Sunday, February 16, 2020

Italian Meatballs

These classic Italian-American style meatballs are huge and pillowy soft! They're mixed with ground beef and pork, loaded with herbs and cheese, and served with a traditional tomato sauce. Make them baseball-sized for a dinner entree, or roll them smaller for an appetizer.

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What Is the Difference Between a Dutch Oven and a French Cocotte?

What is the difference between a Dutch oven and a French cocotte?

These coveted cooking tools are a lot alike, so what is the difference between a Dutch oven and a French cocotte, and does it matter which one you use?

People have been cooking on cast iron for millennia, yet we can’t seem to get enough of it. In fact, global sales of cast iron cookware are projected to continue increasing through 2025. This should come as no surprise—cast iron is easy to maintain, retains heat beautifully, and can last for generations. And, unlike copper, aluminum, and non-stick cookware, it doesn’t pose a potential health risk.

5-Piece Lodge Cast Iron Cookware Set, $69.95 at Walmart

With a Dutch oven, griddle, and two skillets, this is a great starter set at a great price. Plus, it's already seasoned.
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Related Reading: The 10 Best Dutch Ovens to Buy in 2020 | What to Do With Your New Dutch Oven

The cast iron Dutch oven, a kitchenware staple, is useful for everything from braising to searing to stewing to baking. But there’s confusion among home cooks and professionals alike as to what this type of cookware should be called. Is it a Dutch oven? A French cocotte? Are they really just the same thing? We asked historians and cookware experts to weigh in.

What’s in a Name?

Food historian and author Sandy Oliver says it’s hard to pinpoint when tight-lidded cooking vessels like Dutch ovens were invented. Most likely, they developed over a long period of time. “People figure out that if you just put a tight lid on something, things cook faster,” she says. “You don’t lose evaporation, you don’t lose flavors, and liquids become more intense.” This is also the same basic principle behind the North African tagine, which is both a cooking vessel and the dish named after it.

“In American cookery,” Oliver continues, “there are two types of cooking vessels we could be talking about here. The first one is a big kettle with a tight lid that you hang over a cooking fire, which could be called a Dutch oven.” The second, called a bake kettle, was usually set directly on top of a bed of hot coals. It often had a flat bottom, three legs, and a tight-fitting lid with a lip deep enough to hold a shovelful of hot coals on top. This allowed for more heat control during cooking and baking.

Lodge Cast Iron Dutch Oven with Feet, $32.46 - $94.98 at Walmart

This classic cast iron Dutch oven is perfect for camping.
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In addition to the bake kettle, the French cocotte is also similar to the Dutch oven. “The difference may only be in name,” explains cultural historian and author Shirley Wajda, adding that once French cuisine became popular in the U.S., the word cocotte also referred to the dishes made within the pot by the same name, much like a casserole.

“There is much controversy in the historical community over the use of the word Dutch oven,” states Heart to Hearth Cookery’s Susan McLellan Plaisted, a self-described experimental archaeologist with historical receipts, methods, and equipment. “It is used almost universally today for the cast iron piece that is most frequently used by Scout troops and [for] outdoor cooking.”

An Iconic Example of Colorful Cookware

At Le Creuset, the five and a half quart size round Dutch oven has long been a bestseller, according to Director of Marketing Communications Nate Collier. Established in 1925, Le Creuset’s products are still made at the original foundry in northeastern France, close to the Belgian border. “Since the early 1900s,” he points out, “a lot of innovation in the casting and enameling process was happening in that part of the world.”

Le Creuset Signature Enameled Cast Iron Dutch Oven, $359.95 at Sur La Table

This Le Creuset Dutch oven comes in a range of colors to complement your kitchen decor (from pale blue to matte black) and can be used to braise, make soup and stew, or even for baking bread.
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Le Creuset 2.75-Quart Round French Oven, $287.99 at Macy's (normally $339.90)

You can also call it a French oven, but we're still talking about the same thing.
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According to Collier, the term “Dutch oven” was coined many years before that. “It was an English name for the Dutch casting process to make those types of cooking vessels, including anything made that way at the time,” he explains. Since it’s easier to get a lid to fit properly on a round pot, that became the most common shape and is often associated with what we think of as a Dutch oven. However, as distinct cuisines emerged across Europe, it began to evolve. New shapes and sizes emerged by region, with names like cocotte, doufeu, and cassadou.

