I wore mittens and a hat yesterday. NOT JOKING. šāļø
This tragedy is leading me straight into the arms of today’s feel-better post about cozy, wintery foods you can make with a Dutch oven. Maybe cold times are not so bad after all.
Before we start, let’s just mention the fact that I didn’t even know what all the fuss was about until about a year ago when I first got a Dutch oven. I would always hear people talking about the amazingness of a Dutch oven and I’d be all WHAT’S THE BIG DEAL? And they’d be all WHY DO YOU HAVE A FOOD BLOG IF YOU DON’T KNOW ABOUT A DUTCH OVEN. š
Just, I’m learning, okay? Sometimes it takes me a while to come around. And in this last year, I have most definitely learned about the delicious wonders of the Dutch oven. It is my most used (and cutest) piece of cookware, hands down, and it only cost me $50 at Target.
For serious.
If you’ve never owned a Dutch oven before, let’s define.
A Dutch oven is thick-walled (usually cast iron but also ceramic and clay) cooking pot with a tight-fitting lid. Thank you Wiki.
It’s also a vessel that makes extremely delicious food easier to make because it’s sturdy enough to go from stovetop to oven. YAAAAS.
So what to buy? Do we spend hundreds for the cream of the crop or go for the garage sale version to start, as I did in with my food processor? š
Here’s my rec.
Lodge Dutch Oven
I have only ever owned the Lodge Dutch oven (I have the 6-quart red version in red which is pictured here) and I highly recommend it as a low-risk, affordable, high-quality first go-round at the whole Dutch oven situation. It is ultimate coziness in oven-proof cookware form.
After using my little red $50 Lodge Dutch oven for the last year and realizing that, yes, indeed, the Dutch oven is worthy of its place in my kitchen, I am confident that I will have no future need for buying the more expensive versions. I mean, God bless those dreamy Le Creusets – they are super fun-looking and I’m sure they work wonderfully – but for me, the Lodge Dutch oven was the perfect in between for my competing Wants-a-Dutch-Oven and Doesn’t-Want-To-Spend-Hundreds-of-Dollars goals.
Check out the listing on Amazon – it has a 4.7 star rating from 3,500 reviews. Or if you’re a brick-and-mortar type shopper, like I sometimes am, you can also grab this baby at Target in the cookware section.
I’m not even sorry to say that literally bought my Dutch oven FOR THE BREAD (scroll for details), and served the bread to my friends at dinner club, and had one friend who went home and ordered one for herself (for the bread) and one friend who put it on her Christmas list (for the bread). And in bringing it full circle, the recipe for the bread listed in this post is from one of the friends in my dinner club. It’s a dinner club slash bread lovers anonymous.
The bread is definitely a winning trick of the Dutch oven, but there are other tricks as well, and here they come. Launching in three, two…
1: Braised Short Ribs
Why the Dutch oven works: Braised meat is perfect in a Dutch oven because you’ll sear the meat to get it brown and seal in all those juices, and then transfer it to the oven for several hours to get it all tender and wonderful, but you can keep it all in the same pot the whole time. Lazy girl win!
Recipe: The Pioneer Woman’s Braised Short Ribs
2: No Knead Bread
Why the Dutch oven works: According to Patrick Lynch – “By placing the risen bread dough into a 425Ā°F Dutch oven, you get the massive surrounding heat of a professional oven, and in the covered pot the bread itself supplies the moisture needed to produce a great crust. Home bread bakers have two problems: home ovens donāt create or retain heat like commercial bread ovens, and home ovens donāt have the humidifier systems that professionals use to create the ācrackling crustsā that artisan bread bakers treasure. Using Dutch ovens (covered metal or ceramic pots) solves both the heat and moisture problems.”
Orrr in laypersons terms, IT JUST WORKS. And it’s really, really good. This recipe alone is the one single reason I decided to finally buy a Dutch oven.
