Swiss Raclette

fx

Wed, 23 Mar 2016 11:42:08 GMT

Ah but raclette comes slowly, one by one, and is a really moderate amount of cheese per portion. And you can pause at any time...

fx

Wed, 16 Mar 2016 11:11:59 GMT

Yes indeed, the reason is mostly that we Swiss drink on average 3 bottles for each bottle we produce in Switzerland, so naturally there is no reason to try and sell our Swiss wines abroad, even so more because the price would make it hard. The local market just drinks way more than we make.

Leith CONYBEARE

Sun, 10 Jan 2016 03:01:14 GMT

Your informative and amusing article draws one to Switzerland! Don"t know if I could eat that much raclette without at least trying, or dying in the attempt.

Pierre Zuber

Tue, 18 Dec 2012 00:01:02 GMT

I could not agree more with this presentation about the Raclette and the Ch�teau de Villa for this is where I was born.
Raclette is one of the most specific Swiss meal. In addition to Racletteas well as Fondue the Chateau de Villa offers one of the best place to taste the superb varieties of Valais wines either white or red. Unfortunately, our wines even though they compete with the best French wines are not know much beyond our borders.

dayer

Tue, 15 Jun 2010 18:46:03 GMT

�Estupenda comida!

Theb

Sat, 8 May 2010 23:05:59 GMT

I went there last December with a person who is crazy about raclette (kind of a pilgrimage for him :-)).
It is one of the good tables of Sierre. The good idea of the "Ch�teau de Villa" is to propose the tasting five different cheeses... The flavour is very different from one to another. You can really feel the "terroirs". When you are done with the five different tastings, you can continue to have raclettes with the cheeses you preferred. We spent an excellent evening. Definitely a place and an experience to recommend. Theb. PS : Your pictures are great.

fx

Thu, 14 Jan 2010 18:32:18 GMT

Yes, this is some serious raclette! Even better: a wood fire.

Kahing

Sat, 5 Dec 2009 17:59:25 GMT

Reading this story of yours makes me hungry all over for this raclette! Can"t wait to go and try it out.

Still though, ANYONE who seasons it"s meal before tasting it has no respect for the meal nor it"s chef... This has been common sense in my family for centuries.

Thank you for posting so many interesting stories.

Kahing

Vic

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 18:47:34 GMT

Great article! If I want to have an extra spicy, reasonably "dry" raclette cheese, which one would you recommend? I have bought a nice one last year, but now our cheese supplier doesn"t remember the make... It had a brown crust and a silverpaper-like label on the side.

fx

Fri, 30 Oct 2009 19:58:48 GMT

Glad I could help and I wish you can visit the Chateau de Vila to sample some proper raclette!

Fereshteh

Fri, 30 Oct 2009 15:21:54 GMT

It was everything I wanted to know about the cheese. I am new in Switzerland and your website is grate for me and I got lots of information I needed.

fx

Mon, 21 Sep 2009 19:59:28 GMT

Mary, you absolutely need a dry white wine, ideally a Fendant (made with Chardonnay). Please don"t ever drink anything cold other than wine with raclette as it will invariably lead to stomach ache.

mary petrie

Mon, 21 Sep 2009 18:39:30 GMT

So love your sight....I am a student of wine in NY. What wine would you have with Raclette? thanks mary

fx

Sat, 21 Mar 2009 18:18:46 GMT

Salut Jim, thanks for dropping by! What is the symposium about, there was no information at all on the website about it apart from the date and place. Sounds interesting though!

jim Stillwaggon

Sat, 21 Mar 2009 11:35:42 GMT

Sal�t, Excellent writing and images ... mes f�licitations. I was (and fundamentally will ever be) un fromager d"alpage en Valais: H�r�mance, Ovronnaz, Entremont (La Lettaz & Champlong) for 10 seasons. Now my kid Ari has taken over. Meanwhile, I"m organising a Symposium le 17 Mai 09, in Ferney-Voltaire, titled "Cheese, Sex Death & Madness". This will be the second edition for us. I"d be pleased if you might be interested in joining in, as participant or as collaborator. The website is just getting off the ground ... I"m a pure neophyte, but it will help you identify my orientation. Hope to hear from you. Jim

fx

Tue, 13 Jan 2009 07:36:47 GMT

Felicia, you are very right, but might I say that there is a world of difference between scraped raclette (on a wood fire if possible) made from Alpage cheese and raclonette made with industrial raclette cheese? Anyway, I hope you"ll get to enjoy the former soon!

fx

Tue, 13 Jan 2009 04:53:31 GMT

Andrea I agree that Raclette is a really hearty convivial dish to share with friends. Can you really get old Gruyere to melt properly without oozing out loads of oil?

