Twenty quid for cast iron, really?
Look, I was sceptical. Cast iron done properly costs proper money. Le Creuset territory starts at four or five times this price and even the mid-range stuff rarely dips below fifty. So when a 5L enamelled Dutch oven shows up at under £20, your first instinct is to assume something is off.
And honestly, some things probably are. The enamel finish on budget cast iron tends to be thinner, and you do want to baby it a bit more than you would a Lodge or a Staub. Drop it on a tile floor and you might be looking at chips sooner than you would like.
Who actually gets something out of this
That said, for what most people use a casserole dish for, this is not half bad. Slow-cooked chicken thighs on a Sunday afternoon, a big pot of lentil soup that sits on the hob for an hour, the occasional bread bake. Cast iron retains heat brilliantly regardless of the badge on the side, and a 26cm pot is genuinely useful size.
If you are a student setting up a first kitchen, someone who wants to try cast iron cooking before committing serious cash, or just need a second pot for batch cooking, this makes a lot of sense at this price.
- Not for daily high-heat frying or aggressive use
- Fine for slow cooking, braising, oven-to-table serving
- Handwash only, really, even if the listing says otherwise
Personally, I would not retire a decent Dutch oven for this. But as an entry point or a backup? Spot on for the money.
