What do you use your Le Creuset/dutch oven for?

[Anonymous]

I have one and never use it. Admittedly, I had food issues in the past and would get nervous about using too much oil so got in the habit of using nonstick and minimal olive oil. I’d like to get some use of it now. What do you use yours for?

Anyone who can also talk about oil and how much they use etc? I also worry about ruining/burning my expensive cookware which translates to it collecting dust.

[Anonymous]

I have the dutch oven and the braiser and I use the brasier all the time since it has a large wide bottom and low sides. The dutch oven for pulled pork or pot roast, chili, soup, baked mac n cheese. I pretty much only use our stainless for pasta and rice

[Anonymous]

I have 2 sizes of LeCreuset Dutch ovens and use them for pasta sauce, stews, chili, roasts, anything that requires a lot of simmering time.

[Anonymous]

Literally everything. No joke. I have seven and use them all the time. Baking bread, baked pastas, braises, stews, soups, stocks, browning meat, slow-cooked dishes, dal, lentils...

There is nothing you cannot make in your dutch oven. Well, I don't use it for scrambled eggs. But baked egg casseroles? Absolutely.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have 2 sizes of LeCreuset Dutch ovens and use them for pasta sauce, stews, chili, roasts, anything that requires a lot of simmering time.

I should probably switch to using them for pasta sauce and when I’m simmering. Do you use more oil than you would in a nonstick pan? Like when you’re sautéing onions peppers etc before you add tomatoes?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Literally everything. No joke. I have seven and use them all the time. Baking bread, baked pastas, braises, stews, soups, stocks, browning meat, slow-cooked dishes, dal, lentils...

There is nothing you cannot make in your dutch oven. Well, I don't use it for scrambled eggs. But baked egg casseroles? Absolutely.

+1 I use mine almost every day.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Literally everything. No joke. I have seven and use them all the time. Baking bread, baked pastas, braises, stews, soups, stocks, browning meat, slow-cooked dishes, dal, lentils...

There is nothing you cannot make in your dutch oven. Well, I don't use it for scrambled eggs. But baked egg casseroles? Absolutely.

I love this forum!! Can you give more examples of what kind of stuff you’d made over a week or 2 week period? I’m really
trying to expand my repertoire.

[Anonymous]

Bread, risotto, pasta sauce, soups, roasts. I use it at least twice per week.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
I have one and never use it. Admittedly, I had food issues in the past and would get nervous about using too much oil so got in the habit of using nonstick and minimal olive oil. I’d like to get some use of it now. What do you use yours for?

Anyone who can also talk about oil and how much they use etc? I also worry about ruining/burning my expensive cookware which translates to it collecting dust.

I mean, I use it for recipes that call for a Dutch oven.

[Anonymous]

Piccadillo, beef curry, black eyed pea and mushroom stew, etc.

[Anonymous]

I also use mine for literally everything. Curries, chili, stews, pasta, baking bread (we use an old one for that), pho, pot roast or pork roast, dals, etc.

If I'm sauteeing onions I might use a few tablespoons of olive oil, maybe a little less. But given I'm usually making a large quantity of something I am not concerned about that amount.

[Anonymous]

Slow cooking: stews, curries.

Baking bread.

I haven't found it sticks, but then, I have stainless steel cookware apart from my Le Creuset cast iron, so I'm used to it. Sometimes I use a tiny amount of oil, sometimes I don't need to because the food I add first renders water (even meat). The only thing that sticks is eggs, and for eggs, you do need a good bit of oil, and to heat the oil completely before adding them in.

[Anonymous]

I use mine for all of the things listed above. Heck, last night, when we were having breakfast for dinner, I used it as a way to keep the pancakes warm. I sprayed the bottom with non-stick spray, kept the heat very low, and added them to the Dutch oven as I went. Perfect!

I also use it for fried rice (our family's favorite way to use up leftover rice if we order Chinese food). I have an 8 quart one, and it's easy to push the rice up to the sides and scramble the eggs in the middle.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Literally everything. No joke. I have seven and use them all the time. Baking bread, baked pastas, braises, stews, soups, stocks, browning meat, slow-cooked dishes, dal, lentils...

There is nothing you cannot make in your dutch oven. Well, I don't use it for scrambled eggs. But baked egg casseroles? Absolutely.

I love this forum!! Can you give more examples of what kind of stuff you’d made over a week or 2 week period? I’m really
trying to expand my repertoire.

Haha. Sure.

I bake sourdough every week and have two 4.5 quart ovens that I use for bread (and other small batch stuff). I have two so I can bake both loaves at once.

Also this week:
- duck fat fried potatoes last night in big Dutch oven
- poaching chicken breasts for Caesar salads tonight
- also tonight making an apple crisp that I’ll bake in one of the smaller ovens (cast iron is great for baking because it holds heat really consistently, is easier to pull from the oven than a baking dish because of the side handles, and I love having a lid for leftovers storage!)
- tomorrow night making dal and rice. I’ll use one oven for the dal, another for the rice. And my cast iron LC pan to heat up my naan.
- Thursday making homemade gnocchi and will boil the pasta and then toss with pesto in my Dutch oven.
- Friday pot stickers, again in my cast iron pan.
- Saturday I’m baking braised short ribs, polenta, and roasted green beans. I’ll probably use three for just the meal, although may do the green beans on a sheet pan.
- Sunday I’ll make stock and then soup, so that’s two more uses…

It goes on and on and on

[Anonymous]

I use it for literally everything except deep frying.