Le Creuset

[Morning Glory]

I don't know how many of you own Le Creuset pans, but although I did once, back in the eighties, I have grown to dislike them. I have a close friend who I stay with and frequently cook at his house. He owns lots of Le Creuset and as there isn't much alternative I have to use them. I find them:

1. Heavy to handle (this gets worse as I have got older and arthritis has affected my joints)
2. Prone to food sticking to them.
3. Not that easy to clean.
4. Do stain sometimes (my friend's are stained and I've tried everything on them)
5. Ridiculously expensive to buy!

The main issue I have is the 'sticking'. I have seen and read about adding a little water or wine after searing meat in them in order to 'scrape off those delicious bits'. But I get the same result much more painlessly from my non-stick sauteuse pan. I have noticed, that in general, in professional kitchens chefs don't seem to use them (at all?). I've now recently replaced all my pans (I did have Circulon non-stick) with good quality stainless steel. Not only do they look smart, they wash easily in the dishwasher and come out sparkling.

I'm sure some of you will now put me right and extol the virtues of Le Creuset (and yes, I know they are supposed to last a lifetime, but I accidentally managed to drop a lid from my friend's set on the stone kitchen floor and it cracked!).

 

[Berties]

I do use them at home,
Home is cooking on a solid top rayburn, my set is 25 years old and other than burnt handles where I have used them on a gas stove on the move, they are spot on I have some good frying pans not le cruset , I have even dropped one and there is a crack in it , and it does not leak
I do know the disadvantages of them ,but they hang in the open beamed kitchen of a cottage above a Belfast sink ,
So it all goes together

 

[welsh dragon]

Ive seen them in shops and have been quite impressed by them and they're looks, until I tried to pick one up. Bloomin hell. They weigh a ton when there empty. God knows how heavy they would be if they were full. No thanks.

 

[Morning Glory]

I do use them at home,
Home is cooking on a solid top rayburn, my set is 25 years old and other than burnt handles where I have used them on a gas stove on the move, they are spot on I have some good frying pans not le cruset , I have even dropped one and there is a crack in it , and it does not leak
I do know the disadvantages of them ,but they hang in the open beamed kitchen of a cottage above a Belfast sink ,
So it all goes together

Yeah, I get that. They fit with the rustic look. And probably, the weight of them works well on a Rayburn or Aga. But am I right that Professional Chefs don't use them in their (work) kitchens?

 

[Berties]

Yeah, I get that. They fit with the rustic look. And probably, the weight of them works well on a Rayburn or Aga. But am I right that Professional Chefs don't use them in their (work) kitchens?

I've only ever used stainless steel or copper ,or a few alloy frying pans ,and a aluminium stock pot,in professional kitchens

 

[GadgetGuy]

I don't know how many of you own Le Creuset pans, but although I did once, back in the eighties, I have grown to dislike them. I have a close friend who I stay with and frequently cook at his house. He owns lots of Le Creuset and as there isn't much alternative I have to use them. I find them:

1. Heavy to handle (this gets worse as I have got older and arthritis has affected my joints)
2. Prone to food sticking to them.
3. Not that easy to clean.
4. Do stain sometimes (my friend's are stained and I've tried everything on them)
5. Ridiculously expensive to buy!

The main issue I have is the 'sticking'. I have seen and read about adding a little water or wine after searing meat in them in order to 'scrape off those delicious bits'. But I get the same result much more painlessly from my non-stick sauteuse pan. I have noticed, that in general, in professional kitchens chefs don't seem to use them (at all?). I've now recently replaced all my pans (I did have Circulon non-stick) with good quality stainless steel. Not only do they look smart, they wash easily in the dishwasher and come out sparkling.

I'm sure some of you will now put me right and extol the virtues of Le Creuset (and yes, I know they are supposed to last a lifetime, but I accidentally managed to drop a lid from my friend's set on the stone kitchen floor and it cracked!).

The extreme heaviness is why I've stopped u

I don't know how many of you own Le Creuset pans, but although I did once, back in the eighties, I have grown to dislike them. I have a close friend who I stay with and frequently cook at his house. He owns lots of Le Creuset and as there isn't much alternative I have to use them. I find them:

1. Heavy to handle (this gets worse as I have got older and arthritis has affected my joints)
2. Prone to food sticking to them.
3. Not that easy to clean.
4. Do stain sometimes (my friend's are stained and I've tried everything on them)
5. Ridiculously expensive to buy!

