Before I became vegan, I was a real cheese addict. I must admit that I absolutely loved cheese sandwiches, cheesy casseroles, and pizza topped with mozzarella. Oh, and of course there was also Swiss cheese fondue. I haven’t had this very often, but the couple of times I did I really liked it, so I thought why not try vegan cheese fondue?!
I mean it’s actually not about the cheese itself, but rather about the creamy consistency and the hearty taste of this traditional dish, right? And you don’t need real cheese for that. Of course, it’s not 100 percent the same, but I guess that’s not the point with these vegan cheese alternatives. They all have their unique and mostly incredibly delicious taste and that’s exactly what I love about them!
But what is fondue? As Wikipedia explains, it’s a “Swiss, Italian, and French dish of melted cheese served in a communal pot” (often called caquelon) over a “chafing stand (réchaud) heated with a candle or spirit lamp”. There is even a Swish Cheese Union who promoted it as the Swiss national dish back in the 1930s, so it really is a huge thing there!
Most people only dip bread into the cheese sauce, but I also love dipping mushrooms and grapes and of course other veggies are great too.
This vegan and nut-free cheese sauce really couldn’t be easier! It’s ready to eat in about 10 minutes and you can even use left-overs (if you even have any as it’s just sooo good) as a vegan nacho sauce. I usually just add some red pepper flakes and paprika powder to make it a bit spicy.
All you need is some white wine (make sure it’s vegan as not all brands are), nutritional yeast, vegetable broth, unsweetened plant-based milk, miso paste, garlic, mustard, tahini, pepper, salt, a pinch of nutmeg, and some flour. Put all ingredients (except for the flour) in a pot and let it boil for a couple of minutes. Then stir in the flour and wait until it all thickens up. When it’s ready, you can either transfer it to a caquelon or just use a regular bowl instead. However, it’s better to use a real fondue pot, a so-called caquelon, as it keeps the cheese sauce hot.
Our caquelon is not the prettiest in the world, but it definitely does its job with this dairy free fondue. The amount you can see in the pot above is more like a fondue for two. Haha! It seems to be so little in there, but it really is pretty filling with all the bread and the veggies.
I hope you like this creamy and super easy vegan cheese fondue as much as I do. It’s just such a great and fun way to gather friends and family. We already had this for New Year’s Eve a couple of times. The only thing that could even be better is chocolate fondue, but why not just have cheese fondue first and then chocolate fondue as dessert. I mean that sounds like a reasonable plan, right? :-)
Have a great week! xx
Oh, and if you’re into vegan cheese recipes, you might wanna check out these dishes:
Vegan Nachos with Pumpkin Queso Dip
Vegan German Cheese Spaetzle (it’s like a German version of Mac ‘n’ Cheese with smoked tofu and leek)
Vegan Cheese Fondue
Ingredients
For the vegan cheese fondue:
- 3/4 cup white wine
- 3/4 cup nutritional yeast
- 1/2 cup vegetable broth
- 3/4 cup unsweetend almond or soy milk
- 1 tablespoon white miso paste
- 1 clove of garlic, minced
- 1-2 tablespoons mustard
- 1 teaspoon tahini
- 1 pinch pepper
- 1 pinch salt
- 1 pinch nutmeg
- 4 tablespoons flour
For dipping:
- French baguette
- mushrooms
- grapes
Instructions
- Put all ingredients (except for the flour) in a pot and cook for about 5 minutes.
- Then stir in the flour and wait until it all thickens up. If it's too thick add some more plant-based milk. If it's too thin add more flour. When it's ready, you can either transfer it to a caquelon or just use a regular bowl instead. However, it's better to use a real fondue pot, a so-called caquelon, as it keeps the cheese sauce hot.
I could SOOOOO make a meal out of this!
Glad you like it, Gwen! :-)
I have a fondue pot that I still haven’t EVER used. I got it as a gift but then it’s just been sitting in my cupboard for a few years, lol! This looks soooo good Sina! I have seen wine used a few times in cheese before but have never tried it personally myself, but I imagine it gives an extra oomph! Looks great!
