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I Finally Found the Dutch Oven That Makes Weeknight Stews Taste Slow-Cooked
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items You get home at 6, you want something that tastes like it's been on the stove since morning, but you've got maybe an hour before everyone starts raiding the pantry. I burned through cheap pots and soggy slow cooker attempts before landing on this set...
Sections
6
Dutch Ovens That Actually Hold and Distribute Heat Right
Wooden Spoons and Utensils That Won't Wreck Your Pot
Spice Blends That Cut Prep Time in Half
Trivets and Pot Holders That Actually Protect Your Table
Recipe Cards and Kitchen Prints for Stew Inspiration
Bread and Sides That Go With Every Stew
Dutch Ovens That Actually Hold and Distribute Heat Right
My old stockpot had hot spots that scorched the bottom while the top stayed lukewarm. Switching to a real enameled dutch oven was the single biggest upgrade. These are the ones I tested and kept coming back to.
Grab this if you cook for two to three people and hate scrubbing burnt residue off the bottom. The ceramic holds heat so evenly that my beef bourguignon came out perfect on the first try. Wish I'd stopped buying cheap pots years ago.
Handmade Ceramic Bread Baker: Organic Red Clay Dutch Oven (6000ml)
Use this for anything you want to brown first and then simmer. I seared short ribs and built the whole braise in one pot without switching pans. If you're tired of washing three vessels for one meal, this solves it.
4-Qt Enameled Cast Iron Dutch Oven, Red or Turquoise Braiser Pot for Bread Baking, Christmas Cooking (Gift Box)
Perfect for anyone who wants their cookware to look good sitting on the stove between uses. The lid fits tight enough that almost no moisture escapes, so my chicken stew came out ridiculously tender in 50 minutes flat.
Vintage Mid Century Le Creuset "Flame Orange" Enamel Cast Iron Small Dutch Oven with Loop Handle Lid, 2.5 Quart Stamped "C"
Try this if you do a lot of oven braises. It goes from stovetop to a 400 degree oven without flinching. I made a lamb tagine last Tuesday that my wife thought I'd been cooking since noon. Nope, 55 minutes.
Ceramic Casserole Dish with Lid, 3.2 Qt Terracotta Dutch Oven, Handmade Clay Baker, Rustic Covered Baking Dish, Housewarming Gift
Keep this around for solo cooking nights or side dishes. I use it to make French onion soup for one without dirtying a full-size pot. Great for anyone living alone who still wants real home-cooked food.
Cast Iron Dutch Oven Mini Cocottes 5" Diam. Set of 2 in One Box
Wooden Spoons and Utensils That Won't Wreck Your Pot
I scratched the enamel on my first dutch oven with a metal spatula. Literally week one. These wooden tools fixed that problem and honestly feel better to cook with anyway.
Swap out your metal spoons for this before you scratch your enamel. The curved edge scrapes fond off the bottom perfectly when you're deglazing. I've had mine for eight months and it still looks brand new.
Hand Carved Olive Wood Spoon
Use the flat one for stirring thick stews without splashing. My old silicone spatula kept flopping over in heavy chili. This actually has backbone. For anyone who cooks chunky soups, it's a different experience.
Handmade Cherry Wood Spurtle Set of 2
Toss your plastic ladle and get this instead. It sits perfectly on the edge of a 6 quart pot without sliding in, which sounds small but saved me from fishing a ladle out of hot gumbo twice. Never again.
Hand Turned Black Walnut - Crotch Wood Artisan Salad Bowl 11.5"Wx3.5"H
Grab this for risottos and thick bean stews where you need to scrape the bottom constantly. The flat edge gets into corners that round spoons miss. My black bean soup stopped sticking the day I started using it.
Olive Wood Spoon Set with Tongs – Flat Edge Wooden Spoons & Spatula, 12 inch Handmade Cooking Utensils, Gift for Cook
Perfect if you need to pull meat or vegetables out of the broth without draining the whole pot. I fish out potatoes to mash separately and add them back in. Sounds fussy, but it makes the texture so much better.
Wooden Spoons for Cooking Set of 6 | Natural Beechwood Kitchen Utensils | Nonstick Safe Spoon Set | Solid Hardwood Spatula | Kitchen Gift
Spice Blends That Cut Prep Time in Half
Mincing six different spices on a Tuesday night was never going to happen consistently. These blends let me dump one or two spoonfuls in and get layered flavor without the twenty-minute prep.
Throw a tablespoon of this into any lamb or chickpea stew and it tastes like you toasted and ground eight spices individually. I used to skip Moroccan recipes because of the spice list. Not anymore.
Ras-el-hanout Spice Blend
Pair this with white wine and chicken thighs in your dutch oven. Forty-five minutes later it smells like a farmhouse in southern France. For anyone who wants weeknight chicken to stop being boring, start here.
Herbes De Provence
Use this in the last five minutes of any curry or lentil stew. The aroma hits different when it's freshly ground versus that jar that's been in your cabinet for two years. Stock up because you'll use it constantly.
