Which Dutch Oven is Right For You?

There are many brands of Dutch ovens to buy.  There is also a big variety of sizes which can make it all a little confusing.  Which Dutch oven is the best to fit your needs?

Which Dutch oven is right for you?

Here are a few tips to think about:

• The first thing I would think about is what are you going to use your Dutch oven for?  Are you planning to cook for large groups or small family get-togethers, or maybe you are going to use it for everyday cooking?
• What are you going to cook in your Dutch oven?  Will you be cooking main dishes or just cobblers and other desserts?  If you are cooking main dishes you may use the bigger ovens, but then it depends on how many you will be feeding.  For cobblers, you generally use the smaller ovens
• Where will you be cooking?  If you will be cooking with briquettes, over fires or on various gas cookers you will want to use a regular cast iron dutch oven.  If you will be cooking in your conventional oven you might not want any legs so it will slide easily on the oven rack and sit flat on your burner.  You may even consider a porcelain dutch oven for this purpose.

Which size should I choose?

After deciding what you will be using it for it is time to look at the sizes and the brands of the Dutch ovens.  Dutch ovens can be a little on the expensive side, but a good brand will last you a lifetime.

One of the first dutch ovens I purchased was a cheap one.  It is the last one I ever want to use to cook in.  The seasoning never took well on it.  It doesn’t seal down tight so it doesn’t cook as well as the others.  It is not a quality oven and does not do a good job for most of the dishes I want to cook.

My point is, you get what you pay for.  If you want a dutch oven that will serve you well you may need to pay the extra for it.

Some Dutch ovens come already seasoned and others you have to season your self.  This is not a scary project just a little time-consuming.

My favorite brands

There are many options to consider when choosing a dutch oven.  Just take your time and find the perfect one to fit your needs.  My favorite brands are Camp Chef and Lodge.  They are high quality, the lids fit well and they hold their finish.

Happy cooking!!  Please feel free to share this post.  I would love to hear your comments, just leave them below.

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