Andrea

Tue, 30 Dec 2008 17:14:16 GMT

A Christmas tradition in my German household when a large number of people are present is the raclette grilling: a fantastic option in the absence of a brick oven, raclette stove and racletour. There is something warm and wonderful about giving the guests the option to grill their own veggies, potatoes and meats while chatting at the table. It is also a slow meal, and thus makes the dinner a social occasion. Oh, it is also fantastically delicious with Gruyere (i prefer the cave-aged).

felicia

Thu, 25 Dec 2008 21:54:05 GMT

Raclette is the greatest,whether you have a scraped raclette or a pan. splurge and enjoy.

fx

Mon, 13 Oct 2008 13:56:10 GMT

Judith, they don"t have any coca cola at Philippe Rochat, Switzerland"s finest and my favorite restaurant!

Judith Basham

Mon, 13 Oct 2008 08:41:18 GMT

I could not agree more with the coca cola statement. If I were a Restaurateur it would, along with its other soft drink cousins, never be stocked. If customers didn"t like it, then too bad and directions handed out to them where the nearest fast food chain operates. Standards!

chef4cook

Mon, 15 Sep 2008 08:05:43 GMT

In a hotel where I was the chef I did a wonderful onion soup with raclette gratine"d! it was delicious.

fx

Wed, 20 Aug 2008 13:55:22 GMT

Helena, you could try with a wood fire and a wooden board, you need a really hot temperature. And please don"t mention any French raclette to a Swiss or you"ll end up marooned on mountain top!

Helena

Tue, 19 Aug 2008 22:28:05 GMT

Wow. I just tried Swiss raclette last week. It really is the most amazing cheese. I don"t think I had it at the right temp and I wasn"t expecting the strong smell. But it was amazing. I think I"m hooked. Got to hunt down the French version as well soon.

fx

Tue, 19 Aug 2008 10:47:37 GMT

Laura, was this at Androuet?

Laura C

Sat, 16 Aug 2008 19:24:35 GMT

Brings back memories of a lunch in the back of a cheese shop in Paris. My husband had the Raclette, not sure if it was as good as one in Valais, but it was definitely a most memorable meal.

Brozzi

Mon, 30 Jun 2008 21:57:24 GMT

I once saw a picture of a raclette melting pan that was on the end of a long stick for use ove a campfire. I"ve tried for hours and cannot find that website again. Does anybody know of such a device and where I might acquire one? Looks like a great cmap meal.
Thanks

fx

Sat, 28 Jun 2008 08:53:46 GMT

Luke, if only inquisitive morons and staunch-headed curmudgeons were lured into trying raclette with a cold drink, we"d have ourselves a nice test to decide who should be member of a club. Most people do try it once in their life, few try a second time!

Luke

Sun, 22 Jun 2008 11:46:50 GMT

Thaks for the warning, FX. I just wish I listened. Being the inquisitive moron I am, and having had both fondue and New England style extra-cheese pizza with a cold soft drink on numerous occasions, I decided to melt comt� and gruy�re and eat the result with only a small piece of bread, then wash it down with some ice-cold tea. I was in Hell.

That said, I"d still love to try the real thing someday. If I"m ever in Valais, I"ll definitely go for some. Only this time, I"ll bear the beverage rule in mind.

fx

Sat, 21 Jun 2008 15:44:59 GMT

Christine, there are no potato pancakes, just boiled potatoes with their skins. In between deliveries you peel a potato, then cut a piece, wrap some melted cheese around it, and up it goes in your mouth and down your belly.

fx

Sat, 21 Jun 2008 15:37:49 GMT

Alex definitely please don"t die before you try the mighty raclette!

fx

Sat, 21 Jun 2008 15:35:15 GMT

Elise, when you come to Sierre and visit the Manoir de Villa, you won"t be disappointed! Really worth the trip in my opinion!

fx

Sat, 21 Jun 2008 15:33:48 GMT

Daniel, you must rejoice that there is such a fine thing for you in the future as tasting real raclette rather than the boiled-down "raclonette" version! You are missing the delicious burnt cheese on the sides without any of the oil that oozes out of the cheese in the raclonette. If you get a half cheese head, you could do this in a fireplace instead, that would even be better. No need for any further equipment!

fx

Sat, 21 Jun 2008 15:31:30 GMT

Angelica, make sure you get the marchine that melts the whole cheese half rather than the lowly raclonette, that"s no good. And buy as much proper raclette d"alpage cheese as you can carry!

fx

Sat, 21 Jun 2008 15:30:07 GMT

Magda, thanks for visiting and I"m glad this brought back such a pleasant memory! Raclette really is a most convivial dish, with every guest sharing a friendly wait for the next instalment, commenting his slice or passing his turn. And it really is easy to cook once you have the setup!

