If you have a 26cm round Le Creuset casserole...

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Please can you tell me what you use it for and how many you cook for? I have a voucher I need to spend and I fancy a casserole dish. It would be supermarket's own version with my voucher.

I have a shallow casserole and the oval one which is big enough to roast a chicken in.

We are one adult and one giant teen most of the time but there are four of us in the holidays. I was thinking I could use the large pan for soups and for batch cooking but it seems a bit overkill.

I could get a smaller one with my voucher. The voucher was my present from an elderly parent who wants me to treat myself.

We have the Sainsbury's version, but rarely use it due to the weight.

I do! I’m making coq au vin in it today, for two adults with leftovers. Also use it for beef stew, chilli con carne and oven baked curries. I find I can cook for 4 in that, it’s especially good for stews etc where I want to brown the meat (which I can do on the hob) and then add stew ingredients and pop the whole thing in the oven. Saves using a separate frying pan to brown meat before adding to a slow cooker or anything. Super handy!

It is the Sainsbury's one I am looking at. Cast iron is never going to be lightweight but I imagine it will be heavier than the oval one I already have.

I have an aldi version i make sourdough in

I use mine all the time - love it as you can brown meat and cook onions and then fling everything in, and cook on hob or in oven. I make spag bol, curries, meatballs in tomato sauce, various stews, with or without dumplings. I freeze any excess.

I have a non-Le Cruset one which I rarely use due to weight. If I were you I would get a stainless steel equivalent. I have a large stainless steel pan with a lid which is brilliant for stock, soup etc.

Soups, casseroles, currys, rice, pasta all get made in mine.

We do range from 2 to 9 people in the house though.

Thanks for this thread OP I'm looking at one in the JL sale and didn't know Sainsbury's had them as well. I couldn't decide between 26 and 28cm either; I want one for batch cooking.

Personally, since we bought an Instant Pot I've pretty much stopped cooking on the hob. It's so much more convenient to fry in the pot and then set a timer on the pressure cooker - no need to stand near the cooker, checking, stirring, etc.

Sourdough, casseroles, curries, stews. I use it daily and if I broke it would buy a replacement immediately.

I have several really large ones. It's great for the browning stage as you really cut down on batches. The larger sizes means that you can do a decent sized batch without filling it up too far so much easier to stir and add bits without making a mess.
One thing to do is check the height with the lid on and whether you can use any other shelves in your oven at the same time.
I batch cook a lot but have large extended family that I feed from time to time so the size works for me.

We’ve got a 20cm round one and use it all the time for a family of four adults. Start things off on the hob browning and then into the oven for the main cook. We’ve got a bigger oval one which I use for batch cooking or roasting chickens. We got rid of our Instant Pot, much prefer traditional cooking.

I have a Le Crueset I inherited in the 1990’s. It was bought in the ‘80’s. I use it regularly for soups, casseroles, for making stock, curries, chilli etc etc. Also poach a whole chicken too.

Bloody love it. Use it at least one a week in the winter.

I have the le creuset and use it all the time. Bolognese, chilli, risotto, stews etc. I have had mine 11 years and it is still in good shape, always cleans well and is nice enough to take straight to the table.

The choices are 22cm/3.3l or 26cm/5.3l.

Excellent points about the browning and the oven size. Off to measure now!

I have the le creuset one and use it every single day. Pasta sauces, curry, chilli. Holds a lot and is really easy to clean. Can roast a whole chicken in it and I don’t find it too heavy. Best investment ever!

I saw in telegraph recently Le Creuset have not been doing so well lately with sales down - thought to be with fewer people being able to afford them with inflation and increased energy costs. People think twice now before making a stew taking 2hours of gas or electric.

I used to use my 26cm a lot more when we were a family of four. It still gets used for batch cooking or for mass catering e,g, Christmas.
I also use it for jams, chutneys, etc.

I have three (different sizes) and use at least one every day.

The dishes I have are le creuset but I've been priced out of the market and I'm not bothered about the name. I think the knockoffs are good quality.

And I also find the lid handy to pop on my large frying pan.

I've got a 24 and a 30.
The 24 has been used all the time for 30 years. It will do stew and dumplings for 4 to 6 no problem.

The 30 was useful when there were eight of us at home but is now seldom used.

I have two of the Sainsbury’s ones a smaller one & a large one that I purchased last year. I use mine regularly for soup, casseroles, chilli, curry, brisket & ham. I like that I can use on the hob and then straight to the oven. I also have the shallow Sainsbury’s one (it’s the cream one) for risotto, bolognaise & chicken based dishes. There are 6 of us in the house and I tend to make bigger portions of everything so I can freeze some for busier days.

The dishes I have are le creuset but I've been priced out of the market and I'm not bothered about the name.
I know! I look at current prices and think, "surely I didn't pay the equivalent of that 30 years ago. "

Oh, that's another one: the 26 is just big/deep enough to boil a gammon.