broth, lemon juice, and garlic and bring to a simmer. Reduce the heat to medium-low. Add the cheese, a small handful at a time, stirring constantly, but not briskly. It works best to use a wooden spoon and and stir in an S-shaped motion, making sure to scrape the bottom of the pot so it doesn’t burn.
- Once the cheese is melted and begins to just barely simmer, add the remaining spices and move it immediately to the table on the fondue stand with the sterno flame below. It should be the consistency of warm honey. Add more or less cheese for perfect consistency and additional salt and pepper to taste if needed.
- Serve with your favorite fondue dippers: steamed broccoli and/or cauliflower, carrots, apples, chicken sausages, bread (and more bread!), lightly sauteed mushrooms, tender potatoes – the options are endless! Don’t forget if you drop your food into the fondue pot, lean over and give your neighbor a kiss!
Notes
Recommended Products
Recipe Source: adapted just very slightly from my friend Kim Blackham
Hi there! This was my first time attempting fondue. It was delicious but my consistency was not as ooey gooey as yours. I didn’t have a fondue pot so mine cooled down as we ate but even before pulling it off the heat i couldn’t seem to get it so ooey gooey. Maybe i needed to add more liquid, do you think?
Any advice is appreciated. My son loved it and I bought a ton of cheese so we will definitely make it again
Adding the cheese in small amounts and stirring until each addition is fully melted will help the consistency – but if you feel like you need a bit more liquid, you could try that, too. What type of cheese did you use?
Hi! Just wanted to say that your Cheese Fondue recipe is VERY Good!! Tonight my family and I had fondue for the first time ever, even for my husband and I. We had meats, breads, and veggies to choose from. The kids want to eat it again tomorrow.
The boys also decided that it would be cool to have cheese and chocolate fondue at their birthday parties. We just might do that!!
Thank You so much for sharing your recipe and I love you website as well!!
Thank you so much!
We live in France and often buy packs of truffle fondue sold in Switzerland which we need to make with wine. Since I’m off alcohol in food while breastfeeding, I haven’t had fondue until today when I used this recipe. My French husband said he couldn’t tell the difference and was pleasantly surprised. This is a great recipe to use even with ready-made packs. We substituted the wine in the recipe with the same quantity of vegetable stock with a squeeze of lemon juice.
Thanks!
Hello, can I use a chicken stock pot/cube instead of chicken broth?
You can try – just make sure the flavor isn’t overpowering
This was delicious! My kids all had so much fun with our special Valentine’s fondue night. I used about 6oz Gruyere and about 4oz each Gouda and Baby Swiss. Creamy bliss!
We dipped tri-color baby potatoes, rustic bread cubes, roasted asparagus and brussel sprouts, lightly steamed broccoli florets, Granny Smith apple cubes, and mini-Italian meatballs. The kissing game had my kids in hysterics!
Wow! Thank you! I made this for Valentine’s Day dinner and it was delectable! I did make a couple of modifications… I subbed a vegetarian “no chicken broth” and substituted the Swiss for cheddar. I also omitted the nutmegz My whole family loved it!!!
Made this for the first time tonight and the cheese stayed a solid mass in the warmer, like one big chunk. What could have gone wrong?
Did you add it gradually to the hot broth and melt it fully before adding the next bit of cheese? Also what kind of cheese did you use?
Curious in your instructions it says to add additional salt if needed? Yet the ingredients do not even show salt? Also 1/8 tsp of lemon juice? Thanks for the recipe!!!!
You can add salt to taste if needed at the end (no other salt is included in the recipe). And yes, even the 1/8 teaspoon lemon juice makes a difference (although you can add up to a teaspoon).
I make this fondue recipe every valentines day and a couple other times a year for special occasions for my family! I love that it is family friendly and so delicious!
I am so confused… where is the actual recipe? I have read through this post like 5 times and cannot find it.
Sorry for the inconvenience! It was just a temporary error – my website was down for a bit this evening due to some technical issues but everything should be displaying ok now. Let me know if you continue to have issues accessing the recipe!
Any suggestions on how to make this to take to a party? Will it reheat well in a fondue pot once cooled?
