Enameled iron cookware over an open flame?

[JaclynM]

I live in Buffalo, where we were recently hit by a freak storm that knocked out power for much of the region. My husband and I have an electric stove so there was no way to cook anything. When the power first went out, we thought it would just be a few hours, so we went out to dinner. By the next day, I had decided that I would reheat some leftovers in a pot over our fireplace. However, all I had were my tri-ply clad Tramontina pots and pans, which I was afraid of damaging, so I didn't hold it very close to the fire. I know that when you cook on a gas stove you are holding the pot over a fire anyway, but since I didn't know exactly what temperature I was dealing with, I was afraid to get it too close. (Since the houses on the other side of the street still had power, we lucked out when our neighbor offered to let us use his microwave.)

I commented to my husband that it was too bad we didn't have any cast iron stuff, because it can get very hot without being damaged (correct?). Our kitchen is very small, and we don't have enough room for all our cookware as it is, which is why I've held off buying any cast iron (it's not really a *necessity* since I have the Tramontina items). The power is still out, and we are staying at my parents' house, since they got their power back on Saturday. But now my husband has suggested that maybe we should get some cast iron items (even though he thinks I already have too many cooking tools) because they could come in handy for a future power outage. So I was thinking of getting one or two items from Lodge.

I've always wanted a Le Creuset dutch oven, so I was wondering, could enameled iron also be used over a flame? I wouldn't feel as bad about the expense and the space it takes up, if I could justify the purchase by saying we could use it to cook over the fireplace.

Thanks. Sorry for being so long-winded!

[Shalmanese]

As long as they have liquid in them, they should be fine.

[Anna N]

All I can tell you from experience is that I use my LeCreuset gratin on the BBQ without anything bad happening to it. It will get very black from the soot but you can address this in two ways:

Wrap the outside with foil.

Slather dishsoap on the outside.

These methods simply save you a lot of elbow grease and are not guaranteed to protect the finish but as I say, on the grill above an open flame - and sometimes -when I am careless, engulfed in flame, has not harmed my pan.

[pigeonpie]

I would not have thought you'd do any damage to a LC over an open flame. I would think the damage would be more likely to occur to your hands, as you reach in to an open fire and try to grab hold of those ridiculously undersized handles. Obviously, if you wait until the flames have died down, and you have a good heap of hot embers, that shouldn't be such a problem.

Oh, but if you are going to buy one cast iron pot, I wouldn't buy LC, I'd get a Staub instead. I have one of each, and I Much prefer the Staub. Then again, you are more likely to find a cut-price deal on a LC piece, which might decide it for you.

On the other hand, if you just want something to use over an open flame and not worry about, anything meant for a professional kitchen, where the burners are a lot more powerful than home burners, ought to be fine. Although, that doesn't help much if you want an excuse to buy LC ...

[boar_d_laze]

You won't get enough heat out of a wood fire to damage your pans. As Anna said, the big problem is soot. If you're going to cook over an open fire, you'll need a couple of pot lifters. That solves the "ridiculously undersized handles" problem. It's nice to have welding gloves around the house a pair each in Hers and His sizes. They don't cost much, and you can stick your hands places where they have no business being without those getting unslightly third-degree burns. Also good for teasing the cat.

Rich

Edited October 16, 2006 by boar_d_laze (log)

[andiesenji]

I have one of the cheaper enamelled cast iron pots that I use in my barbecue/smoker/gril and it can get very hot, over 500 degrees in the grill section. It gets completely black on the outside but I use Carbon-Off to clean it and it cleans up nicely.

If you are near a Marshall's, check out the less expensive enamelled pots made in China.

Innova