Omg La Cruset casserole dishes are now £170!!

[IvyBean]

I last bought one in a French supermarket for £40 and it needs replacing

£170 on JL!!!

I can't believe anybody would pay that.

You can get a new oven for less.

I bought an enormous LC casserole, the biggest size, on Amazon years ago as I'd craved one for years. The biggest one was on special offer, cheaper than all the medium sized ones - I soon realised why, it was so big it barely fitted the oven and I didn't really have any use for it. Total vanity purchase.

I now have a smaller oval one which is just right for doing a casserole or stew for me & DH. The big one gets rolled out if we are ever needing to do soup or chilli or something for a large group. Also I find getting them in & out of the oven such a hassle, I use them mainly on the stovetop, much easier.

I inherited my set from my DM and several need some sort of relining treatment - DM used them daily for 20 odd years and they are well worn - but that would cost a small fortune so the worst ones are now just decorative, just as I need them for the old Rayburn we're installing

Denby cast iron = cheaper and I prefer it. I have this one and use it for everything.

www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B005G30KVK/ref=pd_lpo_sbs_dp_ss_3?pf_rd_p=569136327&pf_rd_s=lpo-top-stripe&pf_rd_t=201&pf_rd_i=B005G306TG&pf_rd_m=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE&pf_rd_r=1DJDFQ9K1Q7PTNET1QRH

I inherited the large orange cast iron casserole dish from my mum because it had got too heavy for her to lift in and out of the oven. It's got to be 35 years old now and still going strong - and I love the way I can start a chilli/bolognaise on the hob then transfer it to the oven in it!

Also got some ceramic pans and a fondue set that have some use, though not as much. When I do remember to use the pans though they're bloody effective on the hob!

I'm not sure I'd spend £170 now on my dish but only because I don't have £170 spare - like another poster said, if I worked out how much use I'd had out of it (not to mention my mum!) then I bet it'd have paid for itself many times over.

I do find them very, very heavy.

Is there any culinary advantage versus a lighter saucepan?

I have three and all have a small area on the bottom which burns :(

They look nice and last for years, but the larger ones are so heavy when full that I prefer to use lighter pans.

Wow thats a lot!

I bought a set about 15 years ago from an outlet type website. I got 3 pans, a frying pan and 2 casseroles (262 and 24") for £200 reduced from £300. Then when Alders (?? Department store chain) closed I got a MASSIVE shallow casserole type thing for £80 instead of £110 and I balked at that. I have used it at least 4 times a week since I bought it though so cost per use is pennies.

If you think about how long they last and cost per use versus cheaper ones then they really are worth it, but its having the money in the first place. I think I must have bought mine during a lull between them being desirable!

That is expensive. I don't think I paid more than £80 for mine and that was only 3/4 years ago.

I love my Le Creuset collection. I collected it piece by piece over about 12 months.

3 pans, casserole dish, 4x mini casserole pots, 1 large & 1 small baking dishes, pie dish, flan dish & wok. I had a whistling kettle at one point but my mum ended up with that.

All in red. Love them.

Oh and a cream butter dish but I dropped it on the floor yesterday

I like taking them camping btw because food stays hot for ages in them but I have to put up with dh moaning like hell when he carries them to the washing up sink.

Love LC but they're ridiculously expensive now so I look out for sales /go to TKMaxx . My only gripe is that the casserole dish which is in regular use is stained inside... Tried the bio washing powder method which the LC sales assistant recommended when I popped in to get their cleaner to no avail. Any suggestions greatly welcomed.
Oh and bought a fab large shallow casserole dish from Aldi but I find I need to keep an eye on it as the lid doesn't seal properly so the contents can dry out. Still fab though and seriously much cheaper.. Great looking too!

Good cookware is expensive though, if you think these are expensive then don't look at copper pans or decent knives whatever you do!

Rhubarb removes the stains.

We were given various casseroles and a couple of saucepans as wedding presents - coming up to 25 years on and they're in great condition and almost as new. I've used them regularly, especially the large casserole and treasure them. Over that length of time they've probably worked out quite cost effective!

They are expensive.

They are also good.

I can't use the saucepans/frying pan (gave mine away to a friend, who occasionally casually asks if I'm getting rid of any more )

But the casseroles are fab. I have 4 in a variety of sizes/shapes. All are used regularly, and all are better than a cheapo (not that cheap - was still £60 or so) Costco version which I've had for about 3 years now and is showing signs of wear. My Legs Creuset pans are all 10+ years old and are in better condition.

I have various Le Creuset casseroles, but they have all been inherited or gifted to me. I did have some saucepans (of the cast iron variety) which I gave away because they were too heavy.

There are lots of cheaper options now, which are probably just as good. It's just that Le Creuset is the one of the main brands everyone identifies with and they capitalise on that. I do prefer Staub when it comes to performance, although they are around a similar price.

It's the same with anything though.

I have Fissler saucepans which are 20 years old, and still look new despite daily use. Also,some JL pans which must be over 10 years old, although they get less use. I've had, in the same time period, 4 cheaper versions (in a size I don't have in the Fissler/JL) which have all broken/degraded/had to be chucked and replaced - would have been cheaper to buy the more expensive pan!

Also Global and Sabatier knives - all 15 years old and going strong. Some are older, as had them when I went to university, so 25+ years old. Still fine.

don't look at copper pans or decent knives whatever you do!

I made this mistake. I have been hankering after a Mauviel saute pan ever since. At over £400 with the lid, it's extremely unlikely I'll ever own one (unless I win the lottery!). Decent knives are a must though, although Global are as far as my bank balance will stretch. Some of the Japanese knives are £££££!

I have one - a shallow casserole bought 15 years ago.

It's the most frequently used pan in the kitchen and I'd be lost without it. It's so versatile and easily moves from hob to oven to hob. It's great on the rayburn as well.

I roast meat, tatties and vegetables in it, slow cook stews and casseroles, cook sausages, make curries and risottos and make pasta bakes.

It's the best kitchen item I have ever bought.

Blimey, we've got one sitting in the garden shed waiting to go on Ebay, bought for £40 about 10 years ago, used about twice and replaced by a slow cooker. I've never wanted the pans though, my parents have a couple and they're way too heavy for me.

Thanks for the rhubarb tip TapasFairy will try that!!

We have a set of saucepans which I hate because they're so flipping heavy. And burn spaghetti every single time.

My LC saucepans are stainless steel rather than cast iron so not heavy. They are amazing. No matter how badly I burn things to the arse of them, a quick soak and they come up like new every time. I reckon they'll last a lifetime and the set of 4 only cost £90 or so.

I have lots - 2 what they call 'buffet' pans of different sizes, they are shallow casserole dishes and everything looks so appetising in them even my cooking Also have 2 huge casserole dishes and a griddle. The 2 big dishes I have had 35 years.

Nothing cooks a casserole quite like Le Creuset, I wouldn't dream of doing one in anything else as in glass or whatever it just dries out. Also love the griddle but you have to resist the urge to wash it in soapy water and let it season and brown with age.

Le creuset griddle pan + induction hob + steak = culinary heaven.