Lodge Pre-Seasoned 5 Quart Cast Iron Double Dutch Oven with Loop Handles - Perfect for Camping, Baking Bread & Outdoor Cooking

****EDITED BELOW****I am so very happy with this Dutch Oven. Just so you know where I'm coming from, my mom used a cast iron skillet when I was growing up. When I started on my own I also used a cast iron skillet and was very happy with it. Years ago I was in an accident which forced me to close up my apartment and move back home. I gave away all my cookware and focused on physical rehab. When I was patched up and ready to get back in the rat race I bought all T-Fal cookware which I've used for years. My reasons for going with Teflon was because the Teflon was ready to use right away so I could hit the ground running. It didn't require seasoning which was something I didn't want to be bothered with at that time. Using it has been okay but I truly missed my cast iron pan. You could do anything to that pan and it would still love you the next day. I've read people talking on here about the arduous task of having to re season cast iron regularly. I don't know what those people are talking about. All you have to do is keep using it, it seasons itself. You could even get one bland in the mail and not season it at all. Just start cooking on it and deal with strangely burnt food for a while till eventually it becomes seasoned with regular use. Even my Teflon pans became seasoned after years of using it on a regular basis. Seriously, cast iron is ridiculously low maintenance and that is one of my strongest reasons for upgrading to it. And now they come pre seasoned! BONUS! This wasn't the case when I bought one years ago.All I've used in the past were skillets. This time around I decided to convert ALL of my cookware to cast iron. I went with this Dutch oven because it was eligible for the 4 for 3 deal here at Amazon and the other model I looked at wasn't. I was afraid of how heavy it would be. The Dutch oven really isn't all that bad weight wise. My electric slow cooker seems heavier by comparison. This is my first time using a cast iron Dutch oven and when I finally got it I was so excited I decided to start cooking on it right away. The fact that it comes pre seasoned bothered me a little because I didn't get to choose the kind of oil I wanted since it was already predetermined. Nobody is really selling unseasoned cast iron these days though so I decided to go with the Lodge brand made right here in America. I was really distracted by the concept of pre seasoning but now that the Dutch oven is here my misgivings about it are completely gone. The pre seasoning is not sticky or gross, it wasn't thick like it could chip off and there was no funny smell to it at all - all things I was paranoid about. Compared to the worries about Teflon and the fumes from it though, the pre seasoning of cast iron is the least of my concerns. They were clean, ready to use and I loved being able to dig it right out of the box and start using it as soon as it arrived.It was only received yesterday and so far I've used it twice to cook vegetables and once I've used the lid to fry bacon as suggested by another reviewer. FABULOUS! I will add that I didn't stir anything in these pots. I just set the food in and let it cook in there. Nothing stuck to the Dutch. When everything was done and the pot cooled I simply hosed it off with water and a soapy sponge, then dried it up. Splendid! Paper towels shed in this pot however. It might be better to use a cloth or a rag of some sort that wont leave lint behind.The lid does not have a knob on the top like most lids you see on a Dutch oven. When I put this lid on the Dutch oven I'm sure not to line up the side handles to the handles on the Dutch so that it's easier to remove the lid for stirring, adding ingredients and peeking in to see how things are coming. The lid seems to fit the same way on the pot no matter which direction you put it on so there's no qualitative reason to line up the handles. Just make sure you protect your hands with oven mitts because this thing does get very hot. I just ordered another lid for it. It's not something I really *need* to do, the present lid works just fine. I just thought it might be nice to have one of those lids with the spiky interior for even distribution of condensation back in to the food as it cooks. The lid that comes with it is smooth inside which is handy for using it as a skillet. In all honesty I'm purchasing this other lid simply because I know it exists, the present lid is perfectly fine so far. I just like having other options and I'm hoping the spike lid I just bought will also fit on the Dutch oven lid. Wouldn't that be cool?Don't be afraid of