It should – you might need to add a touch more broth and heat it over low heat whisking quickly to combine.
WOW!!!! Had this tonight for New Years Eve. My husband and I couldn’t get enough of this. Thank you for such a great recipe!
What’s funny is the first time we did it, I forgot the corn starch (oops!) that didn’t go well at all. The cheese and the chicken broth wouldn’t combine!
That one was immediately tossed. Luckily I had enough ingredients for a second go! It was amazing! The only issue I had was I think the way I shredded the cheese. I used the largest shredder. Some of the cheese was a little clumpy because of this. But it was soooooo good, even with some clumps. I’m sure next time when I use more finely shredded cheese it will rock like it does in your pics. Thanks again!
Can this be made in a slow cooker/Crockpot?
I haven’t tried that – not sure how quickly/how well the cheese would melt, but you could certainly try!
I am considering this recipe as I am allergic to alcohol. My question is that I don’t like Swiss cheese. How much of that flavor comes through? Is there another cheese you could recommend switching it for?
You could try using all gruyere or maybe Monterey Jack.
This is the 4th year in a row I’ve used this recipe for our annual Christmas Eve fondue/White Christmas family gathering. We love it! Thanks for making our holidays extra festive.
Making this again tonight. I don’t used pre grated cheese but I do used pre sliced cheese, cuts into small pieces easier, and I put olive oil over broccoli and cauliflower and roast in the oven delish! X
Made this tonight, gorgeous thank you. Loved it x
This was great! I have been looking for a recipe w no alcohol., big hit with family! I will make it again.
Made cheese fondue tonight using veggie broth instead of wine and juice from 1/2 a lemon and it worked great.
Any suggestion on a spice other than nutmeg that would be good here? My daughter is allergic to apple/pumpkin pie spices (nutmeg, cinnamon and other similar spices). We normally just avoid things with those ingredients or omit them but I’m wondering if there would be any flavor in this without something? Thanks!
Hi Shelley. You can leave out the nutmeg. It will still be delicious.
Delicious! Followed the directions to a T and it turned out so good. One note: I think it would take 6-8 adults to eat all this; my husband and I barely made a dent and we are stuffed! I’m hoping it reheats well enough. My rather picky kids(3, 5, 1) tried it and didn’t like the flavor of the cheese, but still had a great time giving kisses when they dropped stuff off of their skewers onto plates. We used broccoli, potatoes, lil smokies, and your rustic crusty bread. So fun!
Thank you for this recipe! We tried fondue as a family for the first time as a birthday meal, and it was a huge hit! We have 6 kids, ages 7 to 18, and similar to you, we eat dinner together almost every night (minus my older two, who are often at work). But, there is something absolutely magical about fondue! It slows everything down, and everyone is entertained by cooking their own food. I LOVED your idea of having to kiss your neighbor if your food falls in, and that provided a ton of laughs. We are not a very kissy family (which is something I would do differently if I could go back in time!), but my kids still got a huge kick out of that. Thank you so much for the tip! We’re planning on using this recipe again for Valentine’s Day, and my youngest kids literally jumped up and down when they heard that. 🙂
I’m so happy to hear this, Alyssa! Made my day (my kids get super excited about fondue night, too).
If I am trying to make this recipe from start to finish in a crock pot- how would I adjust the recipe? Should I put all of the ingredients in at once- or follow the steps of the recipe? Would you suggest cooking it on low? How long would it take to prepare? Thanks for any tips!!
I’ve never made it start to finish in the slow cooker and I’m not sure I’d recommend it (not sure the cheese will fully melt and incorporate).
This recipe is amazing. We loved it! We dipped meat balls, bread, and shrimp. I was a little worried that shrimp wouldn’t be good, but it was delicious! Thank you for sharing the recipe; we’ll definitely be making again.
Our son made this for us for New Year’s Eve! It was delicious and festive.and worked perfectly. Wedges of fresh radishes were tasty dippers along with bread and more. Thanks especially for the no-alcohol option. What fun!
Happy 2018!
