These simple but magical pots are universal tools in every kitchen.
May 7, 2019
The beauty of a Dutch—or French—ovens is you can brown meats on the stovetop, then add some stock for tender braising and end up in the oven smoothly. Good Dutch ovens might be expensive but might not always a splurge. Since new cast-iron Dutch ovens have no big difference from the past decades, the cost directly reflects the quality of the pot. Also, the heirloom pots usually carry longer or even lifetime warranty.
The Winner
Le Creuset Signature 5 ½-quart French Oven
Time has proofed, Le Creuset is the go-to choice for chefs—including America’s Test Kitchen—and serious home cooks as an unbeatable gold-standard Dutch oven. This French oven heats super evenly, sears the best, crafts the finest and lasts to your next generation. Comparing to other quality pots, it has more practical design—wide loop base, much lighter weight and large handles for comfy gripping with potholders. What’s more? The various gorgeous colors—plus special editions—make more enjoyable cooking.
Budget Pick
Lodge Enameled 6-quart Cast-Iron Dutch Oven
This is a most unbeatable budget-but-reliable Dutch ovens in the market. For a fraction of the Le Creuset’s cost, it performs imposing. It delivers tasty stews, well-browned meats and a flavorful, concentrated stock—comes very close to premium ones. The light-colored finish, roomy cooking base with curved bottom edges allow comfortably searing and browning without crowded. The pot is built sturdy but rather heavy at about 15 pounds. Also, Lodge offers wide color and size selection to suit your need.
Most Juicy Braise
This heirloom cocotte cooks as great as its beauty. At the same size, it has wider bottom and taller sides for handling more food to sear at once. The matte black interior is nice for hiding scuffs and better for developing nonstick but makes difficult to see brown fond for novices. The signature lid—tight-fitting flat shape with tiny spikes inside—helps better trapping moist that delivers more intense, juicier flavor for braises and stews. Plus, the dazzling color and fun limited edition are attractive for cooking and sitting on dinner table.
Solid Performer Under $100
Marquette Castings 6-quart Dutch Oven
This new-in oven is made quality, cooks effectively and cleans up easily. The construction is pleasing—it has nice and robust coating while the wide base, short sides shape let good for browning and sautéing jobs. The pot feels substantial but has comfort weight, at 13.57 pounds, to use regularly. The extended loop handles make comfy to grip even with oven mitts, but the gorgeous metal knob is a bit too sharp and uncomfortable to grip. Of all, this under $100* oven has a lifetime warranty.
Best Lightweight
Milo Classic 5.5-quart Dutch Oven
The Milo is impressive for the price. With less than a half price of top-notch ovens, it offers full-packed features—solidly made, fast and even heat distribution, light glossy finish, easy cleaning and lifetime warranty. This oven cooks even faster than the Le Creuset and has no big difference on evenness. Milo has obviously less tight-fitted lid that makes slightly quicker loss of liquid than other pots. We like the crisp-and-clean French-inspired design and comfort weight at only 12 pounds. Say, you’ll get a decent oven without breaking the bank.
Best Multi-purpose
Lodge L8DD3 5-quart Cast-Iron Dutch Oven
This is a most versatile pot that performs great on flexible heat sources—from braising on stovetops, baking bread in the oven, making barbecue on the grill stove to roasting chicken at a campfire. The best bet is: you buy one, you got two. The multi-purpose lid can be transformed to a 10.5” fry pan for frying eggs, searing meats or roasting chicken, while saves extra cleanup and no wasted drippings. On the top of that, this sturdy pot cost under $50*.
Full Featured
Combekk 6.3-quart RAILWAY Recycled Enameled Cast Iron
This all-made-in-Holland oven embraces environment-friendly philosophy—made of 100% iron railroad tracks and recycled materials. Not only the backstory, Combekk performs excellently. With 6-mm thick bottom and solid made, it delivers good heat retention. The built-in thermometer allows for precisely control your delicate recipes, slow cooks and deep fries. The self-basting lid produces moist, tender and intense-flavored braises, quite like Staub’s. Say, if you look for extremely robust pot with lots of features and don’t mind for 16.5 pounds, this oven is fulfilled.
Editor’s Choice
Landhaus Professional 6.2-quart Enameled Cast Iron Dutch Oven
This oven comes close to heirloom pots in more affordable price—It has quality craft, cooks beautifully and looks stunning. Above from thick and neat construction, it has self-basting spikes in the lid, like Stuab, which makes juicer and tastier flavor—perfect for braises, stews and pot roasts without drying out meats. The cream-colored interior coat feels substantial and is easy to clean, while the 2 changeable knobs (gold brass and silver chrome) are a real bonus. With the price, this gorgeous oven is such a well-worth buying.
Cuisinart 7-quart Cast-Iron Casserole ($99*), was recommended from America’s Test Kitchen as an affordable pick, performs admirably—easily to develop fonds, cooks evenly and has practical shape to use. However, it got many complaints about durability of the coatings, which were mostly found chipping and wearing within months of use.
Martha Stewart Enameled 6-quart Dutch Oven ($99*) offers beautiful and practical design, has roomy cooking space, easily produces beautiful browns and has a most comfortable handle for securely grasp with oven mitts. However, it has durability issues—above from the recall in 2011 from faulty and potentially dangerous enamel of China production, some users found peeling coats and flaking exterior.
Tramontina 5.5-quart Enameled Cast-Iron Dutch Oven ($79*) has narrow base and tall sides that make less room and difficult to handle browning chunky meat or bigger batches.
Ikea Senior 5.3-quart Casserole with Lid ($49*) has satisfied cooking ability. It sears evenly and crisply, stews tenderly and delivers tastety braises. It has drip-off spikes insides the lid for self-basting effects, like Staub’s and also has dark finish inside. However, we prefer traditional hole handles their plate-liked handles, which having less secure and uncomfortable to grasp. For under $50, the overall features make it good buying.
VonShef 6.3-quart Cast-Iron Round Dutch Oven Pot Casserole Dish ($49*) offers ready-to-show design—far more stylish than the cost—and roomy space for cooking. However, comparing to Lodge, the cooking performance is less effective, and the coating is much less durable in comparable price.