As mentioned by Wajda, cocotte refers not only to a tight-lidded cooking vessel, but also to the dish cooked within it. Collier adds that it’s also the French word for casserole. However, a doufeu (introduced by Le Creuset in the 1930s) sports a recessed lid meant for holding coal to promote even heating during hearth cooking, much like a bake kettle. Some cooks fill the lid with ice, instead, which cools the lid, causes the steam at the top of the pot to condense, and helps the food within retain moisture.


Meanwhile, in the Provence region of France, hunters favored a tightly lidded version called a cassadou, shaped to accommodate large cuts of meat.

A Versatile Piece of Cookware in Any Case

To those who love this versatile cooking device, it may seem silly to argue semantics. Really, who cares what you call it? The important thing is to recognize the Dutch oven, and all its iterations, as one of the most versatile and beloved cooking devices in the world.

Here are just a handful more variations that we love:

Lodge Dutch Oven, $59 at Walmart

An affordable enameled Dutch oven that's still extremely versatile and high quality.
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All-Clad d3 Stainless Steel Dutch Oven, $299.95 at Sur La Table

Like cast iron with enamel coating, this stainless model is oven safe and promises even heat distribution.
Buy Now

Staub Cast Iron Round Cocotte, $284.95 on Amazon

As with the aforementioned doufeu, you can place ice cubes in the recessed lid to increase the condensation inside this pot.
Buy Now

Staub Cast Iron Tomato Cocotte, $169.95 on Amazon

This small 3-quart cocotte is perfect for summer dishes and will be a literal heirloom tomato as you pass it down.
Buy Now

Staub Cast Iron Pumpkin Cocotte, $179.99 on Amazon

And here’s a petite pumpkin cocotte for fall!
Buy Now

Le Creuset Signature Enamled Cast-Iron Oval Dutch Oven, $343.95 on Amazon

The oval shape of this Dutch oven allows you to fit larger pieces of meat (and gives you an excuse to collect even more colors).
Buy Now
Visit Our Cookware Week Headquarters for More!


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What Is the Difference Between Mardi Gras and Carnival?

Mardi Gras and Carnival what is the difference?

There’s one obvious answer to the question, “What is the difference between Mardi Gras and Carnival?” and that’s where they’re celebrated. Mardi Gras is synonymous with New Orleans, and Carnival is mostly associated with Rio de Janeiro, Brazil—but they’re both known as big, debauchery-encouraging public parties with lots of music and flashy costumes, and they even have the same origins. So let’s dig into both their differences and their similarities.

What Is Mardi Gras?

It’s fairly well known that Mardi Gras—that world-famous New Orleans party/parade tradition complete with elaborate floats, historic krewes, live bands, and lots of plastic beads—is also known as “Fat Tuesday.” That’s because it was traditionally the last time for Roman Catholics to enjoy rich foods before Ash Wednesday, which kicks off the lean fasting season of Lent (40 whole days of giving things up in the name of spiritual improvement; it ends right before Easter, which might have something to do with why candy-laden Easter baskets became a thing).

Fat Tuesday FeastingThe Best Mardi Gras Food & Drink You Can Order OnlineThe day before Ash Wednesday also has a couple other nicknames: It’s called Shrove Tuesday (as it was the day when those who went to confession before Lent were “shriven” or absolved from their sins), and Pancake Tuesday because it was a good day for making pancakes, which could accommodate the last of the butter, sugar, milk, and eggs before all those indulgent foods had to be given up for Lent. (This is also why the rich Polish doughnuts known as paczki  became so closely associated with Fat Tuesday.)

So Mardi Gras is Fat Tuesday is Pancake Tuesday is Shrove Tuesday—but “Mardi Gras” is the particular name that stuck to the symbolic parades and parties held in New Orleans, a city with a lot of French influence on its culture. The first Mardi Gras celebration in the United States is said to have occurred in what is now New Orleans in March 1699—but Mobile, Alabama also lays claim to the distinction, and they certainly had their own strong Mardi Gras parade tradition before NOLA stole the national (and international) spotlight with its infamous Bourbon Street shenanigans.

The parade aspect of Mardi Gras is particularly iconic—the masks, the floats, the flying beads (and doubloons, and Moon Pies), the crowds—but there’s not just one parade. There are 11 parades on Fat Tuesday alone this year, and each one is associated with a specific krewe, a club or organization with its own theme and history, some are newer than others, some going back generations.

Technically, Mardi Gras is just one day within the carnival season, but in most places, especially in New Orleans, it’s now used to denote a period of up to one or two weeks preceding the grand culminating events on Fat Tuesday; that gives everyone a bigger window in which to maximize the good times at even more parades, balls, banquets, and carnival celebrations (even though many modern revelers probably don’t plan on giving anything up once Lent comes around).

