Induction Dutch Oven

Take a measuring tape and measure the area where your stew pot will sit: that number is needed for the bottom sizes of the Dutch ovens. With two sizes that both fit on your plate, you will get further with the larger one. In a larger Dutch oven, you can make more different dishes, that is our experience in the store. For the capacity, the eaters at the table count, and the rules for that are in our article about the size of a Dutch oven.

How many centimeters of a Dutch oven touch your cooking zone?

"The part that touches the cooktop": this is how our product pages describe the diameter of the bottom. This measurement is mentioned for these five Dutch ovens.

How many centimeters of a Dutch oven touch your cooking zone?

"The part that touches the cooktop": this is how our product pages describe the diameter of the bottom. This measurement is mentioned for these five Dutch ovens.

The Cookinglife Induction Dutch Oven ø 24 cm and the Cookinglife Induction Dutch Oven ø 26 cm are made of steel with enamel. The ø 24 cm one has a base of 16 cm on your plate and has a capacity of 4 liters. The ø 26 cm one has a base of 18 cm, with 5 liters. The product pages do not mention their empty weight.

Cookinglife Induction Dutch Oven ø 24 cm

Cookinglife Induction Dutch Oven ø 26 cm

Also the Blackwell Cast Iron Dutch Oven ø 24 cm has a base of 18 cm, but it is made of bare cast iron. It weighs 5.4 kg when empty, and it holds 4.5 liters.

Blackwell Cast Iron Dutch Oven ø 24 cm

The two BK Dutch ovens are made of cast iron with enamel. The BK Dutch Oven Bourgogne Jet Black ø 24 cm has a base of 19 cm and a capacity of 4.2 liters, weighing 5.02 kg when empty. The BK Dutch Oven Bourgogne Jet Black ø 28 cm has a base of 22 cm on your plate. It holds 6.7 liters, with an empty weight of 6.36 kg.

BK Dutch Oven Bourgogne Jet Black ø 24 cm

BK Dutch Oven Bourgogne Jet Black ø 28 cm

The bottoms of these five pots are 5 to 8 cm narrower than the size in their name. Also, with the other Dutch ovens here, the bottom is likely a lot narrower than their name suggests. If the bottom differs by at most about 2 cm from the circle you measured, the pot will fit that zone.

If your zone measures around 19 or 20 cm, the BK ø 24 cm will fit on it, with 4.2 liters for your stew. If your zone is narrower than 19 cm, the two Cooking Dutch ovens with 16 and 18 cm bases fit better. They are entry-level models made of steel with enamel. With the same 18 cm base, the Blackwell ø 24 cm is for those who want bare cast iron and do the seasoning themselves.

How do you heat 5 kg of cast iron on induction, and when do you lower the zone?

An induction cooktop can go from zero to a hundred in one go, and that is exactly what you don't want to do to cast iron. The product page of the Keij Kamado Dutch Oven Blue ø 24 cm mentions another reason: slowly warming up preserves the enamel of that pot.

Build the heat for a stew with seared meat like this:

1. Before the meat goes in, heat the pot with a splash of oil for a few minutes at about 60 percent, a medium setting. For the BK ø 24 cm, the product page mentions 2 to 3 minutes.

2. After those minutes, sear the meat, lowering the zone to around 40 percent.

3. Once the liquid is added and the lid is on, lower the zone, as for our chicken stew with autumn vegetables, which then simmers for 45 minutes.

After lowering, the stew will continue to bubble for a while: that is the heat that the cast iron retains.

What do you do if your cooking zone turns off while the Dutch oven is simmering on low?

You can check two things, and both relate to the bottom of your Dutch oven.

The first is a bottom that is too narrow for the zone. Place a measuring tape over the flat part underneath your Dutch oven. If that flat part is more than 2 cm below the size of your zone, place the pot on a smaller zone. You already know the bottom of the five Dutch ovens we mentioned earlier.

The second applies to a Dutch oven that has been around for years. If it has been on gas for those years, the bottom may be slightly warped, and the pot does not rest fully on the glass. The induction test with your own pot will show if that is the case with your Dutch oven. If such a pot stays on a suitable zone even at a low setting, you can continue to use it on induction.

Can a heavy cast iron Dutch oven scratch your induction cooktop?

Yes, it can, for example, if there is a grain of sand from the vegetables under the pot. A rough spot underneath can also cause scratches if you drag the pot across the cooktop. Therefore, clean the zone and the bottom before placing the pot down. If it needs to move to another zone, even if just a little, lift it up.

The Sola Cast Iron Dutch Oven Red ø 24 cm has enamel all around, including on the bottom, according to the product page. The bare Blackwell ø 24 cm is different, as it rests directly on the glass with the cast iron itself.

Sola Cast Iron Dutch Oven Red ø 24 cm

Much easier to lift than cast iron is the Cookinglife Induction Dutch Oven ø 28 cm, made of steel with enamel. Without a stew inside, it weighs 1.18 kg, while it holds 6 liters. In our overview of all Dutch ovens, we weigh steel and aluminum against cast iron, also for those who stew in the oven.

Cookinglife Induction Dutch Oven ø 28 cm

Does a large or oval Dutch oven fit on one cooking zone?

The BK ø 28 cm holds 6.7 liters and has a base of 22 cm on your plate. If your largest zone measures less than 20 cm, the edge of its bottom will receive less heat than the center. For such a plate, the smaller BK ø 24 cm is the better option.

For an oval Dutch oven, there is the Cosy & Trendy Fontestic Cast Iron Black Oval Dutch Oven, 31 cm long and 24 cm wide. Its product page does not mention the width at the bottom, so give it your largest zone.

Cosy & Trendy Fontestic Cast Iron Black Oval Dutch Oven