Recipe: my friend Stephanie / Girl Versus Dough’s No Knead Bread
3: Homemade Baked Beans
Why the Dutch oven works: You start this recipe by browning the bacon, but then you finish it off in the oven. One pan! Glory be. This guy needs to bake for quite a while, especially if you end up using dry beans, so being able to just leave a nice heavy duty pan in the oven for that long is really awesome.
Recipe: Homemade Brown Sugar Baked Beans
4: Chili – Or More Specifically, Ancho Turkey Chili
Why the Dutch oven works: It gives you the functionality of a saute pan to start the vegetables and brown the meat AND the functionality of a slow cooker because you can just continue to let it simmer away all the live long day. It’s super heavy duty and it just begs for recipes that require long cook or simmer times.
Recipe: 30 Minute Spicy Ancho Turkey Chili
5: Homemade Tomato Sauce
Why the Dutch oven works: Who knew?! An oven heats from every direction as opposed to the direct heat from a stovetop burner, which means it’s actually much easier to get the sauce to reduce gently in the oven, and it requires only a few stirs here and there – three cheers for that. Plus the top gets a little bit browned in the process which adds some really rocking flavor to this sauce.
Recipe: Serious Eats’ The Best Slow Cooked Tomato Sauce
6: Homemade Applesauce
Why the Dutch oven works: This amazing hack gives you homemade applesauce with an almost completely hands-off approach. It holds a large amount of apples, cooks them down evenly, and gives you the most beautiful homemade applesauce. Win.
Recipe: Ina Garten’s Homemade Applesauce
7: Easy Parmesan Risotto
Why the Dutch Oven works: Risotto is good for a Dutch oven because it doesnāt require all the stirring and attention it does when made on the stovetop – it makes risotto almost hands-free! Which means more time for Instagram. I MEAN…
Recipe: Ina Garten’s Easy Parmesan Risotto
Note from recipe tester Kristin: I used this recipe as written but then added in chicken at the end for my meat eating family. š It was so easy!
8: Dutch Oven Roasted Chicken
Why the Dutch oven works: It perfectly fits a chicken, and because it gets so hot on the sides , it helps roast it evenly on all sides of the chicken for awesomely crispy skin. If the skin browns too quickly on top, you can place the cover on to help avoid direct hot heat. But you know I liked that ultra browned skin. Look at us, making whole roasted chickens!
Recipe: Bowl of Delicious’ Lemon Garlic and Rosemary Whole Roasted Chicken
Note from recipe tester Kristin: I used this post for additional instruction with the timing and temperature for roasting.
9: Homemade Chicken Stock
Why the Dutch Oven works: You can roast the chicken in there and then keep all the juices from the chicken in the pot as a base for the stock – no need to clean the pot after roasting the chicken! Party. The Dutch oven also stands up well to long periods of heat on the stove, which is part of the deal when you’re making stock.
Recipe:Ā Derek on Cast Iron’sĀ Homemade Chicken Stock
Note from recipe tester Kristin: I used this post for additional instruction as well.
10: Super Easy One Pot Lasagna
Why the Dutch oven works: Start it on the stove, end it in the oven. So simple. Are you noticing a pattern here?
Recipe: Bjork’s favorite – Super Easy One Pot Lasagna
When we went Up North last week, I only brought one pan with me and you better believe it was the classy red Dutch oven. It’s like a part of the family now.
For the love of all things delicious and especially that NO KNEAD BREAD, you must at least investigate your options for this super versatile piece of cookware. Here’s the listing to the one that I have on Amazon with more than 3,500 reviews for your research purposes. I love me some Amazon reviews.
Wishing you all the best Dutch oven foods for fall and winter! ā”
Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links for the red 6-quart Lodge Dutch Oven.
More:
I have a smaller Dutch oven, but canāt find any recipes for it. The recipes I do see, can I reduce it all by half?
Hi Elaine! That should work just fine!
Have a new Dutch Oven amd can’t wait to put it to use!!
I have the exact same dutch oven in green. I love it! It makes wonderful bread and cooking chicken is easy.
