11 Types Of Chocolate Perfect For Your Next Fondue

A fondue is a large pot of warm, bubbling, and perfectly melted cheese: Typically, small skewers of vegetables, fruit, or small bits of bread are dipped into the pot of liquid, golden goodness. A fondue makes for a wonderful party favor. 

Chocolate fondue is an American iteration of cheese fondue. Chocolate fondue emerged as a result of the fondue craze that was prevalent in the 1960s. These sweet fountains are common at parties and large gatherings. Chocolate fondue makes a great accompaniment to sweet treats and fruits. 

Just as there are many types of cheese that can be used to make a savory fondue, there are also numerous kinds of chocolate you can melt to make a rich, sweet, and creamy fondue that goes perfectly with chocolate-covered strawberries. Each type of chocolate will bring a different kind of flavor to the table. 

The kind of chocolate that will work for your fondue will depend on your taste preferences as well as the accompaniments you intend to serve with your fondue. There are several different types of chocolate out there, so, before you make your next fondue, you might want to familiarize yourself with the chocolate varieties that are best for making the perfect chocolate-based dipping sauce.

Milk chocolate is commonly used in chocolate candies such as M&Ms, Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, simple chocolate bars, and many Hershey's chocolate products. According to a Mashed survey, milk chocolate is most people's preferred chocolate of choice. 

Dark chocolate was the second-most-popular type of chocolate, with 36% of people claiming it was their go-to cacao treat, followed by white chocolate, which came in at 11% popularity. Milk chocolate is definitely a consumer favorite. It is just about everywhere, and that includes fondues. Many cascading chocolate fondue fountains are made of milk chocolate. Milk chocolate is rich and creamy; it pairs wonderfully well with sweet treats such as strawberries, pretzels, or even marshmallows. 

It's also much sweeter than dark or bittersweet chocolate, which makes it ideal for chocolate lovers with a sweet tooth. If you're planning an event featuring a chocolate fondue, then choosing milk chocolate will ensure a fondue that is a decadent success. 

Bittersweet chocolate can be incredible for giving your fondues a slightly bitter yet rich taste. This type of chocolate may not be as popular or renowned as its dark chocolate and milk chocolate counterparts but it's still a fantastic variety. According to Ina Garten, bittersweet chocolate is perfect for baking. 

If this chocolate is ideal for baking then why not use it for fondue too? Bittersweet chocolate is essentially dark chocolate with some added sugar, and it possesses wonderful notes of bitterness along with an extra note of sweetness (via MasterClass). However, unlike milk chocolate, bittersweet chocolate is made with pure cacao and sugar sans milk. 

According to Lazar's Chocolate, bittersweet chocolate contains 70% cacao. It's the perfect kind of chocolate for fondue fans as well as those that enjoy a strong, slightly sweetened flavor of cacao. Since this chocolate leans towards bitterness in terms of taste, a fondue made with bittersweet chocolate will be an instant hit with fans of dark chocolate. Bittersweet chocolate fondue is wonderful when enjoyed with something sweet and fruity, such as strawberries and raspberries, or even a rich, enjoyable dessert. 

White chocolate may not be as popular as other types of chocolate but it is nevertheless beloved among its fans. White chocolate wasn't categorized as an actual type of chocolate until the FDA amended the definition of chocolate (via The Nibble). White chocolate doesn't have any actual cocoa solids in it: It's made with milk solids and cocoa butter. This lightly colored chocolate is commonly used as a base for cookies and cream flavored chocolate products and items such as the Starbucks Toasted White Chocolate Mocha. 

Since white chocolate works well with drinks and sweet treats, it also makes a wonderful base for fondue. White chocolate has a lighter taste than dark chocolate. It has hints of vanilla and a mild, yet sweet and creamy taste that is ideal for fondues. Foods such as blueberries, popcorn, or citrus fruits are perfect for dipping into white chocolate fondues since they pair wonderfully well with a light, decadent chocolate topping and the result is an incredibly scrumptious dessert. 

