9+ Best Dutch Oven Under $100 | Unrivaled Guide 2023

Whether you are an experienced chef or a hobbyist, the Dutch oven is an essential addition to your kitchen with its thick walls and tight-fitting lids. These durable pans can be used on the stove, grill, fire pit, and even in the oven. From making homemade loaves of bread and pizzas to roasting and braising meat, these versatile ovens allow you to prepare a wide variety of dishes.

If you’re ready to invest in a Best Dutch Oven Under $100, here are our top picks, along with an in-depth look at usage and problems encountered by some users, plus all the additional information you need to buy the perfect oven.

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Best Dutch Oven Under $100

What is a Dutch oven?

The “Dutch oven,” a term often used interchangeably with the French oven, pot, or casserole, is an essential cooking tool. If you are not familiar with these pans or enameled cast iron cookware in general, know that they usually have thick walls and a tight-fitting lid with a single, ring or knob handle and that most are made of bare or enameled cast iron, which provides exceptional heat retention, although stainless steel Dutch ovens can also be found.

These popular pans can be used on a stovetop, but they are durable enough to be placed in an oven at high heat. They can also be used on an open bonfire.

Best Dutch Oven Under $100 | Comparison Table 2023

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Best Dutch Oven Under $100 | Reviews 2023

Product Overview:

The Lodge Manufacturing Company EC6D32 Enameled Dutch Oven is a 6-quart, indigo-colored pot that is both functional and stylish. The pot is made of enameled cast iron, which is a combination of two materials – cast iron and porcelain enamel. The porcelain enamel is actually glass that is bonded to the cast iron at high temperatures. A particulate of glass called frit is applied to the cast iron vessel and then baked at temperatures between 1200 and 1400° F. This process causes the glass frit to melt and fuse to the cast iron, creating a bond that is heat tolerant and impervious to water and other consumables.

The Lodge Dutch Oven is not just a kitchen tool, but a way to make every meal a memory. Lodge understands that cooking is about more than just the food, it’s about the memories created while preparing it. This is why they have dedicated themselves to producing cookware that is not just functional but also adds to the overall experience of cooking.

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Product Overview:

The Le Creuset Signature Enameled Cast Iron Round Dutch Oven is a high-quality cooking vessel that is perfect for a wide range of kitchen tasks. The 7.25-quart capacity is perfect for making soups, stews, casseroles, and other dishes that require long, slow cooking. The Caribbean color adds a touch of style to any kitchen.

One of the main benefits of this Dutch oven is its enameled cast iron construction. The enamel coating provides superior heat distribution and retention, ensuring that your food is cooked evenly and thoroughly. Additionally, the enamel coating is easy to clean and is resistant to dulling, staining, chipping, and cracking. The light-colored smooth interior enamel also allows easy monitoring of the cooking progress.

Product Overview:

The Cooks Standard 6-Quart Stainless Steel Stockpot with Lid is a versatile and durable cooking pot that is perfect for making soups, stews, and other large-batch dishes. Made with 18/10 stainless steel, this stockpot is built to last and is resistant to rust and discoloration. The aluminum disc bottom provides even heat distribution, preventing hot spots and ensuring that your food cooks evenly. This makes it perfect for use on all types of stovetops, including induction, gas, electric, glass, and ceramic.

The tempered glass lid with a steam hole vent allows you to easily monitor the cooking process without having to remove the lid, which can cause a loss of heat and moisture. The riveted handles offer durability and make it easy to move the pot around, even when it is full of food. The stockpot is oven safe up to 500F, while the glass lid is safe up to 350F, making it perfect for finishing off dishes in the oven or under the broiler.

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Product Overview:

The Lodge L8DOL3 Cast Iron Dutch Oven is a versatile and durable cooking pot that is perfect for preparing and serving memorable meals. With a 5-quart capacity, it is large enough to cook for a family or a crowd. The Dutch oven is pre-seasoned with 100% vegetable oil, so it is ready to use right out of the box. The more you use it, the better the seasoning will become, resulting in a natural non-stick surface that improves with age.

