I refer in my “easiest bread ever for camping and home” to a camping, or outdoor, Dutch oven. I’ll talk today about how indoor and outdoor Dutch ovens differ from each other in appearance and use. First, I’d like to sing the praises of cooking equipment that looks like it belongs in a shop in J.K. Rowling’s Diagon Alley rather than in a modern kitchen.
I am a big fan of cast iron because of its durability and health benefits. My oldest piece of cast iron is probably my 1883 frying pan from Cleveland Stove Company, although I have a few unlabeled pieces that I suspect may be older. Well kept for a century and a quarter, the cast iron delivers the same great service for me as it did for my great-great grandparents. Cast iron has never been implicated in any adverse health conditions (unlike aluminum, plastics, etc.). It even delivers an iron boost to you as you cook in it and foods absorb small amounts. For these reasons, I believe cast iron is a frugal, healthy choice.
Cast iron comes in many sizes and shapes, including today’s subject, Dutch ovens. Dutch ovens are pots with nipped handles and specialized lids. I’m picturing two Dutch ovens here. The one on the left is a typical Dutch oven for use inside. The one on the right is for use with charcoal, although you could use it inside in a standard oven or on a gas stovetop.
Let’s look at how the indoor and outdoor versions differ. First look at the bottoms. The indoor Dutch oven has no legs. You can easily use it on a stove top or in a standard household oven. Now look at the outdoor Dutch oven. It has legs that are designed to keep it just above coals, preventing direct contact with the heat and permitting oxygen to get to the coals.
Let’s move on to the lids. The indoor Dutch oven lid is domed on top. It also has spikes that are supposed to transfer juices back into roasts, basting the meat.
The outdoor Dutch oven lid has a raised rim on a relatively flat top. This construction allows you to pile coals on the top as well as the bottom, letting you create a standard oven effect wherever you can collect coals from a fire or burn charcoal. The underside of the lid is flat too, so you can flip it over and use it as a griddle.
Both of the Dutch ovens pictured here are from my favorite cast iron manufacturer,Lodge in South Pittsburgh, Tennessee, and both are the same size: 8 inches in diameter and 3 inches deep. Lodge calls them 2-quart Dutch ovens, but you should only plan on filling half way for breads and cakes that rise. These 8-inch Dutch ovens are ideal for today’s family, holding easily two chicken quarters with fixings, a good number of servings of soup or stew, a small loaf of my variation of easy-fix yeast bread, etc. (I’ll talk in future blogs about recipes for home and camp.)
Thanks to combining two households of Dutch oven lovers, two competitors in Dutch oven contests (and a few wins), and a general appreciation of Dutch ovens, my family has a variety of Dutch ovens in size, shape, and construction material. Today I’ll stick to talking about cast iron. Lodge’s largest Dutch oven holds 12 quarts and is 16 inches in diameter. Lodge’s smallest, pictured here next to one of the 8-inch ovens, is 5 inches. It’s cute, but beyond that I’d say you can live without it.
Next we have a Dutch oven from (shhhhhhh) China, shown on the right. Something tells me J.K. had this kind of Dutch oven in mind when she wrote about Percy Weasley’s obsession with inferior, imported, thin-bottomed cauldrons. This Chinese-manufactured Dutch oven has skimpy legs and thin walls. I’ve used it successfully, but you really have to watch it to make sure it does not burn. Can you figure out if it’s for indoor or camping use? Yep, camping.
Do you have questions about cast iron or Dutch ovens? Post here and I’ll answer what I can.
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A buddy encoraged me to read this post, great post, interesting read… keep up the nice work!
Thank you!
Hi,
I have refreshed a well used dutch oven. This came from a scout troop and has legs on it. Okay to use on gas stove top,is there any precaution to be taken? I can position the oven so the bottom is in contact with the flame.
No precautions necessary. We use our Dutch ovens on the gas stove top all the time. Just make sure it’s exposed to even heat. What a great thing to have!
I was given a old dutch oven there are no name brands on it anywhere on the lid is NO. 16 but that is it, the lady who gave it to me, says she remembers her grandmother useing it. it has been left outside for years and is in pretty rusty, no pitting tho, shape. I would love to bring it back to life, it is a camping oven, was told to use a fine grid sandpaper to start,? does this sound like the place to start to remove the rust
What a great gift, Deniese!