The main issue I have is the 'sticking'. I have seen and read about adding a little water or wine after searing meat in them in order to 'scrape off those delicious bits'. But I get the same result much more painlessly from my non-stick sauteuse pan. I have noticed, that in general, in professional kitchens chefs don't seem to use them (at all?). I've now recently replaced all my pans (I did have Circulon non-stick) with good quality stainless steel. Not only do they look smart, they wash easily in the dishwasher and come out sparkling.

I'm sure some of you will now put me right and extol the virtues of Le Creuset (and yes, I know they are supposed to last a lifetime, but I accidentally managed to drop a lid from my friend's set on the stone kitchen floor and it cracked!).

The extreme heaviness is why I've stopped using my cast iron wok and bought a much lighter wok.
With the cast iron one, it is very difficult to pick that thing up to shuffle & toss the food as it cooks. Not giving it up though!
So I know just how you feel about Le Creuset cookware. And it IS ridiculously expensive!!

 

[DancingLady]

I don't have any of these and don't even know what they are. I use only stainless pans and have not had bad sticking problems. I avoid nonstick because of the dangerous chemical contamination that could happen if they get scratched.

 

[Morning Glory]

They are an expensive French brand of cast iron, often brightly coloured enamelled cookware. Flame red used to be the signature colour. Casserole dishes are the best known (Dutch Ovens in US). They became very popular in the UK in the seventies (I think) amongst the middle-classes (it fitted in with trend for country-style pine kitchens!).

 

[Morning Glory]

I've only ever used stainless steel or copper ,or a few alloy frying pans ,and a aluminium stock pot,in professional kitchens

Veering off at a tangent here, but isn't aluminium supposed to be bad (can contribute to Alzheimer's or something)?

 

[Berties]

Veering off at a tangent here, but isn't aluminium supposed to be bad (can contribute to Alzheimer's or something)?

theres loads of adverse comments about non stick on pans ,the thing with the soft metal pans as i call them is to keep them hot ,if they get to room temp the contents can work ,kind of like a fermentation,so there are health implications ,but they say double boiling kettles is no good for the brain

 

[GadgetGuy]

They are an expensive French brand of cast iron, often brightly coloured enamelled cookware. Flame red used to be the signature colour. Casserole dishes are the best known (Dutch Ovens in US). They became very popular in the UK in the seventies (I think) amongst the middle-classes (it fitted in with trend for country-style pine kitchens!).
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They DO look very pretty and come in a variety of nice colors, but I won't be buy any of it. I once thought about it, though.
It is just too heavy & expensive!!

 

[Dianemwj]

I bought a Le Creuset knock-off at a warehouse store for a tiny fraction of the price of the real thing. I'm quite happy with my "Dutch Oven", but I only use it for things like chili and stews. It is very heavy and it's scary to lift it out of the oven, I mostly use it on top of the stove. Most of my other cookware is Cuisinart. I have both their stainless steel and nonstick pans. The nonstick is somehow infused with titanium which supposedly prevents any toxicity and makes the pan oven safe up to 500 degrees. I bought all my pans online from Amazon and they are great.

 

[Morning Glory]

I bought a Le Creuset knock-off at a warehouse store for a tiny fraction of the price of the real thing. I'm quite happy with my "Dutch Oven", but I only use it for things like chili and stews. It is very heavy and it's scary to lift it out of the oven, I mostly use it on top of the stove. Most of my other cookware is Cuisinart. I have both their stainless steel and nonstick pans. The nonstick is somehow infused with titanium which supposedly prevents any toxicity and makes the pan oven safe up to 500 degrees. I bought all my pans online from Amazon and they are great.

Cuisinart are lovely pans - quite similar to the ones I use, I think, which are ProCook stainless steel and non-stick sautéuse pan and frying pans. It does make a huge difference to the cooking experience to have a pan thats both suitable for the task and that you enjoy using. I don't think its necessary to have a huge amount of pans unless you are catering. I tend to use the non-stick sauteuse almost all the time, for example, and if pushed could probably survive with just that and a few saucepans.

 

[Delftse Post]

We've had the enamel crack and flake off on two Le Creuset casseroles, so go for cheaper pots these days.