April 27, 2020 - 8:33am
Dutch Oven Newbie
Hello! I've been baking bread for a little over a year in my oven and I thought it would be time to upgrade and begin using a dutch oven!
I'm looking for recommendations for a cast-iron DO that is not enameled...I've noticed some boast a "venting lid" which we don't want...
Secondly, I'm not sure what size to go for (I never had to think in quarts before), my usual loaf size is 360g flour, 250ml water, and 100g starter. Would I need to reduce the size of this recipe since the oven spring will be greater in a DO?
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I don’t use one but this one looks good to me.
https://challengerbreadware.com/product/challenger-bread-pan/ref/ua81/?campaign=Recommendedgearpage
I've used a Lodge cast iron DO for many years. Well worth the $40 at Target.
If you've never used a DO you are in for a treat. Definitely the way to bake a rustic loaf -- SD or otherwise.
I started with a 5 Qt Lodge cast iron and baked loafs with about 600 g flour. Eventually switched to a 6 qt (cast-iron enameled) Costco house brand so that I could bake larger loafs (approx 1100 g flour). I also use a cast aluminum oval 6.5 qt for large batards.
All work just fine. Material (CI or AL) and finish (enameled or not) seems immaterial. All that you need is an air- tight well fitting top, a heat proof lid-lifter (replace plastic knob with metal drawer pull), and a pair of heat-resistant welders gloves.
Have fun!
Perfect, thank you! I'm glad to know I can have a lot more room in a 5 Qt DO with my current recipe than not
Why not enameled? I use mine for this and they work wonderfully. A 7 quart with free shipping is $62 on Amazon, if you are in the US.
My recommendation is to go big. If you can get just one, you don't want to be limited on what you can bake because of the size of your dutch oven. They do get heavy so that could be a factor. Some brands have more straight sides- ie wider base for the quart size- than others so you could have slightly more flexibility in loaf size. I run into issues because I'm favoring oval loaves which don't use the space as effectively.
It is a worthwhile investment, to be sure.
Its a tough call, but I'm leaning towards a non-enameled one because of cracks - then it'll need to be replaced. I live for my current cast-iron pans, so I figured a bare boned cast iron DO will last me a lifetime if I take care of it as well as I do my cast iron pans.
The only drawback would be using anything acidic in the non-enameled DO...maybe I can buy two haha, one enameled and one not
Might just be an illusion, but I've found that when my DO was too big for the enclosed dough the results were not as good as when the dough just cleared the DO sides. Rise was less, and wet dough spread out to become a "pancake"
Any one else seeing this?
I've been baking bread with all variations of 'dutch ovens' for years...plain cast iron, enameled cast iron, lidded Pyrex and clay bakers. Although they all resulted in great bread, I prefer the clay bakers by far and use them exclusively now. They are much less heavy to use than the cast iron and easier to take care of. I use parchment under the loaves, so all I ever have to do is wipe out the interior after baking. I usually use the batard shaped clay baker that I got on Breadtopia--I actually flip it upside down to bake in. I place the dough on the lid (rather than inside the deeper bottom), and cover with the larger bottom piece, then pop it in the oven. The clay bakers, used at high heat (500 F for 25 minutes, then 450 for 20 minutes, ish) with a higher hydration dough produce a spectacular crust and great oven spring. I know everyone has their favorite cooker, but I thought I'd throw in my two cents on the clay bakers as a lighter but comparable option for you. Happy Baking!
I'm a happy user of both the Breadtopia Batard clay baker and the Lodge 3.2 Quart ComboCooker.