Related Reading: The Best New Orleans Food to Order Online for Mardi Gras

What Is Carnival?

Carnival is loosely translated to “kiss your flesh goodbye” in Latin (as in “time to give up meat” instead of something more sinister, though some people do use it as a justification for really getting into the hedonistic nature of the pre-Lenten celebrations). While capital-C Carnival is now known as its own specific celebration in Rio and elsewhere, the word “carnival” also encompasses all Fat Tuesday festivities. That includes Mardi Gras and many other similar celebrations in other traditionally Roman Catholic countries, like Italy (Venice has an especially strong mask and costume tradition)—they’re all part of the carnival season, which begins on Three Kings’ Day (or the Feast of Epiphany, on Jan. 6) and ends on Ash Wednesday.

When you’re talking specifically about the Brazilian Carnival (or Carnavale), you’re talking about huge parades and public street parties, complete with eye-catching costumes—sometimes eye-catching in part because of how skimpy they are, true—floats, music, and feasting (and drinking).

One hallmark of Brazilian Carnival are the samba schools, perhaps superficially best known for their ornately decorated floats, frequently-feathered costumes, and well-practiced dance routines, but they have important roles in their communities that go well beyond the carnival season. In some ways, they can be thought of as analogous to New Orleans’ krewes, though not entirely the same. Costumes are extremely important and specific to each samba school, and you’ll usually see a riot of bright colors. (Mardi Gras decor—even the king cake—heavily favors purple, green, and gold, the traditional shades associated with the event, which represent justice, faith, and power, respectively.)

As in New Orleans and other places where carnival season is celebrated, there are scores of balls and parties that happen in Brazil over a period of several days or weeks in addition to the public festivities for Carnival. And while Mardi Gras is world-famous too, Carnival is considered by many to be the best party anywhere, and a bucket list-worthy destination/event.

Explore Samba City & Carnival Backstage, $15+ on Airbnb

Get a sneak peek behind the scenes of the biggest party in Brazil.
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Mardi Gras & Carnival Food

No matter where you celebrate, you’re definitely in for fun times and fabulous food and drink. So check out some carnival season staples from both New Orleans and Brazil to tempt you to indulge—even if you won’t be giving anything up, and even if you never leave your own home for the occasion!

Mardi Gras King Cake

Mardi Gras king cake recipe

Chowhound

While it may not have the same legions of out-of-state fans as some other New Orleans sweets (like bananas Foster and the sugar-smothered beignets at Café du Monde), ring-shaped, tri-colored king cake is a traditional Mardi Gras staple. Typically, a plastic baby is cooked inside, and whoever gets the slice with the baby must host the next party. Here, the party favor is optional and the cake is delicious, regardless. Get our Mardi Gras King Cake recipe.

Easy Chicken Gumbo

easy chicken gumbo recipe

Chowhound

This classic gumbo dish is ready in just 40 minutes. After making a golden roux from vegetable oil and flour, soften some onion and bell peppers, simmer andouille sausage and frozen okra, and warm up the shredded chicken, and dinner is served! (Check out even more Mardi Gras recipes that put the “easy” in Big Easy, including our Slow Cooker Shrimp Gumbo recipe.) Get our Easy Chicken Gumbo recipe.

Cognac Shrimp Bisque

cognac shrimp bisque recipe

Chowhound

With large pieces of shrimp in a warming, easy bisque, this dish is a classic New Orleans comfort meal. We recommend a large batch for a flavorful and light yet filling meal during the Mardi Gras festivities. Get our Cognac Shrimp Bisque recipe.

Hurricane Cocktail

Hurricane cocktail recipe

Chowhound

While the Hurricane cocktail didn’t originate there, Pat O’Brien’s French Quarter Bar gave it fame after beginning to serve the rum-based drink in the 1930s. It’s deceptively strong and easy to throw together at home. (But don’t sleep on other New Orleans cocktails like the Sazerac or Ramos Gin Fizz—and consider trying them all in fancy Jello shot form!) Get our Hurricane Cocktail recipe.

Wild Rice Jambalaya

Wild Rice Jambalaya recipe

Chowhound

This jambalaya recipe substitutes the traditional white rice for a nuttier wild rice, while maintaining the traditional sausage, shrimp, and pepper. We recommend this hearty dish before a day or night of Mardi Gras drinking. The tomatoes nod to a Creole heritage, though there’s a lot of overlap between Creole and Cajun food these days. Get our Wild Rice Jambalaya recipe.

