With the winter season just around the corner, Chef Seiji “Waka” Wakabayashi of bushi-tei, a popular French fusion restaurant in San Francisco’s Japantown, introduces a popular winter cheese fondue dish.

Ingredients (serves four)

Gruyere cheese — 1/3 pound
Emmenthaler cheese — 1/3 pound
Cornstarch — 1 tbsp
Garlic — 1 piece
White wine (dry) — 1 cup
Kirsch (cherry brandy) — 1 tbsp
Salt and pepper — to taste
French bread — to taste
Vegetables (zucchini, bell pepper, carrot, potato, mushroom, broccoli, cauliflower, pumpkin) — to taste
Pickles — to taste

(1) Cut vegetables into bite-sized pieces and boil. Cut the bread into cubes.

(2) Shred cheese and mix with cornstarch.

(3) Rub the garlic on the inside of a fondue or donabe pot to add flavor.

(4) Leave the garlic in the pot, and pour in white wine. Warm up the pot until the smell of the wine comes out.

(5) Add cheese in two or three times. When the cheese starts melting, stir well and add more cheese. Repeat this process until all the cheese melts in the pot.

(6) Sprinkle salt and pepper to adjust the taste. Stir in kirsch to add flavor.

(7) Spear bread cubes and vegetables with fondue forks or wooden skewers, dip them into the cheese and enjoy.

Points!

- You can’t cook vegetables in the cheese. Just use the cheese to coat them. Remember to boil the vegetables beforehand.

- Mixing in the cornstarch will prevent the cheese from separating from the wine.