Made in the USA by Lodge, a family-owned company with over 120 years of experience in crafting high-quality cast iron cookware. Lodge is located in South Pittsburg, Tennessee, and is known for its lifetime durability and cooking versatility. The Dutch oven is not only great for baking, braising, and roasting, but it can also be used for stovetop cooking, making it a versatile addition to any kitchen.

Product Overview:

The ZWILLING Spirit 3-ply 8-qt Stainless Steel Ceramic Nonstick Stock Pot is a versatile and durable option for all of your cooking needs. The 3-ply construction, which extends from rim to rim, is made up of a 3mm thick aluminum core that conducts heat quickly and evenly. This ensures that your food cooks evenly and efficiently, saving you time and energy.

One of the standout features of this stock pot is the PTFE and PFOA free nonstick ceramic coating. Not only is this coating healthier for you and your family, as it doesn't release harmful fumes when heated, but it is also better for the environment. The nonstick surface makes for easy food release and quick cleanup. Additionally, the large stay-cool loop handles are designed for easy maneuvering and control, even when wearing oven mitts. The flared rim also helps to prevent drips and spills while pouring.

Product Overview:

The Lodge EC6D43 Enameled Cast Iron Dutch Oven is a 6-quart oven that comes in a vibrant Island Spice Red color. It is a perfect combination of form and function, making it a classic piece of cookware that is great for preparing and serving memorable meals. The Dutch Oven is made from enameled cast iron, which is a durable and heat-tolerant material that is impervious to water and other consumables.

One of the key features of this Dutch Oven is the porcelain enamel on cast iron. This is a process where a particulate of glass, called frit, is applied to the cast iron vessel and then baked at high temperatures between 1200 and 1400° F. The glass frit melts and fuses to the cast iron, forming a bond. This creates a smooth and non-stick surface that is easy to clean and maintain.

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Product Overview:

The Calphalon Classic Nonstick 5-Quart Dutch Oven with Cover is a versatile and durable cookware piece that makes cooking and cleanup a breeze. Made with dual-layer nonstick, this Dutch oven ensures easy food release and quick cleanup. The convenient measuring marks, pour spouts and straining lids make cooking more efficient and save time in the kitchen. The durable hard-anodized aluminum construction ensures fast and even heating, making it ideal for searing or braising meats, and then finishing dishes in the oven.

This Dutch oven is perfect for a variety of dishes such as chili, stews, soups and one-pot family meals. The tempered glass lid allows for easy monitoring of the cooking process, and the loop handles make it easy to carry from the oven to the table for serving. The oven safe up to 450F and eco-friendly PFOA-free ceramic nonstick make it a safe and healthy choice for cooking.

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Product Overview:

The Lodge L8DD3 Cast Iron Double Dutch Oven is a versatile and durable piece of cookware that every home cook should own. With a capacity of 5 quarts, it is perfect for making soups, stews, roasts, and no-knead bread recipes. The lid of the Dutch oven doubles as a 10.25 inch skillet, allowing you to use it for a variety of cooking methods, including searing, sautéing, simmering, baking, broiling, braising, roasting, frying, and grilling.

One of the best things about this Dutch oven is its excellent heat retention and even heating. The cast iron construction ensures that heat is distributed evenly throughout the pot, so your food cooks evenly and consistently. The loop handles also provide secure control, making it easy to lift and move the pot around.

Product Overview:

The Staub Cast Iron 7-qt Round Cocotte is a versatile and durable cooking pot that is perfect for a variety of dishes. Made in France, this cocotte features a heavy weight tight-fitting lid that retains moisture and creates a "rain-forest effect" that evenly returns juices back onto the food. The lid is oven safe up to 500F/260C, while the pot itself can be used in the oven up to 900F/482C without the lid.

One of the unique features of this cocotte is the smooth enamel bottom, which works on all stovetops, including gas, electric, glass ceramic, induction, and halogen. This allows for easy and convenient cooking on any surface. Additionally, the interior matte texture results in exceptional browning, making this cocotte perfect for slow-cooking and braising.

