Best Cheap Oval Cocotte?

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DitmasPork said:
Cool. Personally, I'm looking for something that's in the 5–7 qt ballpark. Yeah, Le Creuset (or Staub) would be great, but beyond my current budget, hence the theme of this thread. Lotta good thoughtsrecommendations here—biggest takeaway for me, was being aware of enamel quality, which I'd not even considered.
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Then I think the choice is fairly obvious,,, go with the Tramontina. It seems to get fairly good and consistent reviews. Just avoid banging metal spoons on the rim. If possible, buy at Costco, because they offer the best no-quibble return policy.
 
FWIW, I see Staub fairly regularly at Home Goods, which is a retailer under the same parent company as Marshalls, TJ Maxx, etc. I don't recall specific pricing, and I don't think that they quite got down to that $100 price point, but I've seen some very aggressive deals that were certainly close enough that the lifetime nature of the pieces would make the difference worthwhile, IMO (I want to say that 150-, 160-ish). If I hadn't already had most of my enameled cast iron bases covered, I would have been sorely tempted on a half-dozen occasions. I mean, I was still tempted, but, ya know...
 
One thing that hasn't been mentioned so far, is the possibility of "crazing" with cheaper enamelled cast-iron cookware. (hairline cracks in the enamel). This crazing can build up over time, reducing the effectiveness of the non-stick properties. Avoiding rapid temperature extremes can help to a degree.
 
Bobby2shots said:
Then I think the choice is fairly obvious,,, go with the Tramontina. It seems to get fairly good and consistent reviews. Just avoid banging metal spoons on the rim. If possible, buy at Costco, because they offer the best no-quibble return policy.
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Cheers. I think right now the front runner for me is Made In, which are manufactured in France. The Tramontina would be my good budget option, but a little hesitant because they're apparently made in China. Not pulling the trigger imminently, still window shopping.
https://madeincookware.com/products/dutch-oven
 
DitmasPork said:
Cool. Personally, I'm looking for something that's in the 5–7 qt ballpark. Yeah, Le Creuset (or Staub) would be great, but beyond my current budget, hence the theme of this thread. Lotta good thoughtsrecommendations here—biggest takeaway for me, was being aware of enamel quality, which I'd not even considered.
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Here ya go,,, this is from Costco.ca (Canada). 2 pots for $99.99 CDN or roughly $78.00 U.S.

https://www.costco.ca/tramontina-cast-iron-covered-casserole-set,-2-piece.product.100530311.html
 
DitmasPork said:
It’s for me, not a gift, would be put to fairly regular (weekly) use in my home kitchen. I’ve been considering the cheap route, but putting on the breaks after reading other comments on this thread. TBH, I never thought about enamel quality—the only enameled pot we have is my wife’s Le Creuset, it’s about 20 years old.
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My thinking is vintage all the way... For $100 or less you can find an oval in really nice shape, made in europe (France or Belgium or Denmark).
 
DitmasPork said:
Cheers! I'd just signed up for Costco a couple of months ago.
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Just be aware that some dealers will sell "factory seconds".

I just searched Costco.com (U.S.A.) and couldn't find the 2-piece Tramontina set. Mind you, Costco.com is their mail-order site,,, so, you may find it much cheaper at your local Costco warehouse.
 
Bobby2shots said:
Just be aware that some dealers will sell "factory seconds".

I just searched Costco.com (U.S.A.) and couldn't find the 2-piece Tramontina set. Mind you, Costco.com is their mail-order site,,, so, you may find it much cheaper at your local Costco warehouse.
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I've bought Tramontina mixing bowls at my CostCo, I'm sure they have the Dutch Ovens. Gotta sleep on the options.
 
Bobby2shots said:
Amen to that; I got a heckuca deal on a year-end clearance from Staub. They had prices reduced by 40%,,,, but,,, after putting the items in my cart, I got a further 40% off that reduced price. To their credit, they honoured the price even though there was an obvious error on their website. I ended up buying 2 Staub cocottes. The next morning I was going to buy a couple more, but they had now "fixed" the error.

I've also got a few Le Creuset (braiser and large Dutch oven) plus I bought a Le Creuset "stainless" saucier with beautifully rounded bottom edges..
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I also have the saucier and it is absolutely wonderful. If I’m making something with a roux base, I start it in there and then transfer to the Dutch oven. I like to start the onions in the roux after it reaches the desired color.
 
Ditmas, approach this with an open mind. I’m a nut for clay and ceramics,I think they bring a new dimension to things. I tend to brown the meat for my braises in carbon steel then I’ll sauté the mirepoix in the Dutch oven or clay pot. I don’t own one of these Emile Henry’s but I have tons of la Chamba. If I needed it, this is what I’d buy. Love it or hate it, at least I’m not dishing out the same old recommendation!

https://www.emilehenryusa.com/products/oval-dutch-oven
if you’re intrigued with the idea and you want to go all in, buy one of these


https://ancientcookware.com/la-chamba-collection/black-clay-la-chamba-oval-casserole-detail
 
rickbern said:
Ditmas, approach this with an open mind. I’m a nut for clay and ceramics,I think they bring a new dimension to things. I tend to brown the meat for my braises in carbon steel then I’ll sauté the mirepoix in the Dutch oven or clay pot. I don’t own one of these Emile Henry’s but I have tons of la Chamba. If I needed it, this is what I’d buy. Love it or hate it, at least I’m not dishing out the same old recommendation!

https://www.emilehenryusa.com/products/oval-dutch-oven
if you’re intrigued with the idea and you want to go all in, buy one of these


https://ancientcookware.com/la-chamba-collection/black-clay-la-chamba-oval-casserole-detail
Click to expand...

