Cholera

There is a persistent rumor that this dish is, indeed, named for the cholera disease, after a particularly bad outbreak in the 1830s. People in the Valais stayed home to avoid contamination and were forced to use things they already had in their larder and gardens to feed their families.

Another possibility is that it’s named after the glowing coal in the fireplace where the pan would have sat to bake (known in Wallisertitsch, the German-based regional dialect, as Chola or