How To Pick The Best Dutch Oven Under $100 | Ultimate Guide 2023

In addition to cooking capacity and the material used, there are other aspects to consider before buying a Dutch oven. Dutch ovens are not only suitable for indoor use, but are also perfect for outdoor activities such as barbecuing and camping, so buy one that fits your needs perfectly.

Thick wall

A Dutch oven should have uniform walls covering each side with good quality cast iron and a smooth surface on the inside. Choose an aluminum oven if you love the outdoors and a cast iron oven if you intend to use it indoors.

Size

Cookware is measured by its capacity. It varies from 2 to 12 liters. The oven should therefore be chosen according to the number of people it will cook for.

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Shape

There are pans of ideal shapes depending on the food being cooked. A round shape is ideal for stews, casseroles, soups, etc. However, if you want to cook meat, fish, poultry or foods that require a large oven, opt for oval-shaped pans.

Lid and handle

The lid and handles are an essential feature of a Dutch oven: a well-fitting lid prevents food from drying out during cooking, while the top handle should be firmly attached and made of metal or silicone to avoid any inconvenience.

Side bars are also a useful feature of a Dutch oven. In addition, one or more heavy-duty wire handles should be attached to the oven so that the pan can be easily grasped.

Brighter interiors

Brighter interiors are excellent because they allow a better view of the pan during cooking. The brighter interior allows you to easily see the contents of the fryer. A brighter interior will allow you to see if the butter has browned properly and to easily monitor the color of the bottom, or the brown bits of food that create a rich flavor for sauces. In Dutch ovens with dark interiors, it is much more difficult to monitor the color of the food being cooked.

Light interiors

Light interiors will not stay that way for long; cooking will change the color slightly over time. At higher temperatures, the pan may also begin to show a series of lines or cracks, called crazing. This does not affect performance, but some people do not like the appearance of cracks, while others like the natural, worn appearance. The interior may also have scratches when using cooking tools, especially metal ones, which do not look very good.

Dutch ovens with dark interiors hide cracks, scratches and nicks much better than those with lighter interiors. The dark interior will keep your Dutch oven looking new and pristine, even after heavy use and constant stirring. You can turn on the oven hood light to better see the dark interior of the pan.

Stainless steel

Stainless steel is easy to clean and maintain, but Dutch stainless steel ovens usually do not have a heavy, tight-fitting lid. Also, stainless steel does not retain heat as well as other materials. You can cook Dutch oven recipes, but the food would benefit more from a material that retains heat better.

Cast iron

Cast iron (or bare cast iron) is an excellent Dutch oven because it retains heat for a long period of time, making it an excellent pressure cooker and keeping the temperature of the frying oil constant. Bare cast iron can also be used for campfires and outdoor cooking! Remember that bare cast iron requires special cleaning, regular seasoning and maintenance for proper cooking. Bare cast iron can also transfer flavors to dishes, which can be good and bad. Tomatoes and acid-based foods, such as chili peppers, do not react well with the exposed cast iron interior and make the dish less flavorful. Bare cast iron pans can be heavy, but they can last a lifetime if maintained properly.

Enameled cast iron offers the heat retention advantages of cast iron without the inconvenience of special cleaning and seasoning. Enameled coating covers bare cast iron and provides an easy-to-clean surface that does not transfer flavors. This material is available in a variety of colors to match your kitchen and style. Like bare cast iron, enameled cast iron has a heavy weight. Enameled cast iron pans are more expensive than most cooking pans, but the price is worth it-these pans can be passed down from generation to generation.

Ceramic pans are the lightest of all materials. Emile Henry makes these types of Dutch ovens, perfect for stews and bread baking. They can be used on the stove and in the oven. Because they are made of ceramic stoneware, they can crack or break if they are dropped or subjected to severe temperature changes.

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For ease of use and longevity

I personally use an enameled cast-iron Dutch oven in my kitchen. The heat retention is indispensable for long simmering at low temperatures, braising ribs, and keeping the oil hot when frying. I like the fact that I can treat it like any other cookware and wash it with soap and water.