Grilled Caipirinha

Grilled Caipirinha recipe

Chowhound

The Caipirinha is the national cocktail of Brazil, and cachaça is the key ingredient. For a caramelized twist on the traditional, try tossing the limes in sugar and grilling them before adding their juice; if grilling isn’t an option, you can broil or even blow-torch them. Or just make a classic Caipirinha, which is still a fantastic—and festive—choice! Get our Grilled Caipirinha recipe.

Moqueca


One of the world’s great seafood soups, Brazil’s moqueca is based on coconut milk and palm oil, for a rich, flavorful broth swimming with shrimp and fish. Cilantro and lime juice freshen it up. Get the Moqueca recipe.

Slow Cooker Feijoada


If you prefer turf to surf, the traditional Brazilian dish of slow-cooked black beans with lots of different cuts of pork (and/or beef) is perfect—this version is made in the slow cooker, which is even better. It breaks further from tradition in that it doesn’t use any offal, but really, you can throw in whatever cuts you like as long as they’ll benefit from long, slow cooking! Get the Slow Cooker Feijoada recipe.

Related Video: Get the Party Started with These Mardi Gras Cocktails

 



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Madeira’s Role in the Declaration of Independence

Madeira wine American colonies Declaration of Independence

What is Madeira? Glad you asked. This fortified dessert wine (similar to port) used to be the drink of choice in young America—here’s how that happened, how it fell out of favor, and what you need to know about enjoying it today.

Suppose you’re Thomas Jefferson. You’ve recently penned a little thing known as the Declaration of Independence and ratified it along with your fellow revolutionaries—Adams, Franklin, Hancock, et. al—basically letting Mother England know that you no longer require her services. Now it’s time to celebrate. What are you drinking? Champagne, the official beverage of toasts? Local moonshine, for appropriate chest-thumping and to echo your bravery? Nope. TJ and company were having none of that, literally. They were drinking that classic American standby, Madeira.

You mean that fortified, Portuguese, dessert wine, Madeira? That’s the spirit that accompanied the genesis moment of the United States of America?

Broadbent Rainwater Madeira, $17.99+ on Drizly

A classic Madeira that drinks with toffee and spice for when you are feeling revolutionary.
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Understanding how to place Madeira in that unlikely picture begins with understanding the political climate that Jefferson and his brethren were trying to shed in the first place. Britain had imposed an exclusive trade treaty on the colonies, preventing other imports from reaching American shores legally. Naturally, smuggling happened (apparently Hancock was quite adept at it), but those goods were harder and more dubious to come by.

Another RoundWhat’s the Difference Between Port and Madeira?The isle of Madeira, located in the Atlantic, equidistant from mainland Portugal and Morocco, was well-located along common trade routes. Portugal used Madeira, which they had recently colonized, as an opportunity to partner with England because of its desirability as a port of call. Speaking of port, this is why Port—another Portuguese dessert wine—and Madeira often have names that you might consider calling your vest-clad bulldog: Taylor, Graham, Broadbent. The products were Portuguese but the infrastructure—bottling, labeling, marketing, shipping—were British.

Essentially, Madeira was what was most readily available to the Declaration signers, as well as the citizens up and down the colonies. It was also a rather ironic moment for Madeira: it accompanied the signing of the document that would throw off the British yoke, thereby allowing for the foreign trade which would lead to its competition and Madeira’s eventual fall from popularity.

So, What Do You Need to Know About Madeira to Drink Like a Founding Father?

Madeira Is Fortified

Fortified wines have additional spirit added to them to act as a preservative, or to “fortify,” them. This was especially important for wines that had a long journey to make. They are therefore higher in alcohol by volume than other table wines, and so are typically served in smaller glasses to ensure smaller portions. Or maybe if you were a Founding Father on the brink of revolution you didn’t worry too much about that, as you also required fortification. Other popular fortified wines include Port, Sherry, Marsala, and Vermouth.

Declaration of Independence

Shutterstock

Madeira Is “Cooked”

Heating the juice is not a typical part of the winemaking process for most wines. Madeira was a happy accident in that its long journey at sea did contribute to its being heated, but somehow this resulted in bold, desirable qualities. Now Madeira doesn’t need to take a turn across the pond in order to achieve the same results, but Madeira is still cooked, either by heating the wine in tanks before aging, or by storing barrels in intentionally hot environments. Much like “xerox,” Madeira can also claim similar brand saturation insofar as other heat-affected wines are considered “madeirized.”