Cheers! I'm actually fan of Emile Henry, have a ceramic oval roasting pan that I use regularly. I've nothing against ceramic/earthenware—much of my braising done in an old, cheap, Chinese claypot. The claypot has served me well—but searching for something larger in the 5–7qt range. I'll choeck out those links.
 
I've been meaning to order an Emile Henry bread "cloche" for quite some time. I've got some Staub ceramic 9" and 11" pie-plates which are very nice, and a large oval ceramic covered casserole from Le Creuset, as well as a few of the smaller Le Creuset covered rectangular and square ceramic casseroles. The Cloche comes in red, or charcoal, and this one which is called "linen".

1644817283271.png
 
Most anything going in the oven, I like bare cast iron. No worry of chipping or cracking over time, and if the seasoning gets damaged, I can repair it myself. Only unless I was going a heavy tomato based sauce would I look elsewhere for oven use. Even pricey enameled products can crack and chip if not cared for properly. Nothing to be done about that, but a rusty raw cast iron pan/oven can be brought back from the brink of disintegration if you try hard enough.

We have a Martha Stewart enameled dutch oven for 6-7 years now and have not had any trouble with it. But it is not a high-use item. We use it for making soups, chilis, and other liquid based foods that require some simmer time. This is what I like the enamel for, protection against acidic dishes and long cook times with a lot of liquid. Probably use it once a month for 6 years. Which is actually more than the seasoned cast iron dutch ovens now that I think of it.

Anything roasted in the oven is usually accompanied by enough fat to keep the raw cast iron nice and glossy. Washes out with a bit of warm water every time. It helps that my dutch ovens are all older and as smooth on the inside as an equivalent enameled product.
 
Personally, I'm not a fan of using bare cast iron for any kind of braise, but especially anything involving acid (wine, tomato). That means about 90% of the braising I do wouldn't go in cast iron. Acidity + heat + long cooking time = good way to strip seasoning. I really am not a fan of that metallic taste you can get when cooking for a long time in cast iron.
 
Yeah same here. The one thing I'm inclined to buy a bare cast iron Dutch oven for is bread baking. At least on my cheapo made in China enamelled cast iron the inside really started looking worse after preheating it empty in the oven a few times.
 
I almost pulled the trigger on a Staub oval cocotte from the Zwilling sale—but balked, couldn’t bare getting it in the red color up for offer. My search goes on.
 
DitmasPork said:
I almost pulled the trigger on a Staub oval cocotte from the Zwilling sale—but balked, couldn’t bare getting it in the red color up for offer. My search goes on.
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Not sure if you already bought something, but Staub is having another sale. The cherry 4 quart is still in stock for 120. There is a 5.5 quart in white too if you are looking for bigger pot for not much more. Warning these have visual imperfection (in my case, nothing) and is final sale.

https://www.zwilling.com/us/staub-c...ry-sale#srule=price-low-to-high&start=1&sz=48
https://www.zwilling.com/us/staub-c...839-5.html?cgid=exclusive-spring-factory-sale
 
NotAddictedYet said:
Not sure if you already bought something, but Staub is having another sale. The cherry 4 quart is still in stock for 120. There is a 5.5 quart in white too if you are looking for bigger pot for not much more. Warning these have visual imperfection (in my case, nothing) and is final sale.

https://www.zwilling.com/us/staub-c...ry-sale#srule=price-low-to-high&start=1&sz=48
https://www.zwilling.com/us/staub-c...839-5.html?cgid=exclusive-spring-factory-sale
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Cheers! Really appreciate the tip! The 5.5qt seems perfect for me. However, I've stopped looking—been slammed with some medical bills, with more to come, so gotta tighten the purse strings.
 
DitmasPork said:
Cheers. I think right now the front runner for me is Made In, which are manufactured in France. The Tramontina would be my good budget option, but a little hesitant because they're apparently made in China. Not pulling the trigger imminently, still window shopping.
https://madeincookware.com/products/dutch-oven
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i think i am liking that Made-in. and apparently it comes in Blue!! my favorite color. i might get one..soon.
 
I've had an enameled cast iron dutch oven from Tramontina for like... going on the better part of 20 years now. Cook's Illustrated had put it as their best buy, so that's what I went for instead of the winning Le Creuset that cost six times as much. I think I got it at Walmart for like $40. Anyway, it has held up great and still gets busted out frequently for big braises and large batches of chili. [Edit: It looks like I already expressed these sentiments a couple months back in the thread. Apologies for the reiteration.]

The Made In looks nice enough, but if you're willing to pay $199, you may as well wait to find Le Creuset or Staub on sale.
 
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