Luci

Fri, 20 Jun 2008 10:17:05 GMT

As if you didn"t have enough ways of introducing melted cheese to my diet! And re: tea and wine with melted cheese - I totally concur with you and general convention - I had fondue a few months ago in Montreal and drank a glass of water with it. Felt very ill - until I had a cup of tea with dessert. Everything was fine afterwards!

Annie

Wed, 18 Jun 2008 15:15:27 GMT

Looks divine, but what"s not to love about melted cheese...reminds me of the melted cheese that I use to make as a child using the microwave and brie.

I have the same question as Christine: how does one tranfer the raclette to the mouth? I don"t see any thing obvious like bread.

Christine

Wed, 18 Jun 2008 14:14:30 GMT

How does one convey the cheese from plate to mouth? The potato pancake must be one part of the equation. Since you were so kind as to aquaint us with some elements or raclette etiquette, perhaps you would save raclette neophytes from the pitfalls of improper technique.

Caroline

Wed, 18 Jun 2008 03:02:14 GMT

I have lived in Switzerland most of my life. I skied in Nax (Valais) every winter and I can personally say that nothing beats a good raclette. If you do go to nax for some skiing, go to Victor"s barn on one of the pistes, good company, good raclette, good wine.

Now I live in the UK and moving to Australia soon I will really miss raclette and all other swiss dishes.

AlexFalk

Tue, 17 Jun 2008 23:25:59 GMT

One of my first culinary creations was fried cheese.
Using cheddar and a non-stick pan, I would fry the cheese till it became crispy, and the oil was rendered.

This reminds me so much of that childhood experiment, that it is now on my list of things to do before I die.

Kyle Wegner

Tue, 17 Jun 2008 19:20:51 GMT

Such an interesting yet simple looking dish. But what do I know, I"ve never had such a thing. Now I will make sure I don"t miss this whenever I am near Valais. Thanks!

Elise

Tue, 17 Jun 2008 15:48:14 GMT

Oh my goodness, I am drooling at my desk. Last time I had raclette was in Paris four years ago, and before that I hadn"t had it since I was a kid, on one of our visits to Chamonix. It is so good, and so hard to describe to people who don"t know anything about it. You did a beautiful job describing it. After reading your post, I am thinking we must plan a trip to Valais as soon as possible!! Thank you for a wonderful post.

Andrew

Tue, 17 Jun 2008 12:38:21 GMT

A pedant I may be, but Chateau Petrus is from Bordeaux not Burgund. Otherwise great, great site - keep it up!

Daniel Eliasson

Tue, 17 Jun 2008 09:53:27 GMT

When I first arrived in Munich, I was surprised to see the plethora of raclonette devices in the stores, but I"ve yet to try it the scraped way. My girlfriend worked in Switzerland for a while, and developed quite the love for Raclette there, but space limitations makes it impossible for us to invest in the proper equipment.

This restaurant looks absolutely wonderful, I especially like the idea of being able to try out five variants of a cheese in the same meal, a chance to get to know this cultural dish not only as a stereotypical Swiss thing bought in a supermarket, but as a living tradition with local variations and proud craftsmen behind it. If I get a chance to go to Valais, I shall certainly not miss the opportunity.

/Daniel

Angelica at Butter&Beans

Tue, 17 Jun 2008 09:39:48 GMT

I"ve only had raclette once (at a dinner with a Swiss family outside of Fribourg), but I absolutely love it. The minute I can think of a good-enough excuse, I"m buying one of those big electrical cheese melter thingies. :)

Magda

Tue, 17 Jun 2008 08:34:47 GMT

Am almost drooling over here :)

Last April, I was in Budapest for a congress and a Swiss company that was attending had a party on a boat to celebrate its 35th birthay. Besides a Swiss folk group, lovely wine, and a big wooden log with nails (some Swiss tradition I"m told- albeit possibly not the best idea on a boat full people on their way to drinking themselves into oblivion) there was raclette. They had a similar setup as to what you show on your pictures- much less sophisticated though. I do have to say that it was delicious!

Once again, compliments on your site- I always look forward to seeing new posts!

Magda