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Le Creuset Buffet Casserole | 
| Brand: Le Creuset
List Price: $255.00
Buy: $169.99 - $189.99 (On sale from $240.00)
You Save: $65.01 (25%)
This item is no longer available
MPN: L2532-3030
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| Editorial Reviews:
Product Description
Beautiful buffet casserole works double duty in the oven and on the table. Made for entertaining, this low, wide casserole is designed to showcase food to maximum advantage on a dinner table or buffet. This quintessential kitchen-to-tableware piece cooks foods while sealing in delicious flavors and moisture. Ideal for marinating, poaching, baking and browning foods to tender perfection. The mainstay of French chefs for nearly a century, Le Creuset cookware features bold and bright colors in a variety of shapes and sizes to suit any culinary need. Each cookware piece is skillfully finished by hand. 3 1/2 Quart capacity. 12 lbs. 14 1/2"L (including handles) x 5"H.
Product Features
• Molded of cast iron with an expertly enameled glossy porcelain coating
• All-in-one French oven beautifully goes from freezer or fridge straight to cooking device to table, then back to freezer or fridge for storage of leftovers
• Versatile for stovetop, oven and broiler
• Highest quality porcelain enamel coating is impermeable to odors and stains
• Foods will not react with the enameled finish
• Easy-clean enamel surfaces are scratch-resistant
• Superior conduction of heat promotes faster cooking times
• Even distribution and retention of heat ensures cookware stays hot longer
• Heavy, tight-fitting lid seals in moisture and flavors - food self-bastes
• Sure-grip phenolic knob is ovenproof to 400 F; do place knob under broiler
• Dish without lid is safe for oven or broiler up to 400 F
• Suited for stovetops including electric, gas, ceramic, induction and halogen top
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| Customer Reviews: Read 5 more reviews...
 My Favorite Pan August 10, 2008
THIS IS BY FAR MY FAVORITE KITCHEN PAN.
~It is used for so many meals, from cooking eggs, sauces, roasting pan for meats, cooking down greens, heating tortillas, etc. We use it almost daily, as it seems to be the perfect size for most of our meals.
~I have used it for just over one year and it still look awesome. It cleans super easy.
~It is a bit heavy, so if you have a far amount of weakness in your hands or arms, you may not appreciate it as much.
~Heats excellently on my induction stove top.
~Guests have said they really love the kiwi color.
Blue Heaven (Cobalt of course) May 23, 2007
I wanted some "mid range" size enameled cast iron pots that would be a manageable weight and size and be OK when cooking for 2 with left over's, or occasionally 4-6 persons.
The 4 Qt Le Creuset Soup Pot and the 3 Qt Le Creuset Casserole are perfect. I'm planning to purchase a 7 1/4 Qt Le Creuset French Oven in addition. It's a similar weight and diameter to the Casserole, but (unlike the 5 1/2 Qt French oven) is significantly larger than the 4 1/4 Qt Soup Pot, so I feel it is a worthwhile addition for the 20% of things that don't fit the other 2 Pots.
I'm glad I chose the Cobalt Blue, -it adds some color to the kitchen but not too much. It will go well with a bit of red as well.
The things I like about the large flat Casserole pot is that it is 3 Qt, but the lid is 2 Qt so overall it holds 6 Qt, for things like lamb or chicken roasts.
And it's good for everything except soup. The 4 1/4 Soup Pot on the other hand is ideal for soup (no surprise there) since with it's bath tub shape, small soup batches fill up the side walls rapidly. It can be used for everything else as well, but it's not quite so convenient for dishes which are flat by nature like Salmon. The 4 1/4 Qt Soup Pot with lid is about 5 Qt and has almost an inch more headroom inside than the casserole for things like chicken or roasts.
When you receive your order I recommend checking each piece thoroughly inside and out before removing any labels, and then returning any defective ones to Amazon shipping paid, -if you purchase from someone else this may not be free though. I think the Amazon prices are reasonable especially if you don't live near a Le Creuset outlet store, and if you can get close to 50% of list including shipping with an overall purchase of items, I think you are doing OK. Also keep in mind that the 101 year
owner warranty is all very fine, but you have to print the ownership paperwork on archival quality paper to be readable.
versatile starter piece April 2, 2007
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
As seems the case with some other reviewers, this was my first piece of Le Creuset. It's wonderful for braising and easy to maintain. It has all of the benefits of uncoated cast iron, with an easy-to-clean enamel coating. While heavy, it is not unwieldy. It was my favorite piece (until the next piece, of course).