A good quality box of chocolate can be pretty expensive, and while you don't need tons of chocolate for a successful fondue, you do still need a fair bit in order to achieve a rich and satisfying melted dessert. While some chocolate brands such as Hershey's and Dove varieties are relatively cheap, some of the best types of chocolates can be as expensive as several bottles of wine. Fortunately, chocolate isn't the only dessert fondue ingredient option out there: If you've looking for a cheaper chocolate substitute, then compound chocolate is a great option. 

According to Top Tier Chocolate, compound chocolate is essentially imitation chocolate: It contains a small amount of cocoa powder along with vegetable oils and sweeteners. It might not taste as rich and decadent as genuine chocolate but it's a great option for people who are looking for a type of chocolate that has a limited amount of cocoa. Compound chocolate is available for a reasonable price in bulk quantities, which is perfect for anyone who needs large amounts of chocolate for their next fondue party.

Dark chocolate, along with milk chocolate, is one of the most popular types of chocolate out there. Dark chocolate has a rather bitter flavor that is closer to the cocoa bean and cocoa powder than the sweetness of milk chocolate. It has less sugar and must contain around 35% cocoa solids than milk chocolate (via Recette Magazine). 

Unlike milk chocolate, dark chocolate contains zero to small amounts of milk. The lack of sugar and milk gives the chocolate a more bitter taste that may even be considered "savory" in some regards, according to Hotel Chocolat. If you have a sweet tooth, you may be wondering about the taste benefits of bitter dark fondue. 

Dark chocolate fondue is certainly a lot more bitter than milk or white chocolate fondues but this allows the sweet taste of any possible dipping ingredients to stand out even more. Fruits, sweet cakes, and crackers, along with other sweeter foods, really come alive with a dark chocolate fondue. If you find dark chocolate enticing then you should definitely use it for your next surprisingly spectacular batch of fondue.

While it may be more suited to warmer months, mint chocolate is a year-round treat that is a sweet, cool spin on your typical milk or dark chocolate. It's a wonderful chocolate flavor that is often used in hot chocolate, cookies, and chocolate. Since both milk chocolate and dark chocolate can both be quite rich, the addition of the mint in the mix makes for a refreshingly sweet flavor that uplifts the dense and heavy intensity of chocolate. 

The mint plant grows in a chocolate mint variety that can be added to hot teas or used for making mint chocolate (via Specialty Produce). Since mint works well for chocolate-based treats and drinks as well as hot teas and hot chocolate, it also works wonderfully in chocolate fondues. Simply mix milk with dark chocolate, milk chocolate, along with peppermint baking chunks and peppermint schnapps, and you'll find yourself with a refreshingly cool chocolate fondue (via Food Fanatic). 

Dipping a marshmallow in mint chocolate fondue feels like drinking a delicious mint hot chocolate! If you love all things mint chocolate, then a fondue of this flavor is definitely worth trying. 

Chocolate is available in many different forms as well as types. You may be familiar with chocolate bars in grocery store checkout aisles, but chocolate is also available in smaller pieces in candy shops. However, no matter what form your chocolate is in, it all leads to the same thing: A wonderfully rich, decadent, and sweet flavorful experience for your taste buds. 

Due to their flat, thin nature, chocolate wafers are commonly used for baking and are often used as a coating for fruit and other candies (via Guittard Chocolate). Since chocolate wafers tend to melt easily, they are perfect for making fondues. The process of waiting for chocolate to melt can be tedious, especially when the promise of a delicious chocolate fondue is just out of reach. For this reason, chocolate discs make for a quick and delicious fondue. 

Chocolate wafers are available in white, dark, and milk chocolate varieties, allowing you to alter the taste of your fondue based on whichever kind of chocolate you prefer. Chocolate wafers are one of the most delicious and convenient ways of making chocolate fondue. 