Materials and construction

The cost of Dutch ovens depends on the material used and the amount of labor required to make a pot. A stainless steel pot can cost less than an enameled cast iron pot because less material is used, but also because it takes much less time to make a stainless steel Dutch oven. One of the most famous manufacturers of enameled cast iron, Le Creuset, is handmade in France and is handled and inspected several times by dozens of skilled craftsmen. Many companies that make cheaper Dutch ovens rely on China and do not have the same attention to detail or quality as a brand-name cast iron manufacturer.

Lifetime Warranty

Our best Dutch ovens have a lifetime warranty (for Le Creuset and Staub). Compliance with a pan warranty says a lot about the company and the product it represents. Pans and enameled cast iron, in general, are meant to be generational pieces. If well cared for, these pans can be passed down to children and even grandchildren. Spend your money on one pan, one time, not on several cheap pans that will need to be replaced every year.

Quality

Not all Dutch ovens are the same. Some companies cut corners and provide a lower quality product. Cheaper Dutch ovens and enameled pans can give inferior cooking results, uneven heating, and shorter life. All enamels can chip and crack, but cheaper products tend to crack more quickly. Our best Le Creuset and Staub Dutch ovens are the highest quality Dutch ovens available and come with decades of warranty.

Country of origin

The funny thing is that most Dutch ovens come from China. Staub and Le Creuset are still of incredible quality and are based in France. To create a quality Dutch oven, many steps and processes are still done by hand. We support the skilled artisans who still produce enameled cast iron cookware that can last a lifetime. The cheapest Dutch ovens are made in China, where quality can be poor.

Feet

This is a very important feature when choosing a Dutch oven. Legs allow the oven to rest smoothly against the heat source. For outdoor activities, legs allow the pot to rest on coals and on a flat surface such as the oven or stove, allowing it to be placed evenly.

Best Dutch Oven Under $100 | Video Explanation

Frequently asked questions

What size should the Dutch oven be?

My advice is to think ahead. If you plan to cook for parties, gatherings, or if your family is growing, you may want a larger vessel. I would say that if you want the best size hood oven, for most recipes, I would look for sizes between 5 and 6 liters. This size is the sweet spot: it can feed several people (I would say up to 5 people comfortably), it can hold a whole chicken, and most recipes are designed for this type of oven.

The smaller pan ovens, in the 1 qt range, are ideal for cooking individual mini dishes and making amazing presentations of individual side dishes. If you need to entertain more than 20 people at a party, Le Creuset's huge 15.5-quart Dutch oven is large enough to hold a whole turkey or a bone-in ham.

Is it better to choose a round Dutch oven or an oval Dutch oven?

It depends on the stove. Typical stoves have round burners, and a round Dutch oven naturally fits this burner shape. You can get an oval shape, but you will be faced with uneven cooking if you do not have a large enough burner. The large oval shape usually extends beyond the perimeter of the ring burner, but some stoves have oversized ring burners that fit large oval Dutch ovens. Gas stoves may have a special elliptical burner, which also fits. If you are lucky enough to have such a pan, opt for the oval shape! Also, if you want to use the Dutch oven primarily in the oven, such as for baking bread or roasting chicken, the shape is not a problem, since the oven heats evenly.

What can I do with a Dutch oven?

The list of things you can do in a Dutch oven is long, very long. But when you cook a piece of meat slowly and gently with a braising agent such as broth, wine, or brandy, truly magical things can happen. Because of its unparalleled ability to retain heat, the Dutch oven is perfect for making a slow red sauce on Sunday or making a broth from the previous day's roast chicken. Its ability to withstand the oven's high temperatures makes it an ideal cooking tool for baking, browning, and braising meat. It is the best possible vessel for dishes that need to be cooked slowly, such as stews, sauces, and tender roasts. The Dutch oven is truly one of the most versatile cookware you can own, and many cooks, myself included, will tell you that it is their favorite kitchen utensil.

What should I look for when buying a Dutch oven?