Madeira Is Made in Varying Styles

Unlike men, not all Madeira is created equal. The four different grapes primarily used for Madeira produce different levels of sweetness: dryer styles from sercial and verdelho, and sweeter, richer styles from bual and malmsey. To really drive the point across, U.S. wine importer Rare Wine Company bottles “Historic Collection” Madeiras named for the cities where the various styles were popular: drier styles in the South, like Charleston Sercial, and sweeter styles in the North, such as Boston Bual. (A current look at preferred iced tea styles easily demonstrates how times have changed.) They also include “Special Reserve” bottlings named for Thomas Jefferson and Benjamin Franklin.

Broadbent 10 Year Malmsey Madeira, $48.99+ on Drizly

A rich and sweet Madeira, perfect with dessert or with overthrowing oppression.
Buy Now

Madeira Is Badass

Just like our revolutionary forefathers. And also an excellent pairing for cheese.



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What Is the Difference Between a Dutch Oven and Cast Iron?

What is the difference between cast iron and a Dutch oven?

If you’re asking “What is the difference between a Dutch oven and cast iron?” you probably really mean: “What is the difference between cast iron and enameled cast iron?” And that’s a good question! Let’s break everything down.

What Is a Dutch Oven?

The Dutch oven is essentially a large pot or kettle, usually made of cast iron, with a tight-fitting lid so steam can’t escape. Dutch ovens are used for moist-cooking methods such as braising and stewing (though with the lid off, they’re also great for frying or even baking bread). Traditionally, you make your braised beef, chili, soups, and stews in one of these bad boys. This cooking tool and method came from the Pennsylvania Dutch in the 1700s.

Lodge Cast Iron Dutch Oven, $32.46 - $94.98 at Walmart

A classic cast iron Dutch oven with no frills (except the feet) that comes in various sizes and is ideal for car camping.
Buy Now

Related Reading: The 10 Best Dutch Ovens to Buy in 2020

Naked cast iron Dutch ovens evoke campfires and Boy Scout jamborees (and Colonial America, perhaps); though not always, these more rustic-looking pots often have feet and a bail-type handle—but what we often think of as a Dutch oven these days is a large, flat-bottomed, cast-iron pot with handles, all covered in bright, glossy enamel. Le Creuset is one of the most high-end brands and comes in a delightful rainbow of colors.

Le Creuset 2.75-Quart Round French Oven, $339.90 at Macy's

You can also call this cooking vessel a French oven, but we're still talking about the same thing.
Buy Now

Before we get into enamelware, though, let’s look at what’s often underneath that bright outer shell.

What Is Cast Iron?

There are two basic kinds of cast iron: regular and enameled. Regular cast iron dates back to the 5th century B.C. and absorbs, conducts, and retains heat efficiently. Although some say cast iron takes longer to heat up than other cookware, it does stay hot for longer, which is why fajitas are often served on cast iron skillets.

how to care for cast iron skillet

Chowhound

Related Reading: How to Care for Cast Iron | This 5-Piece Cast Iron Cookware Set Is Under $70

So while a Dutch oven is always a large pot with a tight-fitting lid, “cast iron” by itself is just about material, and it can take many other forms, most commonly, the aforementioned skillet.

5-Piece Lodge Cast Iron Cookware Set, $69.95 at Walmart

With a Dutch oven, griddle, and two skillets, this is a great starter set at a great price. Plus, it's pre-seasoned.
Buy Now

Cast iron requires seasoning, which gives it a natural nonstick finish, and creates a surface that doesn’t react with or absorb the flavor of foods. When you have an unseasoned cast iron pan, it will react to your acidic foods—tomatoes, lemon juice, vinegar—creating a metallic taste and discoloration. This is not the heavy metal we’re going for. And you probably shouldn’t simmer or braise a tomato sauce in a cast iron pot for many, many hours.

“Cast iron, when properly seasoned, is the original nonstick pan,” according to thekitchenprofessor.com. “Many veteran chefs and beginners alike agree that it is the best type of cookware for searing and blackening.”

It’s a great pan to put on the grill or under the broiler. You can sear your meat and then cover it and put it in the oven to cook inside. To keep it seasoned, you clean it with a paper towel or soft cloth and, if necessary, gently scrub it with a nylon pad. Do not use soap. Lodge is a popular, affordable American-made brand of cast iron cookware, which comes in both naked cast iron and enameled cast iron in various colors. If you have a plain cast iron Dutch oven, care for it the same way you would your skillet.

