Tomorrow’s our anniversary and in two weeks our kitchen remodel will (hopefully) be done with the new Cambria countertop and tiled backsplash. So, after spending a lot of money on this, I thought what better to go with the new stuff than some higher end cookware. Right now, we’ve got a hodge podge of Calphalon pots and pans that are intermixed with some cheap ones from Target.
All of our plates and bowls are Fiestaware in turquoise color and I saw Le Creuset offered a very similar color (carribbean). I grabbed a4 1/2 qt round french oven for a chunk of change and thinking that this would be a slow collection over time as opposed to buying it all at once.
Now I’m wondering if Le Creuset is really worth the price tag or is it just pretty stuff? (IOW, should I return it and get something else, or is this is a good start?)
Le Creuset always gets good reviews from Cook’s Illustrated, but never win the “Best Buy” award. They’re good, but only you can determine if they are worth the price. I don’t think so, but I have low standards.
I have two LC dutch ovens that have given fantastic service for ten years or more. There may be others that are as good - Cook’s often rates one or another “almost as good” and often a much better value - but the difference between these and every other dutch oven or cast iron pan I’ve ever used is exceptional. They’re the BMW/Ferrari of cookware and if I had to replace my kitchen set, I’d budget for one of these ahead of many, many other things.
I love my 3.5 quart deep red dutch oven- wish it was bigger but it fit the budget of my significant other when he was shopping for Christmas. It’s probably not really “worth it” but it is a beautiful, more than functional piece of cookware. I have to admit, it’s secondo my $20 cast iron skillet.
There are a lot of Le Creuset new, slightly used and vintage pieces on Ebay. Mine was purchased at a Sonoma outlet store for about 30% off.
Two questions. Is it worth spending all that money just so the color of your pots matches the color of your dishes? Also, do you really want to have to deal with the weight of enameled cast-iron pots?
No, but if you’re going to buy something that comes in a dozen colors you may as well pick one you like.
As opposed to… what, TV dinner trays? If you’ve never cooked in a good-quality cast pot you’ll just have to take the word of those who have. I have kitchen full of very good cookware and for the things a dutch oven is best at, none of it comes close to the LCs. Not my ancient and massive iron skillets, not my All-Clad chicken fryer.
There may be less expensive alternatives that are just as good for a less-demanding cook, and the occasional one that is just as good at a lower price, but unless you have a good enameled dutch oven you’re missing an absolutely essential piece of cookware. I won’t say LC is absolutely worth its price, but it is to me, and I’d shop carefully and read a lot of qualified reviews if you’re going to aim at a lower price tier. (I HAVE had equivalents that were garbage - burned things easily, chipped, had no temperature stability… and I dunno why. Cast should be cast, right? It’s not.)
The biggest you can get is likely to be a better buy than any smaller one. And yes, you can find very good prices on them if you go somewhere besides Macys and the premium cooking stores.
I’m a cheap bastard and I never over pay for anything. My 20$ Sabatier chefs knife is as good if not better than any Henkles, Whostof, or Global.
That being said, Le Creuset enameled cast iron is fantastic stuff. The only alternative in my opinion is Lodge, which will typically save you considerable cash and is also exceptional quality.
Hey, we have Fiestaware, too! I grew up in a little town not far from the Ohio River pottery where it’s made.
And we have a Le Creuset pot almost identical to that one. It’s very durable and useful. Since yours will probably last just as long, I’d say go ahead and spend the money.
StPauler, I’ve had Le Creuset frypans for over 20 years, purchased from TJ Maxx. They are wonderfully indestructible, but heavy. I vote “yes” to the purchase, but you may wish to shop around.
Absolutely not; I have a pair of “knockoff” brand enameled cast iron dutch oven type pans, and there is nothing that could be improved about them except possibly more comfortable handles, which is pretty irrelevant since I’m using gripping them with potholders anyway.
This is the way to buy LC.
One word of warning for an LC newcomer. LC has some standard colors that they stock all the time. Then they have special colors for a while and then they are gone for good.
If you color is not one of the standard ones buy everything now or risk not being able to find it in 6 months.
This, or even bigger. I use my 9 L Staub pot all the time to make chili, braise meat, etc… Mine were found at TJ and at the Williams-Sonoma outlet during one of their big sales.
I like Staub more than Le Creuset, but YMMV. It’s even more expensive, unfortunately.
I would say it’s possibly worth it for the dutch oven, but for the rest of your cookware, it’s not. An enameled cast iron dutch oven is a wonderful thing. An enameled cast iron sauce pan is heavy, cumbersome, and too slow to heat up.
Keep the pot you have, but don’t bother replacing the rest of your cookware with more LC. If you want matching sauce pans and frying pans, choose a good quality ss brand and build as you go.
I have two Staubs that are pretty much as expensive (if not more) as Le Creuset. I would never had bought them, but I got them as a gift. I absolutely love them. That said, I’m still a cheap bastard and my $30 enameled cast iron Dutch oven from Target is ten years old now and going just as strong. I don’t notice any difference enough to choose one pot over another. I just use whichever pot is not being used at the moment.
It’s definitely worth it; it’s one of those things that is both functional AND beautiful. And it’ll last a lifetime.
If you’re looking only for functional, other pots do just as well at a lower price.
And, like others, I tend to get them at outlets or at TJ Maxx. Hell, I can’t seem to walk into TJ Maxx without coming out with yet another piece of Le Creuset or Staub. I have to stay away from that place.
That was going to be a caveat to my original post. There is a lot more enameled cookware on the market now, much of which is a lot less expensive than LC. I bought a Martha Stewart version for a relative at Christmas, and I’m eager to see how it holds up for him.