When looking for the perfect Dutch oven, you need to consider the size of the pan. This is probably the most important decision you will make, so think about it carefully. Popular indoor sizes range from four to seven liters, but you can find 2-liter products or 10 or more liters. If you tend to prepare large holiday meals with many dishes for your extended family, a larger Dutch oven may be useful. Keep in mind that large containers are quite heavy (especially when filled with food). Personally, I think a 4-quart Dutch oven is ideal for a single person or couple, but I would probably upgrade to a 6-quart one if I had children or several mouths to feed regularly. Keep in mind that most ovens are cast iron and not particularly light, so don't overestimate them just for the sake of it.

What shape and weight should a Dutch oven be?

Speaking of weight, Dutch ovens should have thick walls, so don't be afraid of a pan that looks heavy-it's actually quite sturdy, and that's a good thing. You may also see round or oval Dutch ovens, and the best option depends on your intended use. If you do a lot of cooking on the stovetop, or if you do frying, sautéing and browning, choose a round model, because it fits the burner better. Some round models are so-called "double Dutch ovens," in which the lid is deep enough to be used as a frying pan. An oval Dutch oven is best suited for long pieces of meat such as tenderloins, roasted ribs, and large poultry. If you plan to cook these dishes frequently rather than stews and shanks, choose an oblong model.

What is a Dutch oven and why do I need one?

There are basically two types of Dutch oven--the cast iron outdoor oven and the enameled cast iron oven. The enameled versions are designed for indoor use and have an enamel coating that makes them easy to maintain and use.

They have airtight lids that keep moisture in the pan, and the cast iron retains and distributes heat very evenly. They are mainly used for one-pot cooking, and the qualities of cast iron in the Dutch oven often result in excellent cooking performance.

I think most kitchens could benefit from an enameled Dutch oven because they are so versatile. Whether it's frying, searing, roasting, braising--or even baking--anything can be done in a Dutch oven. Frankly, even the most average cook can cook well with a Dutch oven.

What can be cooked in a Dutch oven?

I have already mentioned that you can perform various culinary operations, such as baking, frying, roasting, etc. What you need to know is that they have been around for a long time and there are millions of Dutch oven recipes dedicated to them. They are very popular.

Is it worth buying a cheap or inexpensive Dutch oven?

Yes, you will be surprised at how good they can be. We are so used to looking at price as an indicator of quality that it influences our opinion. I have explained in detail why the price at the high end becomes very high. At the low end of the market, the quality, especially if it is a mainstream brand, is more than acceptable and the cooking performance is excellent.

What size is the Dutch oven?

If you are lucky, it is nice to have a range of sizes. If you are among those who have to make do with just one, it is best to get a slightly larger one for more flexibility. I would always recommend a minimum of 5 pints, up to 6 pints, as a good starting point.

What makes them affordable?

The reality is that "cheap Dutch ovens" are made to a lower standard in terms of finish. Obviously, they are not as well-finished as high-end brands such as Le Creuset or Staub.

However, cast iron is cast iron. It works the same way, so its performance is not much different depending on price.

The "brand" is also important. The cheaper brands do not spend large amounts of money on branding or lifestyle, whereas Le Creuset and Staub do. This has to be paid for by the price of the product. At the cheaper end of the market, it is the word of mouth and user reviews that drive sales.

Conclusion

Whether you want to invest in an expensive or cheaper, The Best Dutch Oven Under $100, be sure to buy one with an enameled cast-iron lining, as it allows you to cook stews and makes it easier to braise and brown food, and it works equally well on the stovetop and in the oven. Each pan has its own qualities, ranging from large size and wide handles to different capacities, allowing you to cook a wide variety of dishes.

Jennifer Lawrence

Hi, I’m Jennifer Lawrence, Went to Calhoun High School (Georgia) my goal is to make the kitchen fun by providing a mathematical and logical component to our approach to cooking good food. I look not only at delicious recipes but also at kitchen tools and gadgets to give you the tips and tricks we hope you will find useful. Read More Here