Oh really, Brandi? You really gotta use it, it’s so delicious! You’re missing out on that. ;-) Oh, and don’t forget about dark chocolate fondue with bananas or strawberries! :-)
This is brilliant! I have a fondue pot all ready to go and I can’t wait to try this. I really love fondue around Valentine’s day. And those vegan nachos look great too!
Thanks, Amanda! Oh yeah, fondue on Valentine’s day is a great idea! :-)
You know the only reason I haven’t become fully vegan is because of cheese and even just being a vegetarian I have to be careful with a lot of cheeses. I am completely fascinated to try this recipe and can’t wait to do so!
I totally know what you mean, Emma! I was a total cheese addict until a couple of years ago! But they’re sooo many delicious cheese recipes. :-) Let me know if you give it a try.
Yes please! This looks like something fun to share and to introduce folks to the concept of vegan cheese.
Glad you like it, Christine! :-)
can you believe I’ve never done fondue
You really gotta give it a try. Fondue is so good! And don’t forget about chocolate fondue. ;-)
Your fondue looks amazing! I haven’t had fondue for over 8 years after going dairy free then vegan, so I may just try this now that there is a “safe” and delicious looking recipe out there. Thanks for sharing.
I love that you do fondue too! It’s been a family tradition of mine to have a fondue dinner on January first for as long as I can remember. Now since we have our own families, we don’t do it on new years day anymore but we still do it the first weekend of the year. This year I started playing with making a fondue with one of my cheese sauces and it was a huge hit! The whole thing was gone and some people even said they liked it better than the regular cheese fondue that was there. We dip just about every veggie in it too! And then of course finish off with a dark chocolate dessert fondue..mmmm. Now you got me hungry!
That’s such a great tradition, Sophia! :-) We already had this for New Year’s Eve twice and I used the leftovers for nachos. So good! Oh, and I totally agree dark chocolate fondue as dessert is absolutely amazing!! Now I’m hungry too! :D
Vegan cheese?! SAY WHAT?!?! Oh man, I totally need and WANT to try this! Sounds so interesting and… TASTY!
Thanks! :-) So glad you like it!
Great idea Sina, this is not something I ever would’ve thought to veganize! And with the miso and mustard, it sounds really flavorful! I agree, fondue is more about something creamy and warm and rich to dip in then it is about the actual cheesiness. Mushrooms dipped in sound absolute delish, but grapes are a new one to me :o I will have to try that one, although I’ve heard that apples are really good in cheese fondue too!
Thanks, Natalie! :-) Oh, you really need to try grapes with cheese sauce, they’re sooo good! But I’ve never heard of apples, that sounds interesting too!
Very unique Sina…when i read vegan cheese, I thought there might be some nuts. The flavor quotient is high which I love!
Thanks, Pragati! :-) I know most vegan cheese recipes call for nuts (I also love making cashew cheese), but this one is also great without them.
Oh my gosh! I was putting my Christmas dishes away last week and spotted my fondue pot and realized I needed to create a vegan fondue cheese. This is fantastic!
Haha! Great timing, Linda. ;-)
Vegan Cheese Fondue???!?! I seriously didn’t know that was possible. Such a dream come true! Sharing :)
Haha! Thanks for sharing, Vanessa! :-)
Oh my, this looks insanely good! I know this is a stupid question, but could you substitute the wine with something else so my kids can have it too? xxxx
That’s a tough question, Hedi. I haven’t tried it without the white wine yet because it gives it such a great taste, but maybe you could sub it with grape juice to get a similar taste? But I haven’t tried that yet, sorry. ;-)
The heat will kill the alcohol so I think your kids can still have it.
Once you boil alcohol, it’s fine for kids.
Ooo White wine? Fancy stuff ;) Total girl’s night eats!
Totally! :-)