I’d use steel wool instead of sand paper. I think the sand paper will tear quickly. You might try starting with old ketchup and a heavy-duty synthetic scrubby (like the ones 3-M makes). Spread on the ketchup and then after a few minutes attack the rust with the scrubby. Then hit it with an SOS pad all over. Finish with plain steel wool (no soap) with some vegetable oil. Finish by re-seasoning with Crisco in the oven. Then pop some popcorn. 🙂
Let me know how it goes!
We’ve been looking for a way to bring back some of the old Dutch ovens in my scout troop for a while now. Thanks for the advice!
I’m so glad the post will help you! I’ve brought back cast iron that was in a flood on Big Piney Creek here. The owners had given it up as a total loss, but I’ve been cleaning it up and returning it to them piece by piece. It’s so satisfying to see them using them again, as they really are nice, heavy cast iron.
I am always on the look for new recipes and ideas to try in my kitchen, and your article is a great starting point for me. Very useful, Thanks.
You’re welcome, and thanks for visiting the blog.
I’m a huge fan of exotic food and consider myself a bit of a gourmet, thank you so much for the recipe tips here!
You’re welcome, and thanks for the kind words.
I enjoy your newsletter and recipes related to cooking and cast-iron pans. I thank-you for continuing to send me newsletters.
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Can I use the outdoor dutch oven inside on
my stove top?
I don’t want to purchase two different ones..
I was looking into the 8qt for dual purpose…
Welcome, Mellissa. It depends on your stove top. I’ve never seen a gas burner that wouldn’t accommodate the legs of a camping Dutch oven. Some electric burners will fit the legs, but others–probably most–will not. Finally, the legs will prevent the Dutch oven from working at all on an induction stove top or glass stove top.
As an alternative, you could buy a legless Dutch oven, complete with spiked lid, for indoors and then get a camping lid for when you’re cooking outside. It’s pretty easy to convert the bottom to work with coals by adding a few wads of aluminum foil or a small grate, so then all you’d need is the special lid.
I just bought my first Dutch oven, it has the three legs. I am confused if I can use it in my indoor oven or stove. Is that a possibility?
Absolutely, Rebecca, you can use it in your oven. Just fit the legs through your oven rack carefully, and it will work fine, whether the oven is gas or electric. If you have a gas stove, you most likely can use the Dutch oven on your stove top too.
If you have an electric stove top, maybe not. Some electric burners have enough space to insert the legs and get heat in contact with the cast iron. Others do not. Certain ceramic stove tops may crack if you put the heavy cast iron on it and heat it up. What type of stove top do you have?
I have a gas stove and oven 🙂 thank you so much. I’m going to make a pineapple upside down cake in it tonight 🙂
Enjoy! Let me know how it turns out. 🙂
Twenty-five years ago, when I married my second husband I found a 12 inch cast iron skillet in the basement, all rusted and dryed out. My husband saId it had been his mother’s favorate pan. She had loved it for many years before her death, but he had never been able to cook on it without it sticking so he chucked it away in the basement. I gave it some TLC and had it working beautifully again in a few days. I eventually gave it to a friend with a large family who had more use for a big pan than I did. She is still using it almost daily. These great cast iron pans just keep going on and on.
Donna In New York
Don’t they! And how wonderful of you to rescue that treasure.
Hi there,
I just bought my first dutch oven (lodge pre-seasoned) and would love some advice on getting it ready. Can i season it in my oven, or should it be done outside? Mine does not have the 3 legs but does have the spiked lid. Is seasoning for this about the same as an outdoor? Thanks!
Congratulations, Sarah! If you’ve got a pre-seasoned Dutch oven from Lodge, you’re ready to go. If you do need to re-season, though, the process will be just the same for indoor Dutch ovens as outdoor ones. I usually re-season by popping corn, since it’s so much tastier than other seasoning methods. Did you already find that post? https://ozarkhomesteader.wordpress.com/living-with-and-loving-cast-iron/old-fashioned-popcorn-re-season-your-cast-iron/
If you want to be extra-sure that your new vessel is seasoned well, you can make popcorn now. 🙂
When using an outdoor Dutch Oven, with briquettes, what do you place the bottom ones on? Do I need a DO stand?Thanks!!
Whether or not your Dutch oven has legs, you don’t need a stand. You can put the DO straight on the coals if your DO is legless. Just use fewer briquets, and turn the DO more often to get even browning. I do recommend, however, that you use a cookie sheet, aluminum disposable pan, or at the very least three or four layers of aluminum foil under the coals. Otherwise, you’ll lose a lot of heat straight into the ground.