 Hard to Clean January 9, 2007
4 out of 4 found this review helpful
Le Creuset cast-iron products really conduct the heat and are great products to have in the kitchen. One drawback, they can be difficult to clean. If you sear meat or fry, burnt remnants cannot be removed. Overnight soaking will help but you cannot use soft scrub or hard scrubbers on the enamel. The product still functions well, it just does not look as nice as an expensive piece of cooking gear should be! Would buy it again.
A great starter piece or addition to your Le Creuset collection June 28, 2006
5 out of 7 found this review helpful
Le Creuset manufactures porcelain enameled cast iron cooking vessels as well as other products. Le Creuset casts these cooking vessels from molten iron poured in sand moulds that are used only once. For this reason, one pot may look like another, but each is unique in its own way.
Cast iron is a highly efficient material which absorbs and distributes heat efficiently. It is recommended that cooking with cast iron is done on low to medium heat. However, there are exceptions like boiling water where cooking on high heat is appropriate and okay. Remove cast iron from the heat and it does not cool off quickly. This heat retention helps your food stay warm while serving. Beware; iron tends to be heavy so are these cooking vessels.
Cast iron is an effective material for cooking so why cover it with enamel? Iron tends to rust; iron oxide (rust) doesn't add any complimentary flavors to your food. If your cast iron cooking vessel was not enameled, you would have to season and maintain your cooking vessel. Adding the porcelain enamel not only looks good, but has multiple benefits. The enamel, being a solid coating, is one of the most hygienic surfaces to cook on, does not stain, absorb odors, retain flavors, and is easy to clean. The enamel can be damaged, so limit cooking tools to plastic or wood.
The benefits of cooking with Le Creuset cast iron are many, but lets get down to the buffet casserole specifically. The buffet casseroles are one of the most versatile pieces in the Le Creuset lineup. Use this pan as a saute pan, a roasting pan, for poaching, or as a shallow braiser. The 3.5 quart capacity can is plenty of space when it comes to casseroles, so consider your recipes when determining the size you need. The buffet casserole tends to do best if at least three quarters full. Any less and you may overwhelm your food with the evenly dispersed heat in the pot.
With a large flat bottom that curves up this pan resembles a curved sided saute pan the only thing missing would be a long handle. The tight fitting lid is mostly flat with curved sides. This lid seals in heat, moisture, and flavors and can be used to hold your meat while you are making a sauce from the drippings. Its shape and design makes this an extremely versatile pan.
I tend to use this pot for basic dishes like smothered pork chops more than anything else. But once you get past the basic functionality that lends itself to recipes such as paella, frittatas, deep dish pizza, and casseroles, you can really open up the possibilities. Keep in mind this is a 3.5 quart pan, feeding two out if it is ridiculous unless you want leftovers. It is probably the perfect size for a family of four in most cases. Try baking pineapple upside down cake or bread pudding for when you need to please many guests, poaching fish, or Mac and Cheese. The possibilities almost seem endless.
One feature that people tend to complain about is the cost. The cost does seem steep compared to other pans made from other materials. Heck, cast iron doesn't seem like it should be expensive when comparing to that old cast iron pan past generations have used for cornbread and camping. However the manufacturing process requires making a mould for each and every pan produced. They then go through the enameling process before shipping these heavy pans. If you take what goes into making and distributing these high quality cast iron products, the cost tends to make sense. Then consider that this pan will easily last a lifetime when taken care of.
PROS:
Extremely versatile
Efficient absorption and distribution of heat
Hygienic enamel cooking surface
Does not stain, absorb odors, or retain flavors
Easy to clean when not abused or misused
Can be transferred from stove top to the oven to the table
Can easily last a lifetime
CONS:
Its heavy, as cast iron tends to be weighing in at about 12.25 pounds.
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