this Dutch oven. It's a keeper! I'm really pleased with my purchase.EDIT:I finally got the other lid and it fits perfectly with no problems. I'm glad I bought this particular Dutch however and not the other. The lid that comes with this Dutch is ideal for the way I use it. I make short ribs but instead of braising them beforehand I put them in the hot liquid straight from the freezer. The ribs pile up high in the Dutch. The new lid would not fit on top of the meat but the depth of the original lid makes it fit right over it with no problems. I've searched and you can't buy this lid separately, it only comes with this particular Dutch. I'm thrilled with the other lid too but I'm REALLY glad I have this one. Options are A+ in my book. Purchase a steel brush with this pot. I've bought a couple of Lodge cast iron products and they do tend to develope rust. I scrubbed them with a Quickie steel brush and reseasoned them a few times which solved the rust problem. You DO need to season these yourself though. The preseasoning is just a quick dressing to get you started.Having a dutch oven with a lid that doubles as a skillet is a GREAT idea! We use this all the time and it has held up well...like most other lodge cast iron cookware. If you plan on getting the silicone handle covers for this tho, don't. Even though they're made by lodge, they're complete trash that doesn't block heat and rip easily.Love this dutch oven and its flat lid shape, that allows baking with the lid on bottom and the pan on top.Came pre seasoned, but I went ahead and did it anyway, since a couple of spots where the pan is hung, were not seasoned. Don't know why some reviewers mention rusting. Cast iron needs to be kept seasoned. Best not to wash with soap/water, if you don't need to.I see a lot of complaints about cast iron products rusting! If you don’t know how to care for it, do not order it. Cast iron is great for frying, braising, baking etc. Non stick pans do not compare to this long lasting durable cooking pots. For beginners, YOU MUST SEASON TO KEEP FROM RUSTING and you can purchase the LODGE seasoning kit from Amazon. This pot will be my go to for roasts and cooking fresh vegetables (cabbage, greens, string beans etc)I love that it also came with the lid.Size is perfect for my sourdough! It is beautiful. I am sure I will have it for many years. I will have to hide it from my husband! He borrows + does not return.The instruction manual stated that the dutch oven is ready to go out of the box because it is preseasoned. I immediately used it out of the box, and it worked flawlessly! It is the perfect size for artisan bread, and it came out great. The dutch oven retained the heat for two hours before being able to hold it by hand. It must be moved to an area away from children/pets or leave it in the oven to prevent burns. Great price for a great addition to the kitchen.I've wanted a dutch oven for some time, but could never justify paying the hefty price. It was beyond me why anyone would pay $200 or more for a pan. It was a happy day when I found this cast iron dutch oven. The price was right (and I used points from my Amazon charge card which made it even better) -- but the quality is priceless! This cast iron dutch oven was made by a US company (Lodge) that's been in business for 100 years. You can be confident that they didn't preseason your pan with chemicals, plus you don't have to worry about lead being in the enamel because it's totally cast iron.I've already baked bread in my dutch oven, and it did a fantastic job! The best part is, this dutch oven can be used anywhere and everywhere -- a campfire, a fireplace, on a grill or in the oven.Everyone really does need one of these!Love to use this as a deep frier, also as a dutch oven to do roasts. Great for chili, lid can be used for a fry pan.I primarily purchased this combo cooker to use in my oven to bake sourdough loaves. Previously I used a cast iron enameled dutch oven which I no longer have after a significant move of my housing situation. As I started my new sourdough starter I knew the results wouldn't even come close without a proper dutch oven to bake the bread in. As this time I knew ahead that crusty wholesome bread was the goal and the cooker probably will never be used for anything else, I got the model without a knob or handle on the top. This way the sauté pan can sit on the oven rack and the deeper kettle can sit over the loaf making a bread oven inside my oven. After the loaf is formed I place it on a piece of parchment paper for its final proof. Then I heat the oven with the cast iron combo cooker inside to get it hot as well. I do have a pizza stone under the cast iron to absorb some extra heat