Last Sunday started just like any other Sunday. I slept more, and by the time I woke, the sun was already strong and beating down. After having breakfast, as I was lazily browsing through the mails and other news, my landlord invited me to join him for lunch. The previous week, I had shared Sambhar rice(that I cooked) with him and he said he liked it. At that time, he said that he will help me understand Swiss food better. That moment has come now.
I quite happily accepted the invitation, since I would get a first hand experience with some authentic Swiss food(I also didn’t have to worry about cooking lunch that day!!).
The dish was called Fondue, which is usually eaten during winter. Fondue basically has two items. The first is bread in the form of cubes.
And the second item is cheese. The cheese used in this case is a mix – Moitié-moitié (or half ‘n half): Fribourg Vacherin and Gruyère. The former is a greyish-yellow cheese and is made of cow milk(and originates from the canton or state of Fribourg). The latter is a yellow cheese, also made of cow milk and is from the town of Gruyères. The Gruyère cheese is slightly salty and the Fribourg cheese is a bit resiny and acidic.
The cheese is melted in a pot.A burner keeps the cheese warm and prevents it from solidifying.
Now, it is the time for eating. Take the bread cubes, dip it in the melted cheese and, savour the taste. I must tell you, this is a really delicious dish. And a heavy one too.
The people here usually take pineapple or pear with the Fondue. In our case, we had pears and we dipped the pears also in the cheese. Yummy, Yummy..
As we were having the lunch, I was told about the other popular Swiss dishes – Raclette and Rösti.
Raclette is also similar but the cheese is half-solid and potato slices subsitute for the bread cubes. Onion, meat and other vegetables are also used instead of potato slices.
Rösti is also made of potato and is usually considered a breakfast item. It is basically potato grated and fried and is very similar to Hash Brown potatoes.
When we finished the lunch, the landlord said that when they make Raclette next time, he will invite me again. “Wow! Thank You”.
I eagerly look forward to having Raclette soon. I am also pondering what Indian dish I should cook and share with them next. Shahi Paneer? Rajma Masala?