I was a little worried my handfuls were too big or that I didn’t let it melt enough….I had a big lump of cheese and lots of liquid. But I turned my heat up a little and kept stirring. It eventually encorpaporated and was heavenly. I have 4 boys and a girl too, and I told them about your smackeroo’s and suddenly, it was super funny to “accidentally” drop bread in and give dad a kiss . It was pretty funny. They all said, “every time we have fondue, we are playing this game”. We are amazing race fans and we kept quoting Zev, when he and Justin had to eat a huge pot of fondue in Switzerland, except my son said, “I’m very fond of this fondue”. Thanks for an awesome fondue recipe. We have it for New Year’s Eve every year
Sorry, should have proof-read…incorporated!
Haha…that made me smile. Thanks, Megan! Happy New Year!
Delicious! This is the best fondue ever!
The cornstarch shouldn’t be necessary in this no alcohol recipe since it’s mainly used in traditional recipes to keep the wine & cheese from separating.
We made this last Christmas Eve and everyone raves about it! My daughter has requested it so here I am again searching your recipe. Thanks for being so helpful! Merry Christmas!
Yummy! This was a hit a time our party. Thanks!
Mel, THANK YOU so much for this recipe. I never write reviews, but as this is the third time I have come back to the internet to find this fondue recipe to serve for our tree trimming. I am thankful it is here! We also do not put alcohol in our fondue and I have struggled to find a fondue that had enough flavor without the alcohol. This is excellent! Thank you so much and your friend for sharing!
So happy to hear that! Thank you!
that it taste so good. 9/10
Wow, this is exactly what I needed! Perfect. Though it’s going to one pot of your recipe for the kids and one high-alcohol for me!
Where do you find Gruyere cheese? Im not having any luck. 🙁
I usually buy it at Costco…but have seen it at Walmart, too.
Walmart
Hi Mel, I think I just became you! (Doesn’t hurt that my first name is Melissa). I made this cheese fondue and rustic bread for Christmas eve this year. My family loved it! (Me, hubby, 7 year old boy). It was such a hit, we made it again a few nights later for Sister Missionaries (LDS). And that rustic bread!!!! I’ve been making a french bread recipe for a while that everyone loves. My family declared the rustic bread to be even better!
Can’t wait to follow your Instapot recipes. Your boys look like so much fun. Wish we could get them together with my son. He’s an only child (not our choice…) and loves being around other kids! Thanks for your recipes. 🙂
I love this, Melissa! So happy you (and the missionaries!) loved it. I think this is what we are making today before life returns to complete normal tomorrow. 🙂 If you son likes rough and tumble and lots of noise, he’d love it here!
This recipe looks amazing. Do you think I could make it on the stove and then transfer it to a crock pot to keep warm? I don’t have a fondue pot?
I think you could definitely try that! Just make sure the slow cooker doesn’t cook at too high of temp.
Yep, a crock pot on low or warm makes an excellent fondue put!
Do you know how the timing would be adjusted for a crock pot? Do I start the broth in the crockpot on low and then add the cheese?
You do on a pan on stove top and granger to slow cooker but live on keep warm set!
Hi Mel,
I’m making this for a group of about ten this week. Do you see any issues with doubling it? Would it make it burn easier or change the consistency?
I think doubling should work just fine.
Having unwittingly dropped a few hundred dollars at The Melting Pot earlier this year, I am glad I found this recipe. We not only had no idea how expensive it was, but in the rush of unfamiliarity I missed the mention of the wine. We don’t drink, and my kids (21 & 20) thought it was disgusting. Thankfully they replaced it with their only alcohol free cheese.
I plan to buy a few pots for home. The Cuisinart looks like it would be fine for the broth cooking of the main course. But I plan to get a gel model for cheese and chocolate.
My family LOVES fondu night thanks to you! Complete with the smackaroos! I have made your fondu recipe several times and it’s always delicious. Tonight, I happened to find some ham stock, from an amazing ham I cooked a couple months ago, hiding in my freezer. I used it, and wow! Fondu went to the next level!
