Which Enamel Cast Iron Dutch Oven?
 

Question for you cooking Pelicans. Or for your better halves.

I want to get a heavy enamel cast iron Dutch oven. Probably by Le Creuset or similar. Use would be stews, roasts, casseroles, no-knead bread, and - shame - popcorn.

1. What size? I already have heavy copper stockpots in 6 and 9 qt and various saucepots up to 3 qt, so I thought a 4 qt would fit right in. But is this too small?

2. Round or oval? Pot roasts are usually round-ish, but chickens are more oval. Does it matter?

3. Do the drip bumps on the underside of the Staub lids make any difference?

i have a 5 qt le crueset, and i think it is too small. but it is about the upper limits for my wife when it comes to moving it about. i usually wash it, and move it in and out of the oven loaded. i would love the 7 qt. loaded up with a stew, i bet you would definately need to "lift with the legs"

i've made bread, and believe me, it will take your $300 pot and make it look like krap. knowing what i know now, i would bake the bread in two cast iron fry pans inverted over each other. cast iron cant get any blacker. or get that china made one from Target. i've ruined the look of my pot.

my friend has one with the drip buttons, not a Staub. cant tell if his chicken is more juicy than mine or not.

the 5 qt is a tad small if i cook for friends. a seven would be perfect.
not so sure i would visit France for my next one. everybody makes a version now. i would save a $100 and get some Emeril or Rachel, or Mario..(you get the point)

I have two made by Cuisinart, a round one and an oval one. They work great.

Heavier than snot though .......

Round one is 7 quart:
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1301956640.jpg

oval one is 5 1/2 quart.
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1301956666.jpg


We use the bigger round one more often.

Dutch oven? And no one has made a joke. You guys are slipping.....

Le Creuset is good.

1. Bigger is better. 4 qts. is useless. Look at the two biggest ones.

2. Doesn't matter. If you get a smaller one, get an oval one.

3. No.

JR

Thanks. One other question - I have 6 and 9 qt thick copper stockpots. Will a Le Creuset of the same size cook differently enough that I should get one? $300 worth of difference?

$300? Are you freaking kidding me? There are people out there who will pay $300 for a $110 piece of cookware?

I never woulda believed it.

I got a 7 or 8 qt oval Martha Stewart for $70. It works great. I use it at least once or 2x a week. It is starting to discolor inside a bit, not sure if there's a way to clean it or not, but it gets and stays hot. If i damage it i won't sweat it like i would a Le Creuset

Sammy, I have resisted the $300 Le Creuset so far. The Le Creuset pieces we have cost $15 for all four from a garage sale. But I've spent that much on copper pots, and 10 years later, the money doesn't matter, nor will it matter to my kids when they get the pots.

why not get it powder coated red. wouldn't that save more than $200.00?

Not sure I want to cook on powder coating, not without knowing a lot more about what's in powder coat and what it's letting off at 500F. Look, they are pots, they are supposed to get ugly.

Its red enamel outside, white on the inside. It does discolor with all those heat cycles but who cares? The cast iron skillet gets a regular workout too, the more you use it the better it gets.

LOL, obviously SOMEONE is paying those high prices.
you get what you pay for ..... ;)

OTOH, I almost never eat dinner in restaurants - maybe once every other month (unless traveling of course). I figure that makes up for the spendy cookware.

We have a Staub and a Le Creuset. The Staub is slight better.

http://www.staubusa.com/images/home/anim/2cocottes.jpg

no mention of why enamel in the first place

I assume it is for ease of clean up?

Le Creuset is there even an alternative?
Get the biggest you possibly can

Why not consider a lodge or similar, enameled or not.

Had creuset for ages, they are great.
There's also one with a lid made to put water in.. So the cooking vapour condences in the pot and thus it drips on the meat.. keeping it moist.

http://www.lecreuset.com/Global/Prod...5084_32_06.jpg

Had em at home when i was growing up, now in the process of buying my own.. these things outlast the owner if they are not mistreated badly.