18 minutes ago, weinoo said:
This is the hard thing to get people to understand, but what about those unable to make that investment up front? In that case, I say to wait until the investment can be made, keeping eyes open like in thrift shops, second hand stores, estate sales, etc.
Zwilling has good sales on Staub so, the $100 for a 4-qt Dutch Oven is hard to pass up for me generally. I wish LC wasn't so premium but, I get they are targeting a different market segment and affluence level.
Lodge raw cast iron generally works really well for people of modest means but, with the inflation and supply chain problems, for me at least, everything has easily doubled in cost. 2-qt Dutch Ovens are ~$60 now and the 5-qt ovens are ~$80USD so, the difference between them and Staub isn't nearly as much as it used to be.
The thing for me with enameled cast iron and pottery is worry about leached lead in questionable imported stuff. Then there is flaking to worry about with normal usage and minor handling hiccups.
If a brand with a lot of name reputation for premium products makes some enameled cast iron, I at least look at it. FWIW, I don't consider Lodge or Cuisinart as a name brand with a premium reputation! 😉 Good products but, not premium in the marketplace so, manufacturing shortcuts are more likely and often easy to discern.