What Is Enameled Cast Iron?

Enamelware can be either cast iron or steel cookware that has been coated with thin layers of brightly colored porcelain enamel. Enameled cast iron (like a Le Creuset Dutch oven or casserole dish) is a good heat conductor. Enameled steel is not. Enamelware of either kind is fairly easy to clean and doesn’t interact with acidic ingredients, but extreme heat can cause the surface to crack—that said, under normal cooking conditions, enameled cast iron goes with ease from stovetop to oven. You do need to use only plastic or wooden utensils with enamelware to avoid scratching it (and no harsh scrubbers at clean-up time). While it is dishwasher-safe, it’s best to hand-wash it to prolong its life.

Le Creuset Signature Round Enameled Cast Iron Dutch Oven (7.25 Quart), $399.95 at Sur la Table

This iconic Le Creuset round Dutch oven is shown here in sea salt, one of many gorgeous colors.
Buy Now

Related Reading: What Is the Difference Between a Dutch Oven and a French Cocotte?

Dutch Oven Recipes

Almost any recipe that calls for a large, heavy, thick-bottomed pot can be made in a Dutch oven, whether plain cast iron or enamel-coated, but these are some of our favorites, from slow cooking classics to deep fried desserts:

1. Braised Lamb Shanks with Mint-Parsley Pesto

Braised Lamb Shanks recipe with Mint-Parsley Pesto

Chowhound

This is a showcase dish for the reasons we love Dutch ovens. You get to first brown the meat in it, then soften the onions, celery, and carrots in it, and finally, pop the whole thing in the oven to braise. Get our Braised Lamb Shanks with Mint-Parsley Pesto recipe.

2. Cochinita Pibil

how to make cochinita pibil

Chowhound

If you like carnitas, you’ll love cochinita pibil, a sort of Mayan pulled pork. Traditionally roasted over an underground oven of hot stones, it also comes out beautifully when made in a Dutch oven—wrapping the meat in banana leaves within the pot imparts extra moisture and flavor, and you should be able to find them at most Hispanic grocery stores, so don’t be discouraged by what may seem like an exotic ingredient. Get our Cochinita Pibil recipe.

3. Campfire Cherry Cobbler

campfire cherry cobbler

Chowhound

This recipe can be made indoors in your fancy enameled Dutch oven, but if you’re camping (which is when this easy dessert tastes best), bring your plain cast iron Dutch oven that you don’t mind setting directly in the embers of your campfire. Get our Campfire Cherry Cobbler recipe.

4. Chili con Carne

chili con carne recipe

Chowhound

Any kind of Dutch oven is perfect for a big, hearty batch of chili, whether it’s all meat, vegetarian, or turkey chili. Get our Chili con Carne recipe.

5. Chicken Basquaise

Chicken Basquaise recipe

Chowhound

This is a simple dish that’s packed with flavor, and the chicken browns beautifully in a Dutch oven—then braises away with the melting peppers, onions, and garlic for a saucy, satisfying meal. Get our Chicken Basquaise recipe.

6. Eggplant and  Mushroom Polenta Bake

Chowhound

We made this in a cast iron skillet, but it would do just as well in a Dutch oven, enameled or not. It’s basically a hearty vegetarian shepherd’s pie with a cheesy polenta crust instead of mashed potatoes. Get our Eggplant and Mushroom Polenta Bake.

7. Apple Cider Doughnuts with Salted Caramel

Apple Cider Sufganiyot with Salted Caramel Filling recipe

Chowhound

Since Dutch ovens are so deep, they’re also great for frying, but be sure to have a candy thermometer on hand to monitor the oil temperature, and don’t overfill your pot. You can fry chicken, egg rolls, or whatever else you like, but we have to recommend our apple cider sufganiyot with salted caramel filling for obvious reasons (just look at them). Get our Salted Caramel Apple Cider Doughnut recipe.

8. Beef Stew

Easy Beef Stew

Chowhound

Whether you go with the classic or give your stew an international spin, the Dutch oven is the ideal way to cook it. Get our Beef Stew recipe.

9. No-Knead Bread

easy homemade bread no knead recipe

Sofie Delauw / Cultura / Getty Images

Yes, the Dutch oven is great for baking too. This easy, no-knead bread recipe will banish supermarket loaves from your life forever. It can also be baked in a cast-iron skillet. Get the No-Knead Bread recipe.

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