Beaufort Cheese substitute

Best substitute

Comte

Use the same amount as the beaufort cheese you are replacing

Best for fondue savoyarde

Close match

Comte is the closest cheese there is and swaps 1:1 with almost no detectable difference. Aged Gruyere is equally good and is the standard fondue partner anyway. Emmental melts fine but is much blander, so use it as no more than a third of the total and pair it with Gruyere or Comte for flavour.

Other beaufort cheese substitutes

Ranked, with the exact amount to use

2Aged Gruyere
Close match
Use the same amount
Swiss cooked-curd cheese, ideally a reserve or twelve-month version.
What changes
Best for
fondue, gratins, onion soup, quiche, sauces
Every bit as good a swap as Comte and easier to find in most shops. Slightly saltier and a shade more barnyardy, with a firmer bite. Melts identically and does not go stringy. Young supermarket Gruyere is milder and blander, so pay for an aged one if the cheese is the main flavour of the dish, as it is in fondue.
3Emmental
Taste and texture differ
1 part Emmental to 2 parts Gruyere or Comte
The large-holed Swiss cheese, mild and springy.
What changes
Best for
gratins, fondue blends, sandwiches, sauces
Melts very willingly and stretches more than Beaufort does, which is fine in a gratin but means a fondue made entirely of Emmental is both stringy and bland. It has a fraction of Beaufort's savoury depth. Used as a third of the blend alongside something sharper it is genuinely useful, and it is cheap.
4Raclette or Appenzeller
Different taste
Use the same amount
Other Alpine melting cheeses from Switzerland and the Savoie.
What changes
Best for
fondue, gratins, melted over potatoes, tartiflette
Both melt superbly. Raclette is milder and a little funkier and smells noticeably stronger when hot, so a fondue made with it tastes rounder and less nutty. Appenzeller is more pungent and herbal from its brine-washed rind, which gives a fondue real character but can dominate a delicate gratin. Either is a good and authentic choice for the region.
5Fontina Val d'Aosta
Taste and texture differ
Use the same amount
A semi-firm Italian Alpine cheese from just over the border.
What changes
Best for
fondue, gratins, polenta, baked pasta
Softer and creamier than Beaufort with an earthier, mushroomy flavour, and it melts exceptionally smoothly, which is why it is the cheese used in Italian fonduta. The dish comes out richer and looser than a Beaufort version, so reduce any cream or milk slightly. Buy the real Val d'Aosta cheese, not the mild Danish or Swedish fontina, which is much blander.
6Aged Gouda or Jarlsberg
Taste and texture differ
Use the same amount
Firm melting cheeses standing in when nothing Alpine is available.
What changes
Best for
gratins, sauces, baked dishes
The functional last resort. Jarlsberg melts well but is distinctly sweet and mild, so a fondue made from it tastes closer to a mild cheese sauce than to fondue savoyarde. Aged Gouda brings a caramelly, butterscotch sweetness and can turn slightly grainy at high heat. Both work mechanically; neither tastes like Beaufort.

What is Beaufort Cheese?

Beaufort Cheese is Beaufort is a large firm cooked-curd cow's milk cheese from the Savoie Alps, dense and slightly elastic with a deep nutty, fruity flavour and a distinctive concave rind, and it is a classic fondue and gratin cheese.

Cooking tips

Toss the grated cheese with a teaspoon of cornstarch per pound before it goes into the pot, and add it to warm rather than boiling wine in small handfuls, stirring in a figure-eight. The starch keeps the proteins from clumping and this is the difference between a glossy fondue and a grainy one.
Do not use pre-shredded cheese for fondue or a fine sauce. The anti-caking powder that stops the shreds sticking together also stops them melting smoothly, and the result is gritty. Grate it yourself, and grate it slightly chilled since these dense cheeses shred more cleanly cold.
If a fondue splits or turns stringy, take it off the heat and whisk in a splash of lemon juice or a little more dry white wine. Acid loosens the protein network and will usually bring it back together.
Use a genuinely dry, acidic white wine, something like an Alpine Apremont, a Riesling or a Sauvignon Blanc. A soft, low-acid or oaky wine gives a duller fondue that is also more prone to breaking.
The rind is natural and not wax, so it is not harmful, but it is usually trimmed rather than eaten. Save it and simmer it in soup or a pot of beans, where it releases a remarkable amount of savoury flavour.

Frequently asked questions

Is Beaufort the same as Gruyere?

They are different cheeses from different countries, but they are made by the same method, both being firm cooked-curd Alpine cheeses pressed into large wheels and aged for months. Beaufort tends to be denser and slightly more elastic with a fruitier finish, and its wheels have a distinctive concave edge from the wooden hoops used to shape them. For cooking, they are interchangeable.

Can I use Comte instead of Beaufort?

Yes, and it is the best substitution on this page. Swap 1:1 in fondue, gratins, quiche or a cheese board. Most people, including many who know both cheeses well, could not pick out which one was used in a cooked dish.

What is Beaufort d'Alpage?

It is the top tier, made only in summer from the milk of cows grazing high mountain pasture, in small batches at the chalets themselves. It is richer and more floral than standard Beaufort and costs considerably more. Beaufort d'ete is the summer version made in the valley, and plain Beaufort is winter milk. Any of them works in a recipe calling for Beaufort.

Can I leave Beaufort out of a fondue?

Not really, since the cheese is the entire dish. What you can do is replace it, which is easy because Comte, Gruyere and raclette are all authentic Alpine fondue cheeses in their own right. Most traditional recipes already call for a blend of two or three, so a mix of what your shop has will make an excellent fondue.

Why does my cheese sauce turn stringy instead of smooth?

Usually too much heat. Above a gentle simmer the proteins in Alpine cheeses tighten into strands and squeeze out their fat, which is what stringy-then-oily looks like. Keep the pot at a bare simmer, add the cheese off direct heat in handfuls, and use the cornstarch trick above.

Related substitutes

More cheese substitutes

Beaufort Cheese substitute

Other beaufort cheese substitutes

2Aged Gruyere

3Emmental

4Raclette or Appenzeller

5Fontina Val d'Aosta

6Aged Gouda or Jarlsberg