Is enamel lined cast iron any good?

[sofasurfer]

Is enamel or porcelain lined cast iron cookware any good? Will it stand open fire heat? Is it really "non-stick"? Is it as good or better than old cast iron? I see it at Meijers for around $20-$40 a fry pan.

[crashdive123]

We now use a lot of cast iron on our electric stove. The pots are all enamel coated and perform wonderfully. They have the advantage of not reacting (like uncoated cast iron will) to acidic foods (we make a lot of homemade tomato sauce). Additionally the heat distribution is very even (less chance of burning like a thin pot sitting on a burner). Our enamel coated cast iron resides indoors, so no experience with it over an open fire.

[alaskabushman]

My wife absolutely loves the enamel pan I gave her for Christmas, it's much better non-stick than Teflon which comes off after heavy use. As to open fire I'm not sure but we cook on a propane stove so it's kinda like open fire...

[Sunset Sam]

Good quality enameled cast iron cookware is great stuff. Unfortunately, the good stuff costs $200-300US per pan/pot. Recently a lot of asian knockoffs of the quality products have been showing up in stores like JCP, Target, WM, etc. One tip-off that you may be looking at a cheap imitation is that the name of some popular TV host has been added on to the product. These look like good deals compared to Le Creuset, but many of these copies are inferior– especially the enamel coating, which will chip and scratch at the drop of a ladle. I use mine over propane and natural gas flames in the kitchen, but not when camping out of fear of chipping or scratching them. Also, I try to use wood or plastic utensils and avoid harsh metal scrubbers when using my pots. These concerns aside, the enameled cast iron has the same cooking benefits as plain cast iron cookware, and it cleans up just as nicely, while looking prettier.

I like to avoid the teflon-type non-stick coatings, especially over open flames. Once scorched, the coating fails, potentially gets into food, and permanently loses its non-stick character (the off-gassing while scorching is also thought to be a health hazard).

[Rick]

Lodge is a very good name in cast iron and you can pick up their porcelain for $50 - $100.

[ElevenBravo]

Ive always used standard cast iron...

All the Tef coated pans Ive ever used turned to garbage in less than 6 weeks, so Ive stuck with tried & true standard cast iron.

How durable in the enamel coated cast iron??

Thanks for any guidance!
EB

[sofasurfer]

I'm just wanting to know about enameled CI pans over open fire. I would not even consider teflon.

[alaskabushman]

Check out Lehmans if you want to look for quality cast iron cook wear. They have lots of other goodies too!

[LowKey]

Lehman's cast iron "light" with the enamel coating is imported. Some of it from China.
Shipping cast iron is crazy. Lodge you can get just about any good sporting goods store.
Lehmans is a fun place to look around though. Have you seen their Prepper's mailer? They don't call it that but the focus was there. They're pretty savvy.

The only thing about anything enamel is don't use it on a glass top cook stove. Enamel is glass and they can fuse. The last thing you want to be telling the wife is "that pot is a permanent fixture on your stove honey."

I can't say anything about enamel on cast iron, but the enamel on my little round charcoal cooker sure takes a beating from the heat, and from my dropping the lid on the ground a few times (handle on top gets hot!)

[crashdive123]

As I said, I had no experience using the porcelain coated cast iron on an open fire. Found this.

http://cooking.stackexchange.com/questions/24797/can-i-use-this-dutch-oven-on-a-grill-or-camp-fire Scroll down to where it says answer.

Some more here. http://semclix.hubpages.com/hub/Cast-Iron-Vs-Enamel

Based on what I've read, I would not use it over an open fire where temperature control may be an issue.

[2dumb2kwit]

I've been told (by the people at Lodge.) not to put the enameled stuff over really high temp. flames. I use my enamel coated dutch oven on the grill sometimes, but not over screaming hot fire or coals. I use it over just enough heat to keep a good simmer going and have had no problems. Keep in mind, that I keep pretty good control of the temps in the grill, which I don't think I could do on a campfire. I don't think I would even use coals and a trivet. To me, that just seems like the coals are too close to the enamel. (Just my opinion....and keep in mind that I'm just a dummy.)

As for all the other stuff.....yeah, it cooks great and cleans up really easy.

[pgvoutdoors]

I use my enamel cookware in house mostly, but I have used it on a propane camp stove as well. The enamel Dutch ovens (the ones without legs) are for in house ovens only. Lodge Manufacturing is a great company and produces some really nice cast iron products, though their enamelware is produced in China. I haven't had a problem with it but I wish it was US made.

See Link: http://www.lodgemfg.com/enameled-cast-iron

[Winnie]

I've taken my Le Creuset camping and used it on an open fire. It worked just fine.