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Easily whip up the perfect chocolate fondue in under 30 minutes! You’ll be dipping your favorites in no time.

Chocolate Lava Cake, Chocolate Mousse, and Panna Cotta are also perfect desserts for special occasions like this Chocolate Fondue.

Chocolate fondue in a pot with strawberries and cake pieces.


Who Doesn’t Love A Fancy Dessert?!

It’s no secret that we love chocolate! It’s perfect for every occasion and is a highlight in so many desserts and this chocolate fondue is no exception.

Here’s why we love it:

  • Easy. It’s ready in under 30 minutes!
  • Showstopper. Chocolate fondue just feels fancy.
  • Fun! It’s a fun and interactive dessert. Great for parties and movie night.
  • Special occasions. It’s the BEST for special occasions like Valentine’s Day or Christmas or any special day.

What could be better than eating it straight from a bowl? Okay, you’re using it to cover fruits, cookies, or cakes, but who’s to say you couldn’t sneak a bite or two? 😉

A white bowl filled with chocolate chips.

Ingredients

  • semi-sweet chocolate chips substitute with milk chocolate or dark chocolate. Or use an equal amount of chocolate baking wafers. Higher quality brands like Ghirardelli or Guittard melt the best.
  • butter
  • sweetened condensed milk not evaporated milk
  • water
  • vanilla extract adjust the flavor using almond extract, orange extract or zest, peppermint extract, a bit of cinnamon, or even chili powder.
Dipping ingredients spread on a counter.

How to Make Chocolate Fondue

  1. HEAT. In a heavy saucepan over medium heat, melt all ingredients except vanilla. Cook and stir constantly until thickened, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat. Add vanilla.
  2. ENJOY! Serve warm as a dipping sauce for fruit, cookies/crackers, and treats, or drizzle over ice cream or cake. You could even try mixing in a spoonful of peanut butter for a flavor variation!

Pro Tip!

Don’t cover the warm chocolate with a lid. The condensation from the steam will cause the chocolate to seize (become grainy and pasty chocolate).

Combining chocolate chips and sweetened condensed milk in a pot.

Fondue Troubleshooting

  • Overheated chocolate. Milk and white chocolate can reach 110°F, and dark chocolate can reach 120°F. When they’re cooked too high, they become thick and dull. As long as it has not burned, you can fix it.
    • Pour the chocolate into a bowl and stir in more chocolate to help bring down the temperature.
    • The hotter chocolate will also melt the new chocolate helping to smooth out the mixture.
    • A few other tricks include straining lumps through a sieve, stirring in a spoonful of vegetable oil, or using an immersion blender to help smooth it out. 
Melted chocolate in a pot.

How to Serve Fondue

Serve this chocolate goodness in a pot, bowl, or make a fancy fountain!

Fondue pot. Keep the chocolate warm and dippable using a fondue pot. They come in both electric varieties as well as ceramic dishes heated with a candle. You can also keep it warm in a small crock pot. Use metal or wooden skewers to dip.

Chocolate fountain. Any chocolate can be used in a chocolate fountain, as long as it is the right consistency. Thicker chocolate sauce will clog the fountain, so be sure that it is thin enough to smoothly run through the fountain. Use cocoa butter or coconut oil to help thin out the chocolate.

Homemade chocolate fondue recipe with strawberries and cake pieces dipped in.

What to Dip

Some of our favorite chocolate fondue dippers include: 

  • Fruit. Try cherries with stems, orange sections, melon balls, pineapple chunks, strawberries, banana slices, apple wedges, grapes, dried apricots, peach chunks, plum slices, pear slices, kiwi fruit slices, raspberries, blackberries, pears, papaya, and mango cubes.
  • Treats. Angel Food Cake cubes, cut Rice Krispie Treats, Brownie bites, marshmallows, Pound Cake cubes, and Cheesecake Bites.
  • Crackers/Cookies. Vanilla wafers, biscotti, Oreos, graham crackers, and Shortbread Cookies.
  • Salty. Soft pretzels, pretzel rods, potato chips, and even bacon.
Chocolate fondue in a white bowl.

Storing Info

  • STORE. As long as there are no double dippers, and the fondue is clean, you can store leftover fondue in a container in the fridge for 7-10 days.
  • Reheat slowly on the stovetop or the microwave at half power. Store leftover dipping treats in separate containers. 
Dipping a fresh strawberry in a pot of chocolate fondue.

For MOre Treats:

5 from 2 votes

Chocolate Fondue Recipe

By: Lil’ Luna
Easily whip up the perfect Chocolate Fondue in under 30 minutes! You'll be dipping your favorites in no time.
Servings: 10 people
Prep: 15 minutes
Cook: 10 minutes
Total: 25 minutes

Ingredients 

  • 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
  • 2 tablespoons butter
  • 1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
  • 2 tablespoons water
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions 

  • In a heavy saucepan, over medium heat, melt chocolate chips and butter with sweetened condensed milk and water. Cook and stir constantly until thickened, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat. Add vanilla.
  • Serve warm as a dipping sauce for fruit, cookies/crackers, and treats or drizzle over ice cream or cake.
  • Store leftovers covered in the refrigerator.

Dippers

  • We dipped pound cake, bananas, marshmallows, strawberries, clementine oranges, cinnamon graham crackers, and pineapples in the fondue.
  • Other items to dip: cherries with stems, melon balls, apple wedges, grapes, dried apricots, peach, plum, and pear slices, angel food cake cubes, and kiwi fruit slices.

Tips

  • Serve warm or cold over ice cream. Can be made several days ahead of time.
  • Reheat in the microwave at 30-second intervals at 40% power or less.

Notes

  • STORE. As long as there are no double dippers, and the fondue is clean, you can store leftover fondue in a container in the fridge for 7-10 days.
  • Reheat slowly on the stovetop or the microwave at half power. Store leftover dipping treats in separate containers. 

Nutrition

Calories: 126kcal, Carbohydrates: 10g, Protein: 1g, Fat: 9g, Saturated Fat: 5g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g, Monounsaturated Fat: 3g, Trans Fat: 1g, Cholesterol: 7mg, Sodium: 20mg, Potassium: 104mg, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 7g, Vitamin A: 79IU, Vitamin C: 1mg, Calcium: 12mg, Iron: 1mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

Additional Info

Course: Dessert
Cuisine: French
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Share it with us on Instagram using the hashtag #lilluna, so we can see what you’re creating in the kitchen!


About Kristyn

My name is Kristyn and I’m the mom of SIX stinkin’ cute kids and the wife to my smokin’ hot hubby, Lo. My mom’s maiden name is Luna, and I’m one of the many crafty “Lil’ Lunas” in the fam. On this site I like to share all things creative - from recipes to home decor to gifts and home decor ideas. Welcome!

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Recipe Rating




3 Comments

  1. 5 stars
    This is my kind of fondue!! We love dipping fruit in this!! It will be the perfect thing to have out for our New Year’s party!!

  2. I have a fondue pot but dont use it often because I haven’t come across a good recipe until now. This chocolate is pretty good!

  3. 5 stars
    Thank you for all the ideas on chocolate fondue. Not real good at making it but I’m so excited to try this recipe!