F is for Fondue Bourguignonne, Crests, Du Pont

Matt had a crossword clue about one of the animals on the English coat of arms, the answer being a Unicorn. This set me off thinking about the poem we used to recite as youngsters which I couldn’t fully quote so had to look up. Turns out its actually to do with James VI of Scotland becoming James I of England after the death of Queen Elizabeth I. The Scots had 2 unicorns on their crest, the Brits had 2 lions so they had to figure out a completely new crest – hence the nursery rhyme. The arms contains two Latin tags, Honi soit qui mal y pense or Evil be to him who evil thinks and Dieu et mon droit, God is my right.
The lion and the unicorn were fighting for the crown
The lion beat the unicorn all around the town.
Some gave them white bread, and some gave them brown;
Some gave them plum cake and drummed them out of town.


Below, I am talking about working for Du Pont in London, England. It was a company I really enjoyed working for but I got to the point where I needed a raise and they wouldn’t cough up, so I quit. There was a period in London when you virtually always had to quit to get an increase in pay. Working there was the first time I ever saw an electric typewriter. I had to have a good typewriter because I typed press releases in several different languages. I didn’t do the translations of course, they were done by an outside company and then after I had typed them on the appropriate headed stationery, they were sent off to be copied and printed. When I worked there it used to amuse us when they brought over young men who had been trained in Wilmington, Delaware and who literally lived, breathed, dreamed and ate Du Pont. They were totally brainwashed.  I guess they thought that was a good thing, we weren’t so sure. Doesn’t allow you to see the big picture.

This was my very first introduction to fondue of any kind. Whilst working for Du Pont in the public relations department we frequently had to entertain people and just up the road (Jermyn St.) was a super restaurant where Fondue Bourguignonne was a specialty. I loved it from the git go. I haven’t made a fondue of any kind for many years, they kind of went out of fashion, I should do so because I do enjoy them. When I have made fondue in recent years, I serve one pot of cheese fondue and two with oil and serve all kinds of items for my guests to cook.

Fondue Bourguignonne

Serves 4

Ingredients:

• 1 3/4 lbs beef tenderloin or sirloin steak
• 4 cups of cooking oil
• salt and pepper
• ketchup, mustard
• 2 sauces of your choice
• pickles and pickled pearl onions

Preparation

1. NOTE: You will need a fondue cooker for this recipe.
2. Cut beef into 1 inch cubes. Season with salt and pepper and arrange in individual serving dishes.
3. Heat oil in the fondue pot, then spear beef cubes using your fondue fork, and cook until done.
4. Serve with different kinds of dipping sauces on the side. Serve also with pickles, ketchup, mustard. Goes well with fresh green salad and fried potatoes.
5. For the two kinds of sauces, you can use curry, bearnaise, tartar, or cocktail sauces. Bottled sauces are available in your local grocery or supermarket. To make curry sauce, simply mix together some mayonnaise and curry powder. To make Sauce Andalouse, mix together a cup of mayonnaise with a teaspoon of paprika and a tablespoon of tomato paste.

Have a great day