My husband has had fondue many times. This was MY first experience with it. I got the fondue pot for him for Father's Day. He was pleasantly surprised. I did a lot of "reviews reading" before I decided to purchase this one. We used sunflower oil and peanut oil, to which I had added garlic powder and a touch of finishing salt. Because I didn't wish to wait 10-15 minutes for the fondue pot to warm up, I first heated up the oil on the range, on a low setting. Then, I strained it, to remove the dark residue from the garlic powder, and put it back on the heat. While I was assembling the food I had cut up, mostly into cubes, I turned on the fondue pot, on its highest setting, and very carefully poured the hot oil into it. THEN, I put the fondue fork stainless steel rim on it. A few minutes later, I tested it with some rye bread, to see if it was hot enough. It certainly was, as the bread bubbled and "fried" in the oil right away. Since this was my first experience with fondue cooking, I tried a variety of items. Thawed out some ahi tuna, and a small beef strip steak, pressed them between several paper towels, to sop up as much moisture as possible. Then, I put them in paper towels in ziplock bags, and put them into the fridge. Later, I put them on the counter to warm up to room temperature. I also cubed some rye bread and some whole-grain bread. Then, I cleaned some pearl onions, some little baby red potatoes, cauliflower, brussels sprouts, and baby portabella mushrooms. The pearl onions I left whole - minus the skins and ends. The baby potatoes I left whole, cut the cauliflower in chunks, the brussels sprouts I cut in half, and I sliced the baby portabella mushrooms in thick pieces. When I was finished, I let all of it come to room temperature, and made sure all of the food was dry. WELL, my husband was VERY surprised. He had been on the computer the entire time I was prepping the food, and - thankfully - didn't ask what I was doing. (Normally, he would have...) He loved it! The beef was excellent, he said, and the tuna. We BOTH thought the pearl onions were the best of the vegetables, the mushrooms were great, I loved the brussels sprouts and cauliflower, and we both liked the rye bread. The whole grain bread wasn't as good, surprisingly. As for the red potatoes? They were a disappointment. I believe they were just too moist inside to thoroughly cook in a few minutes, and even when I cut a small slice of one and put it in the hot oil in the pot, it did not cook fast. The fondue pot kept its heat the entire time we were eating, the forks were fine, and we are very pleased. A WORD OF CAUTION! The stainless steel rim, that allows the fondue forks to rest in the pot, is EXTREMELY SHARP underneath its rim. As I was cleaning it after dinner, I sliced a pretty good sized gash in my finger. BE CAREFUL! Because I have a store that deals with metals, I took it to work with me to smooth it down with my rubber wheel burs. The piece was evidently stamped out, and the edges were left "raw". It cut me as if it had been a razor blade. If you are near a metal shop, or a jewelry store that does repairs, or know how to smooth metal yourself - get that rough underside rim of the fork holder sanded down. Other than that, we love the pot, and intend to use it a lot!