I am going to try some of your other recipes.
I just bought a dutch oven enamel from crockpot brand is it as good as a lodge? Did I waste my money! ?
Just wanted to let you know that Iāve been wanting a Dutch oven. When I got to the risotto … I closed my eyes.. opened them… scrolled to this comment to let you know that 11pm cst I am on Amazon ordering a Dutch oven. Lol. Thank you.
Homemade marinara so much easier in oven. Faster thicker and richer sauce. Used my recipe but your directions. Awesome.
Thanks for sharing, Deb! š
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I make the No Knead Bread all the the Time.
Works very well in the C I Dutch Oven. Since March, when the bread shelves were empty, I havenāt bought bread….and the bread I make is much better.
I prefer the black version with three legs, I heat with charcoal next to the fire ring in the campsite. If you think they do awesome things in the kitchen take the right style into the great out doors.
Just bought my first Dutch Oven….Lodge 6Qt, and came to this website….Love it!
I’ve never used one but these recipes are a great start to my venture with my Dutch Oven…Thank you!
Awesome, Jane! Enjoy your Dutch oven!
Hi Lindsay ~ Well you’ve forced my hand. I’ve been thinking for a long time about getting a Dutch Oven and just held off. After reading this article and seeing the yummy recipes I could be making in it you pushed the envelope. Hello Amazon ordered one up!!! Dolores
Yay yay yay! š You’re going to love it, Dolores!
In making chilli last week, I dropped my ālucky iron fishā in the pot for 20 minutes to bring my hemoglobin level back to normal after donating blood the previous week. No change in the taste of the chilli. Iron levels back to normal almost instantly. Amazing.
Cheers.
your receipes sound amazing! Can;t wait to try
‘
im a guy and I learned to cook really tasty stuff in a dutch oven I got on e bay its amazing I fix something on a sunday and I have lunch for 3 days after I use the garden hose and scrub it out side with a chain mail scrubber (also works great) I made a great veg & beef stew that I put in my smoker when doing a brisket 14 hour low & slow cook , Pretty cool
The brown sugar baked beans sounds good and reminds me of Bush’s baked beans in a can for $2 or more.
Good food is surely the way to successful relationships š
March4 2019
Hi Stephanie
Just read your recipe for no knead bread and can’t wait to try it! This is my first time baking bread and using a Dutch Oven.
Questions: In your recipe can I pre-add to dough:
fresh herbs (e.g. chives, rosemary)?
infused olive oil?
cheese e.g. parmesan?
honey?
(not all at once!)
Am I correct in thinking your method doesn’t require refridgeration of the dough?
Thank you!
Fiona Wyszynski
Plse respond to: fiona.wyszynski@outlook.com
Malvern PA 19355
Now that you have fallen in love with your enameled DutchOven. You should try learn about the black iron one. (The original non stick cookware.) but you must learn how to clean and season it. Youāll be glad you did. Once seasoned itās an amazing pot. Best wishes
I see you love your lake days. Doās also make great pots for cooking around the campfire. But you need the ones with little feet.
Just wanted to say that my husband works for Lodge and I am always proud to see their products used by lots of great cooks! We love their products are always so proud to say that there are wonderful people working there and that believe in their products š
Just got a Dutch oven from Santa. First thing too make…… no knead bread! On your mark… get set… GO!
That’s so funny about why you bought your Dutch oven because I just purchased one from Amazon this morning for that same bread recipe haha all these recipes look amazing! Thanks for sharing!
As a single guy 50 learning to cook more for myself this was amazing info! I love how you write and presented it all. Thanks, I better get cooking.
nah im good
Bread in a Dutch oven?! Mind blown! I have been wanting a Dutch oven for years but just hadn’t picked one up yet… That is until last week when I found a vintage one for $7 at a thrift store. My grandmother saw it and said she remembers having one just like it in the 50s – anyway I’m even more excited now because every single one of these recipes looks amazing! Thank you!