Happy DO baking!
Can you think of something I can put between my 1 1/2″ legged camp ovens and an induction cooktop that will transfer the magnetic waves evenly as if it were a flat bottomed oven?
JC
Sadly, no, I can’t. Readers, can you help with this question?
I can’t. You might try a cast iron trivet, but it’ll only transfer heat via the legs.
Induction Interface Disk?
I doubt if that would work, because you’d still have the distance between the legs and the heating surface. If you try it and it works, let me know!
Can put a sacrificial (will need to be reseasoned after using for this) griddle underneath it and get it super hot and it will transfer some heat to the Dutch oven via radiant heat, as well as some conducting through the legs and some convection thru the hot air rising up. But you won’t be able to get it super hot. But if you get the griddle style slider super hot, you should be able to eventually get the Dutch oven at least medium hot probably. No guarantees lol.
griddle style *skillet. (Auto correct got me.)
lodge is made in china also, it is only packaged and treated here in the us
No, you are absolutely wrong. I’ve been to the factory myself. Do be aware that Lodge sells some things that are made in China (like the enameled products), but the ordinary cast iron and carbon steel products are made here, in the US, in South Pittsburgh, TN.
This comment is 100% wrong. They are still casting their iron in their foundry there in the same town in Tennessee now for over 100 years. They do not not import ANYTHING from China used in the manufacturing process. 100% made in USA.
[…] What Is a “Camping” Dutch Oven?: Living with and Loving Cast Iron, Part 1 […]
Very good’ but can you somehow use the indoor lodge dutch oven (no legs and rounded lid) for out door use ? mikedot61@gmail.com Thanks
Absolutely. You can prop up the Dutch oven on empty cans, bricks, stones: anything at hand that won’t burn. You can buy separate outdoor lids too, or you can try using a pizza pan with a lip on top to hold coals. Turning will be a bit more difficult, and you’ll have greater heat transfer and less heat retention, but it could work.
You could also use a slightly larger fry pan on top, but of course you’d lose your seasoning on it by cooking with hot coals.
Here is a link from Lodge for lids:
http://www.lodgemfg.com/seasoned-cast-iron/camp-ovens-and-grills/camp-oven-lid-L8CL3
I just received a Lodge brand dutch oven with three legs. I would like to know if I can use it as a slow cooker on my wood burning stove top. I’m hoping it would work the same way a trivet does with a flat bottom dutch oven, and the heat will transfer up through the legs to the pot. Thanks!
Yes, it is definitely worth a try, although I’m not sure how hot it will actually get. I’d try first with something that is not dependent on high heat for cooking safely, like beans. Will you please come back and let us know if it worked?
Having pondered your question a bit more, I have a better answer than “try it.” You can use the same method to estimate heat from a wood stove as you can with a coal fire. I do not think you’ll get much heat transfer via the legs. Instead, hold your hand above the stove at approximately where the bottom of the Dutch oven will be. If you can hold your hand there comfortably for 6-8 seconds, you’ve got what I’d estimate to be the medium to high setting for a slow cooker: 250-300 degrees. If you can hold your hand for 4-5 seconds, estimate 350-400 degrees. If you can hold it for 2-3, you are looking at 450-500. If you are looking at 8-10 seconds, you’re around 200 degrees and therefore not in a range that is safe with anything but beans, and that is below a simmer regardless. I hope this helps!
can you use a lid from a camping Dutch oven on a flat bottom Dutch? How do you measure for the lids? Do you measure inside the Dutch oven for the camping lid or do you measure outside diameter
Yea, you can use thee camping lid on a regular Dutch oven. They come in standard sizes, so go with the measurement (inside or out) that yields the nearest to the size you have. If you are talking Lodge, they should fit.
Can you use a dutch oven,without legs,on a charcoal grill?
I looked closer at some of the other questions, and found my answer!!! LOL!!
That happens a lot on these basic posts–especially the pickling one!
I have two brand new (never used) humongous extremely large Flat bottom Dutch Ovens that I purchased directly from LODGE, back in the late 1980’s /early 1990’s stashed away in my upstairs closet. Can you tell me what the Largest DO Lodge made during that time period?
No, I’m afraid I can’t. The largest flat-bottomed one they have now is a 7-quart, not quite twice as big as the more standard 4-quart. You may want to contact them here:
https://www.lodgemfg.com/contact_us.asp
Let us know what you find out!