This recipe looks amazing and I’m going to try it, but some of the measurements seem a bit off: 1/8 teaspoon of lemon juice is less than 1 mililiter or about .02 liquid ounces. That would be equivalent to a single drop of juice. And 1 tablespoon of minced garlic is a huge quantity. I wouldn’t even use a whole teaspoon of minced garlic in a creamy fondue or sauce.
Otherwise, this looks great. 🙂
I cannot NOT comment on this recipe! I’ve made it twice for friends and both times, they’ve raved! I made two minor adjustments. The first was halving the chicken stock and subbing in 1/2c of white wine which was boiled for several minutes–gives a soft authentic wine flavor, but a lot of the alcohol is boiled out and because I still keep half of the stock in the recipe, it’s not TOO wine-y. The second is not coating the cheese with the cornflour–I simply shake it in an airtight Tupperware with the chicken stock until it’s completely blended and pour it straight into the pot with the cheese. This recipe is a winner!
Hi Mel,
I am making fondue from some friends and one of one doesn’t drink so this recipe looked perfect. However, 2 of us don’t eat meat so chciken stock is no good! Can we use a vegetable alternative? And is broth the same as stock (very inexperienced cook here!).
Sorry- full of typos in that comment! I meant that *for some friends, *one of us doesn’t drink, *chicken. 🙂
Hi Ann – sure, you could definitely play around with the broth and try subbing in a veggie broth. I’ve noticed a lot of veggie broths have a stronger flavor than chicken broth so just keep an eye on that so the fondue doesn’t taste like carrots. 🙂 Yes, usually broth can be interchanged with stock (stock is often more concentrated in flavor).
I just made this and the flavors were so delicious. But I ended up having to throw most of it out. For some reason, the cheese wouldn’t melt into the broth. I ended up with a huge block of semi melted cheese and a little bit of sauce. The cheese would not melt fully no matter what I tried. What did I do wrong? I did use Jarlsberg instead of Gruyere.
Hi Annie – I’ve never used Jarlsberg cheese in this so I’m guessing that’s the culprit. Sorry it didn’t work out!
No worries, it was delicious, just not a very good consistency. I thought Jarlsberg was very similar to Swiss. So I’m wondering is there another reason it would have seized up like that? Would it do that if I had the broth to hot when I started stirring in the cheese? Just want to make sure I get it right the next time around.
It could be the broth – but the liquid does need to stay warm to melt the cheese. It’s pretty important to add the cheese one small handful at a time and make sure it’s fully melted before adding more.
Have to weigh in here. More lemon juice is needed. About 1 tablespoon or the juice of half a lemon. The acid keeps the cheese from separating. Vinegar works as well, but I like the flavour of lemon juice in it.
Delicious! Just made this tonight and thought it was great! Thanks!
We made this for NYE this year too – and I LOVED it. It was perfectly what I wanted.
Thank you for this kid friendly recipe! We made it for New Year’s Eve and both kids and adults agree it was the best! We even added the kissing rule and it was a fun addition to the party.
Fondue night is New Years Eve for us :). I like to make a creamy tomato bisque for the main dish fondue. I’ve struggled with cheese fondue in the past, so I am excited to try this!
Oh sorry, I do have a crock pot but it’s going to be used for hot chocolate!
Hi! I have a question. There will be 5 of us total, I have a fondue pot but it’s just not big enough, any suggestions on how to make it? I though maybe a double boiler situation (aka a bowl on top of a pot for me haha) to keep it warm?
Hi Sam – I think a double boiler would be your best bet – anything to keep that cheese warm will do the trick.
I’m planning a date night with my husband tonight at home, and I don’t have a fondue pot (not in the budget). How horrible will it be if I just use a large stockpot?
Hi Amanda – sorry for the late response. Did you try this? I wouldn’t recommend using a large pot unless you have a way to moderate the heat evenly to keep it warm while you eat without burning it (or letting it cool too much).
I just tried this and it was great, thanks! Our family always did white wine in the cheese fondue growing up but I thought this was just as good or even better without the wine. I used Kitchen Basic stock and the juice of half a lemon, and used a bit less garlic since I had roasted garlic ciabatta bread for dipping.