Garam Masala - blend of 7 flavorful Indian spices - add to your curries or gift it to loved one
Try this in beef stew or chili when you want warmth without face-melting heat. I added two teaspoons to a basic beef and potato stew and my brother-in-law asked for the recipe. He never asks for recipes.
Pack of 3 Hot Fusion Garlic Chili Oil Spice Packs with Gochugaru Pepper Flakes and Five Spice Blend | Foodie Items with Recipes Included
Sprinkle this on top of finished stews right before serving. It adds a brightness that cuts through heavy, meaty flavors. I started doing it with lamb shoulder stew and now I put it on everything.
Traditional Lebanese Zaatar Spice Blend: Hand-harvested
Trivets and Pot Holders That Actually Protect Your Table
I put a screaming hot dutch oven directly on my wooden dining table exactly once. The burn mark is still there. These keep that from happening to you.
Set your hot pot right on this without thinking twice. It absorbed the heat from a 450 degree dutch oven and my table underneath was cool to the touch. For anyone with a wood dining table, just get one now before you learn the hard way.
Round Rattan Trivets, 9 Round Colorful Wicker Trivets
Grab this if you want something heavier that won't slide when you set a ten-pound pot on it. The weight actually helps. My cast iron cocotte sits on this every single dinner and the tile hasn't cracked once.
Handcrafted Ceramic Tile Trivet
Keep these near the stove because dutch oven handles get dangerously hot. I grabbed a lid with a thin towel once and felt it immediately through the fabric. These are thick enough that I've never had that problem.
Linen Pot Holders With Chickens/quilted
Toss one of these on your counter for everyday use. Cork doesn't scratch granite or quartz, and it's light enough to throw in a drawer. I have three scattered around the kitchen and grab whichever is closest.
Large Round Decorative Sandstone Trivet Cork Backing
Use this when you're serving straight from the pot at the table. It looks good enough that guests think you planned it as part of the presentation. Really I just don't want to ruin another table.
Handcrafted Walnut & Oak Wood Trivet
Recipe Cards and Kitchen Prints for Stew Inspiration
I was rotating the same three stew recipes for months until I pinned a few new ones to my kitchen wall. Having them visible meant I actually tried them instead of defaulting to the same chili again.
Stick these on your fridge with a magnet and you'll actually cook something new on a random Wednesday. I made a white bean cassoulet from one of these cards that I never would have Googled on my own.
Double Sided Recipe Card Set: Watercolor Kitchen Design (Set of 10)
Hang this in the kitchen if you need a visual reminder that cooking doesn't have to be complicated. The recipes are real and usable, not just decorative. My potato leek soup came from this print.
French Onion Soup Recipe Art Print: Kitchen Decor
Get your grandmother's stew recipe turned into one of these before it stays buried in a drawer forever. I had my mom's brisket recipe made into a card and now it's framed next to the stove where I can actually see it.
Engraved Handwritten Recipe Card: Custom Laser Etched
Perfect for anyone who wants a recipe on the wall that's actually readable from across the kitchen. The font is big enough that I can glance at measurements while my hands are covered in flour.
Beef Stew Recipe Art Print, Illustrated Kitchen Décor
Try making one new recipe from this set every week. I went through all of them in about six weeks and found four new staples. My mushroom barley stew from this collection is now in permanent rotation.
Hand Illustrated Recipe Cards | Cottage Kitchen Variety Pack (3x5 or 4x6)
Bread and Sides That Go With Every Stew
A great stew needs something to soak it up. I used to just grab store bread but making my own or pairing the right thing alongside it turned a Tuesday dinner into something people actually look forward to.
Use this to score your bread before baking it in the dutch oven. The cuts aren't just decorative. They control how the crust opens up. My sourdough went from cracking randomly to looking like bakery loaves.
Handmade Sourdough Bread Scoring Lame, Scalpel Blade
Throw this in your banneton so the dough doesn't stick during its final rise. I ruined two loaves before I got one and now the dough pops right out every time. For anyone who bakes bread at home, just get it.
Linen monogrammed bread basket liners in white and ecru
Pour olive oil and herbs into these and set them out with crusty bread alongside your stew. It takes thirty seconds and suddenly dinner feels like a restaurant. My kids actually eat more bread this way, which buys me time to plate everything else.
Handmade Ceramic Dipping Bowls: Turkish Floral Design Spices Dishes, Set of 6 Pinch Bowls
Keep your homemade bread in this instead of plastic. It stays crusty on the outside without drying out completely. I bake on Sundays and the bread is still good by Wednesday stored in one of these.
Beeswax Infused Linen Sourdough Bread Bag, Reusable Bread Storage, 14x13 or 17x13 Inches
Ditch the cold butter from the fridge that tears your bread apart. This keeps butter at room temperature and spreadable for days. I put it out with every stew dinner now and it's one of those tiny upgrades that everyone notices.
Butter Dish with Lid - French Inspired Marble Stoneware Crock | Unique Kitchen Gifts