Commonly found types of chocolate such as white, dark, and milk flavored varieties all have a unique taste and look to them, and each is recognizable in its own right. If you've ever stepped inside a chocolate shop or even just a regular grocery store like Whole Foods, then you've likely come across another kind of chocolate bar, which has quite an unusual coloring: Ruby chocolate is a newer kind of chocolate that, according to Food Network, is made with ruby cacao beans that originate in Brazil, Ecuador, or the Ivory Coast.

Ruby chocolate has a bright pink coloring and distinct hints of fruit (via Huffpost). Using ruby chocolate in a fondue will create a milky, fruit-flavored chocolate fondue. Graham crackers, marshmallows, and other snacks are wonderful for dipping into ruby chocolate fondue. Fruit also works really well with ruby chocolate fondue. This decadent chocolate liquid is truly a wonderful dessert that elevates the taste buds with its creamy, fruity flavors.  

All types of chocolate have different amounts of cocoa, milk, and sugar, giving them all distinct levels of sweetness, and various delicious flavors. Dark chocolate alone is available in three different varieties: Regular dark chocolate, bittersweet chocolate, and semi-sweet chocolate. Semi-sweet chocolate is a chocolate that is made up of about 35% to 65% cocoa solids, as compared to bittersweet chocolate's 70% solid cocoa content (as per Nutstop). The result is a chocolate that is a sweeter version of regular and dark chocolate, though it isn't as sweet as milk chocolate.

Semi-sweet chocolate is the perfect blend of sugar and cocoa for any chocolate lover, particularly those who like sweet treats but don't enjoy super sweet chocolate. Additionally, semi-sweet chocolate is ideal for people who want to consume a kind of dark chocolate, but don't want to start off with an overly bitter candy.

Semi-sweet chocolate can be used to make some pretty wonderful fondues too. It's sweet enough to balance out the salty taste of a pretzel, should you choose to dip those into your sugary fondue. A semi-sweet chocolate fondue could also pair well with sweeter dipping items, like apple slices or sweet almonds.

Blonde chocolate is a modern creation. It was created by pastry chef Frédéric Bau when he accidentally left white chocolate out to roast in a bain-marie for a few hours too long (via Dame Cacao). Blonde chocolate may have been an accidental creation, but there's no mistaking that it's an incredible addition to our pre-existing chocolate flavors, and therefore, an exciting type of chocolate for the purposes of a fondue. 

Blonde chocolate has a much different flavor from regular types of chocolate and is said to have a more butterscotch or caramel-like taste (via The Chocolate Society). This makes it absolutely perfect for fondues. The taste of blonde chocolate tends to work well with apples and is somewhat reminiscent of a caramel apple with a chocolate fondue spin, which sounds simply incredible. 

This fondue could also work really well with other accompaniments such as salty pretzel sticks, or more typically, with fruit such as strawberries. So, if you manage to get your hands on enough blonde chocolate, make sure you try the blonde chocolate fondue. 

There's no denying that there's something incredible about chocolate. While dark chocolate may be more bitter than milk chocolate, and white chocolate tends to be a little milder, each type of flavor has a unique, delicious aspect that brings a specific flavor to ice cream sundaes, baking recipes, and, of course, fondues. However, if you're someone who likes all kinds of chocolates and is a little indecisive regarding which kind of chocolate you should use to make your next fondue then you'll be happy to know that you don't have to limit yourself to just one kind of chocolate.

You can mix together different chocolates into your fondue as per your liking. Some chocolate experts claim that a mixture of three parts semisweet chocolate, along with two parts bittersweet chocolate will make for a great fondue (via Sweet Events Bay Area). That being said, you can choose the chocolates you want, and create a mixture that fits your preferences, whether that's mixing dark chocolate and ruby chocolate, or semi-sweet and blonde chocolate. Just pick whichever chocolate floats your boat and make the perfect fondue for you.