French vs dutch ovens

[vilasman]

What's the difference between a dutch oven and a french oven?

I have a couple of cast iron round dutch oven's but DW is crying about how they are ugly, about how allof my CI is ugly and the secret plan is put some of my CI in storage, ie the dutch ovens, so that I can keep the other 10 or 12 pieces around and find some kind of attractive way to store them and then get some Le Crueset or lodge enameled to replace the dutch ovens.

Any one seen an attractive pot rack that will sit on a counter and is strong enough to hold cast iron?

 

[Andy M.]

Not sure of any difference other than shape, maybe. Round vs. oval.

 

[jennyema]

LC calls both the round and oval "french ovens." I suspect that french/dutch is a semantic difference only. But I don't know.

LC sells a stand -- freestanding, not countertop -- that can hold heavy cast iron pieces.

 

[Michael in FtW]

A true Dutch Oven is round and made from cast iron only.

A French Oven can be round or oval, is made from a thinner guage cast iron and is coated inside and out with porcelain enamel - usually white inside and some color on the outside. LeCruset is probably the most familiar brand, although there are others.

Some cookware makers these days call any similar sized 5-6 qt round pot a "dutch oven" even if made from stainless steel or aluminum. The term is wrongly applied to these pots - but that's what they call them.

 

[Chief Longwind Of The North]

You are a veritable encyclopedia of cooking knowledge. Good Job.

Seeeeeeya; Goodweed of the North

 

[vilasman]

LC stands for LeCreuset?

 

[GB]

LC stands for LeCreuset?

Yes

 

[mudbug]

vilasman!!!!!!!!!!! where have you been, neighbor? I was just thinking about you the other day and wondering what happened to you.

 

[vilasman]

Well I guess you remember that we moved from the farm about 2 years ago to Md. Then I got busy working, cause , well, there's little or no garden space here, and I got used to eating real food on the farm. I spent most of the first half of this year, fixing stuff in a house that 2 other groups of electricians screwed up, 8,000 sq ft house and in the end almost 100 screw ups, some of them major like none of the three furnaces were wired, the ovens, the septic tank bell, the sump pumps... and this was a house that when i got to it the dry wall was up and most of the first coat of paint was on. That was up july, then I went back to working with a master electrician that i have worked with for years and that has varied from being busy to I was seriously considering working saturday night and since I have worked every night this week or come home and went straight to sleep, DW would not have been happy. But i am not working saturday night so DW can do what affectionate wives do, when they have grumpy husbands. Be a somewhat enjoyable nuisance.
In any case we moved again at the first of october which was a God send, bigger nicer apartment for less money, still in MD, germantown, the new place has a better kitchen, all the burners on the stove are level, they all work, the oven has a timer, deep two basin sink, we have a pantry now, if it weren't for the fact that the place has 14 ft ceilings, i'd get a pot rack.
The only debate the DW and I are having now is about the 14 or so pieces of cast iron cookware that I have, that I love to use. She says I can't stack them on the counter any more casue a) no body needs 14 pieces of cast iron cookware b) it dosen't fit with the decor and after that I stopped listening.

So now I am checking out the pot rack from "LC"

Also since we have this wonderfully functioning kitchen, DW has decided that she wants to cook more, which is good, cause, she actually can cook and not just char lamb chops to perfection, my interest in cooking has peaked ounce again

 

[mudbug]

wow, you've been busy. Very nice to have you back. Make sure if you get a rack that it's fastened very well to the ceiling. You don't want CI pots crashing down on your head!

 

[vilasman]

I wont hang CI pans from the ceiling until I get my own house and can run good sized chains through the joist.

I have a lot of analon and SS pans as well.