I have always heard great things, but either never paid much attention, or listened to others who now that I realize it, never had a good thing to say about anything.
Last week I grabbed a deal on a 5.5 qt Le Creuset French Oven. I can’t stop using it. it’s great. Easy cleanup, perfect braises, just amazing. The best $140 I have ever paid in the kitchen.
Now I have to try the no-knead bread. (I purchased the metal handle for $10 on Amazon).
I love my les creuset pots. There’s an outlet store in Flemington that can have good deals usually because they are discontinuing a color. If you don’t care about the color, you can get great deals.
I dunno… Maybe Tex can dazzle you with fancy words and misdirection.
I just know that we’ve tried a couple of what I would call knockoff brands of similar cookware and they either got damaged too easily or just didn’t perform as well with even temperature control or whatever.
Personally, I compare it to the build quality of a BMW vs a Chevy GEO. Both will get you where you are going. One will do it with less squeaks and overall weirdness.
PS - The wife and I are already into the second bottle of the night so if my analogies are slightly askew, please forgive me.
I have the Le Creuset French Oven which I like well enough, but my trusty old cast iron dutch ovens, especially the giant 13" one, are what I use most often. They especially excel when the meat needs to be seared before braising. The lid has little spikes like the Staub pots which are said to facilitate self-basting, but I have no idea whether that makes any difference.
Clean-up is much easier with the cast iron, probably because it is black and you can’t see all of the residue. The cream-colored enamel of my Le Creuset pot is a pain to get clean. Soaking in bleach has been the only way to get it new-looking.
I love my Le Creuset and want a bigger one. I am always steeling my moms 8qt (or something like that). But I have been thinking I may get one of the Lodge dutch ovens. I think they are much cheaper. Thanks for you input on the cast iron.
Mike, going south on 202 it is a right on Church Street. Look for signs for Liberty Village Outlets.
To others, the difference to me is just quality. It’s enamel and cast iron but made very well. No chips, stains, bubbles. They will last a lifetime and be as good as the first day you bought them.
I used it again today with SMASHING results. Veal with spinach. Clean-up easy, especially after deglazing with white wine. Longer cooking time with less heat and the dish, one I usually do in a covered Calphalon Saute. Can’t really deglaze the saute like the Le Creuset anyhow. The Mrs. commented as well. I’m hooked.
BTW, I own cast iron like the Lodge, but never really got the hang of using them for this usage. The Chinese made ones are cheap and were never an option. These seem to be beautifully made.
+1
I use the 5qt almost daily. The 13.5qt is for the monster batches of chili, soups, and braised flanken.
Le Creuset just stands head and shoulders above all the knockoffs (except maybe Staub) in terms of quality. The outlet store in Flemington also deals in their “2nds” (oversprayed enamel, and other appearance defects) that are a great deal because they’re warrantied but are marked way down.
My daughter will pass these pans down to her kids for sure.