I have a few more thoughts in general about enameled cast iron.
I think
@parbaked mentioned preheating cast iron in the oven instead of on the stove top. This is EXTREMELY important for the enameled dutch ovens. It's also important how you do it. Heating empty enameled cast iron on the stove top is the easiest way to make the finish chip or crack. The next easiest way is placing a cold empty enameled cast iron into a really hot oven. If you need to have a hot pan for doing a sear for a braise, or a stir fry or something, here's what I would do. Put a cold dutch oven into a mild (275-300 F / 135-150 C) oven for five or ten minutes. Not too long or you can crack the enamel. Then pull it out, throw it on a burner on the stove top and immediately start cooking something.
Never throw a hot enamel cast iron into standing water or add a bunch of liquid to an empty hot dutch oven. There is some give to the enamel but if the cast iron is empty then it can heat up or cool down too fast and warp a little and that cracks the porcelain. Never use metal utensils or steel wool because they can scratch the enamel. Follow these rules and even a cheap one should last you for the rest of your life.
Le Creuset is still the champ in my mind. The biggest difference is in fit and finish. Good enameled cast iron is kind of similar to its porcelain cousin bone china. The best fine china has the lightest thinnest, but still very strong walls. It takes the most craftsmanship to create, has a higher rate of failure, and is thus more expensive. All of this is true with Le Creuset. They are the best fit and finish and the proof is that they are the lightest per volume of all the major makers. Lodge is fine but they are no Le Creuset. And it might not seem like a big deal but a 10 pound Dutch oven, vs a 16 pound Dutch oven is a big difference. Especially after you add 8 or 10 pounds of food and liquid to it. Lighter weight, generally better castings, and the lifetime guarantee are the main reasons to pay the premium for the Le Creuset. Before I moved to Boston I had a nice collection going of about a dozen pieces. Several them were garage sale pieces that I paid pennies for. Unfortunately I had to get rid of most of them when we left our 4 bedroom house for a tiny apartment. Here are the 3 I kept.
Doufeu - This gets used the most. I love it for stews and braises. You are supposed to put ice in the weird lid to encourage steam convection inside the pot as it cooks. I don't know if this is true or not, but I can tell you that these doufeus are usually quite a bit cheaper than the Dutch Ovens that are the same size and they go on sale more often, so something to consider. I think I tried it with ice once and was underwhelmed. But the pot in general is one of my favorites to cook with.
Rectangle braiser - I pretty much only use this and smaller Dutch oven when we are entertaining - hence the dust. They are great, just not necessary all that often when I'm just cooking for my wife and I. And like I said, the doufeu is my go to for chili and mole and beef bourgignon and braised short ribs and whole roasted chickens and lots of other stuff.
Dutch Oven
All that being said, pick the one that is best for how you want to use it. Somebody said their knockoff was better for baking bread. That is probably because the knockoff is heavier. And in that particular application the heavier, thicker enameled cast iron better protects the bread from scorching while baking. Be sure to keep an eye out at flea markets and garage sales. Enameled cast iron is rarer to find than bare cast iron, but it's still also usually cheaper because, I don't know why. Not as many people collect it? It doesn't really make sense since new Le Creuset stuff is so expensive and new bare cast iron is so cheap. I guess the LC is still being made though and there haven't been any new Griswolds or Wagners in a really long time. It probably depends on where you are shopping too.
