One of the things that prevents people from getting into cooking is that there are so many gadgets and terms flying around, it's exhausting to keep up with them all. One such item which flummoxed me for years is the Dutch oven. People who had one swore that I should get one. But I seemed to be cooking just fine on my own, so….?
A Dutch oven is just a very heavy cooking pot with a lid. Most of them are made of cast iron, so there is a lot of overlap here with the cast iron cookware fans. If you know someone who's constantly raving about their cast iron skillet, you feel me on this one. I can see why people like cast iron, but I personally do not have the patience to wait 20 minutes for the pan to heat up before I start cooking.
A Dutch oven has the same benefits as a cast iron skillet. It takes a long time to heat up, but it retains heat well. It has to be seasoned with oil and stored carefully to make sure the oil coating doesn't go rancid, but it's a breeze to cook with.
Dutch ovens are mainly used for stews, roasts, chili, and braises. Big meals that take a long time to cook. In other words, a Dutch oven fills the same role as a slow cooker (a.k.a. Crock Pot), but it doesn't have a timer, and you have to run the oven while it's in use. Unlike a slow cooker, it's not very safe to leave a Dutch oven unattended on the stove while you are at work all day.
Then again, Dutch ovens are ideal for cooking outdoors over a campfire. You can't do that with a slow cooker!
Image courtesy Flickr/Dvortygirl
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