Small Dutch Oven?

[ssssnake529]

I'm looking for a small (2 quart) Dutch Oven.

I want it to not have legs, and needs to come with a lid with a lip (not a dome lid.)


Lodge makes a nice 2 quart Dutch oven, but it has legs.

I've seen some that fit my criteria made by Stansport and Bayou Classic, but the reviews of these Dutch Ovens on Amazon indicate that they are poorly cast and the lids don't fit, etc. I'd love to know of any other options that are high quality (like Lodge.)

I suppose I could just buy the Lodge and cut the legs off, but if there are other options that folks can recommend, I'd love to hear them.

 

[Corey]

I have a Lodge without legs, works great.
https://secure.lodgemfg.com/storefront/product1_new.asp?menu=logic&idProduct=3946

If the lid is to domed, maybe they have another lid for it.

 

[DontPanic42]

I have found lids sold separately in sporting goods stores like Academy Sports & Outdoors, Army Navy stores etc. Just make sure you measure the ID at the lip of the DO before you by the lid. Not all DO's and lids are created equally.

 

[paulj]

I have the small Lodge dutch oven, but haven't used it much since I bought a 10" GSI hard anodized aluminum DO. This size does not have legs, instead I use a 3 leg stand from GSI when working the coals. Volume is about 3 quarts, a little wider and larger than the Lodge, but without the legs even more compact. It also works great at home one the stove and in the oven. The hard anodized surface does not take a seasoning like cast iron, but is still easy to clean. The only fault is that isn't as stable when held by the bail handle. That may, in part, be due to how the handle is attached, but the weight distribution is also a factor - it's too light and shallow. Other than that it's a great pot both in camp and at home.

 

[gonejeeping15]

You could just bite the bullet and buy one of each, then you can mix and match lids to your needs. By the time you get done you will probably have saved some money in the long run.

Good Luck

 

[TimS]

Check out a local antique dealer. We needed a dutch oven for our daughters girl scout trip. I ended up finding quite a few at some antique stores. The one I bought was around 10qts. It had a machined finish on the inside (something that is not done anymore). Its old but looks very new. Cast iron by the way. Paid $20 for it.

 

[Ruined Adventures]

I had the same dilemma, looking for something without legs and a lip for coals on the lid...surprising that Lodge doesn't make that combo. I ended up just finding a Bayou Classic on Craigslist that fit the criteria...still haven't finished seasoning it, but since it was technically free (I traded something for it) I'll consider it a win.

I would go measure the inside diameter of nicer dutch ovens like DontPanic42 said, then check out some thrift stores and see if there's any options for mix/matching.

 

[ssssnake529]

I ended up just finding a Bayou Classic on Craigslist that fit the criteria...still haven't finished seasoning it, but since it was technically free (I traded something for it) I'll consider it a win.

How is the quality of you Bayou Classic oven?

 

[Ruined Adventures]

Sorry, I couldn't honestly tell you. It's my first dutch oven so I don't have anything to compare it to.

I haven't used it yet either. I cleaned the hell out of it since it was a little funky and I still need to season it.

I do really like its size and the fact that it's fairly compact...no big handles, just some small tabs that the steel handle attach to. Has no feet and the lid has a lip so you can stack coals on top.

 

[Black Dog]

I read an article a while back about the best oil to season your dutch oven with. I wish I knew where I read it but I'm sure if you use google you'll find it. Basically, he did a fairly scientific analysis on all the different kinds of oils and their ups and downs for seasoning cast iron. His results were that flax seed oil is the best although its expensive. His method was to burn off any existing seasoning and bring it to bare cast iron using the self cleaning feature of his oven in his kitchen, then while it was still warm he rubbed a very very light coating of oil onto it and baked it at 550 for an hour (I remember he said that if he could have gone higher without using the self cleaning thing again he would have). Flax oil has a really high smoke point, so it was safe to do that at such a high temp. After an hour of baking, he turned it off and let it set until it was cool enough to handle but still pretty warm, and repeated the seasoning process several more times, I can't remember how many times he did it but it was a lot more than I've ever done it for seasoning a dutch oven. He went from having a poorly kept pan to a grey metal pan stripped of any existing seasoning and other gunk to a perfect seasoned jet black pan that had excellent nonstick qualities. I'm too cheap to buy flax oil and my wife won't let me stink up the house with it so I haven't tried it yet, but I'm intrigued.

 

[ssssnake529]

This should be stickied or in a FAQ or something.