and that keeps the loaf from getting too dark on the bottom. Then when the oven is hot, I place the parchment and the loaf in the sauté part of the cooker, flip the kettle over the loaf and put the entire combo cooker back into the oven. Once the bread has steamed about 15 minutes, I remove the kettle and leave the saute pan with the loaf to brown and complete the baking process still sitting on the pizza stone. The bread is perfect every time! It works like a dream and I can highly recommend it for bread.I bought mine to bake bread.I will use it for other things too, I’m sure, as I have had one before which was used for stews and casseroles, as a frying skillet and baking generally.It increases the amount of rise in my sourdough bread by about 15% so I’m a very happy baker.My method is simple...I put the kneaded dough into the base with greaseproof paper under it and put it in the oven at 40 degrees to rise.When the dough is fully risen I turn the oven up to 200 degrees and put the lid on.I bake for 15 minutes with lid on, then remove the lid and bake for another 15 minutes.The trapped steam allows the crust to stay soft, and increases the oven spring.It is superb, heavy and does the job exceedingly well.The trouble with baking bread in a fan oven is that the fan creates a dry atmosphere, whereas the bread requires a steamy atmosphere at least for the first few minutes. This keeps the crust soft, allowing the moisture in the dough to escape, the internal gas bubbles to expand, and the loaf to swell in what is usually called 'oven spring'. To overcome the fan problem, many home bakers adv ocate baking the bread in a metal, preferably cast iron, casserole which will retain the steam escaping from the loaf. On the other hand, it can be tricky lowerig a loaf into a deep, very hot container, or retrieving the baked loaf afterwards. I knew what I wanted but spent age looking for it. It's here in this Lodge Dutch oven with loop handles, meaning it doesn't have a knob handle on top and can be used upside down! This is what I do: Put the casserole and lid in the oven, right side up, and switch on. When the oven is up to temperature, remove the lid, invert it on the bench, and sprinkle the inside of the lid with semolina to avoid sticking. Place the shaped loaf on the hot lid, score as usual. Take the other part of the casserole, when we might call the body, out of your oven, turn it upside down, and place onto the lid, covering the loaf. Return lid, loaf and 'body' to your oven. 10-15 minutes before baking is due to be complete, remove the 'body', exposing the loaf so that the crust can brown to your satisfaction. Works well for me!This is my favourite cooking pot.Ignore the reviews who complain of rust or poor quality casting.The pot needs oiling after use and the casting quality is good.Apart from being used as a dutch oven.The pot can be used for cooking anything, stews and curries look fantastic in it against the black colour.The lid can be used as a frying pan, once long time seasoned it does perfect fried eggs, no sticking.The pot is also useful as a chip pan, because it holds so much heat, the oil does not cool down quickly when chips are added giving a good crisp chip.Good as casserole dish in the oven.I use it for sourdough bread, use it upside down, tipping the dough into the lid, then place the oven on top as the lid.Highly recommended will last a lifetime, and gets better with time.Ok first time lodge owner,I have cooked with cast iron (French)This is the first real cast iron item I have ever bought. I wanted real old school, keen home cook and the heritage was a important thing for me as well as performance.So build qualityAmazing!!!!!! Very well made, its cast iron cast in sand so that reflects in the finish and its not a problem at all.Heat retention Amazing buy this and energy bills must come down it cooks well on very low heat once it up to temp really good.Really easy to look after, just remember dry after washing and a wee rub of oil and thats it.Ok lodge say ready to use out of the box!!!!!! Disagree most definitely , it was Christmas eve and I was making soup for Christmas day , things going well it came to the first taste and thought WTF yes my friends metallic could have cried. I have a far bit of lodge all bought at the same time and its how I want to cook .Back to the soup. Sat down and thought hope this can be sorted or its going to be devastating.Good News,Read on the Internet for a solution,Season Season seasonI seasoned it 4 time and I was so happy this now kicks ass the best thing I have ever purchased and its for life.So buy with confidence season it at least 3 times before use and your sorted.Happy cooking!!!!!