I read an article a while back about the best oil to season your dutch oven with. I wish I knew where I read it but I'm sure if you use google you'll find it. Basically, he did a fairly scientific analysis on all the different kinds of oils and their ups and downs for seasoning cast iron. His results were that flax seed oil is the best although its expensive. His method was to burn off any existing seasoning and bring it to bare cast iron using the self cleaning feature of his oven in his kitchen, then while it was still warm he rubbed a very very light coating of oil onto it and baked it at 550 for an hour (I remember he said that if he could have gone higher without using the self cleaning thing again he would have). Flax oil has a really high smoke point, so it was safe to do that at such a high temp. After an hour of baking, he turned it off and let it set until it was cool enough to handle but still pretty warm, and repeated the seasoning process several more times, I can't remember how many times he did it but it was a lot more than I've ever done it for seasoning a dutch oven. He went from having a poorly kept pan to a grey metal pan stripped of any existing seasoning and other gunk to a perfect seasoned jet black pan that had excellent nonstick qualities. I'm too cheap to buy flax oil and my wife won't let me stink up the house with it so I haven't tried it yet, but I'm intrigued.

 

[DontPanic42]

I read an article a while back about the best oil to season your dutch oven with. I wish I knew where I read it but I'm sure if you use google you'll find it. Basically, he did a fairly scientific analysis on all the different kinds of oils and their ups and downs for seasoning cast iron. His results were that flax seed oil is the best although its expensive. His method was to burn off any existing seasoning and bring it to bare cast iron using the self cleaning feature of his oven in his kitchen, then while it was still warm he rubbed a very very light coating of oil onto it and baked it at 550 for an hour (I remember he said that if he could have gone higher without using the self cleaning thing again he would have). Flax oil has a really high smoke point, so it was safe to do that at such a high temp. After an hour of baking, he turned it off and let it set until it was cool enough to handle but still pretty warm, and repeated the seasoning process several more times, I can't remember how many times he did it but it was a lot more than I've ever done it for seasoning a dutch oven. He went from having a poorly kept pan to a grey metal pan stripped of any existing seasoning and other gunk to a perfect seasoned jet black pan that had excellent nonstick qualities. I'm too cheap to buy flax oil and my wife won't let me stink up the house with it so I haven't tried it yet, but I'm intrigued.

Over the years I have purchased a number of CI pots of several sizes from South Africa. All of them were pre-cured with Flax seed oil. Just cleaned off the dust from shipping and they were good to go. I have always wondered if that is what Lodge uses on their pre-seasoned items.

 

[Ruined Adventures]

this thread got me all inspired to finally restoring my 2 quart Bayou Classics Dutch Oven, so I brought it to work to take advantage of an oven to season it. Here I am halfway thru the process (using vegetable oil unfortunately) and now I read this...

I wish I would've rechecked this thread first thing this morning so I could've tried flaxseed oil, especially since I have some in the pantry
:mixed-smiley-030:

 

[Black Dog]

You can always start over with the seasoning. If you're going to do it, then its worth doing it carefully and meticulously.

The best seasoning I've ever done was on a fairly new Lodge fajita pan. My wife bought it before we were married and cleaned it in the dish washer, so a lot of the seasoning came off and it was red with surface rust. She thought it was ruined and was about to throw it away! I scrubbed it clean and seasoned it with veggie oil, and then cooked bacon in it a bunch of times. Now its slick as snot and beautiful black. I do think I'm going to shift my weekly wine budget over to a bottle or two of flax seed oil and give that a shot though.

 

[Herbie]

Two Things:

1) You probably won't find a leg-less oven with a rimmed lid, they're across purpose. A true "dutch oven" has a flat bottom and is meant for being used over a flame or in a cooking hearth or other "hot space". A "Camp Oven" has the legs for use over coals - and the rimmed lid is also for use with coals. So essentially what you're asking for is a lid for use with coals and an oven NOT for use with coals. Mix-n-match is probably your best bet here if you really want this configuration.

2) For seasoning, I really like Crisco and a BBQ. Smear on a thin, even coat and put the pot/pan upside down on the grill and crank it. Worrying about high smoke-point for your seasoning fat is false economy because you WANT the fat to turn to carbon. You want it to smoke and burn on. A well seasoned cast iron implement doesn't need to be "slick" with liquid fat. It should have a nice even coating of carbonization, like it was anodized. Mine are always dry to the touch and perfectly non-stick. Moreover, I've even cooked reactive foods (like tomato sauce) in my seasoned cast iron without any problem.