Cast iron dutch oven question

Dnl · February 6

I bought a cast iron dutch oven with high hopes of making some killer baked beans on the egg and then about a month ago I read a comment on here about how anything tomato based done in cast iron will turn out with a strong metallic taste. Is this true?

FanOfFanboys · February 6

It's noticeable to most, yes.

GrannyX4 · February 6

No, I always cook chili in the cast iron. Baked beans would be no different. ;;)

Duganboy · February 6

GrannyX4 said:

No, I always cook chili in the cast iron. Baked beans would be no different. ;;)

I'm with Granny. I make baked beans and chili frequently in the Lodge CI Dutch Oven.

SMITTYtheSMOKER · February 6

I love to do both Chili and BBQ Beans in the dutch ovens....go for it.

jfm0830 · February 6

I've made both chili and baked beans on my BGE DO and haven't noticed it. Several of the recipes are from the BGE Cookbook and they call for the use of the BGE DO which is cast iron. Not saying you need to use the BGE one, but they call for it, knowing it is CI.

Jim

SmokinDAWG82 · February 6

I have a Lodge CI DO and I just made CowLick Chilli and we didn't notice a taste.
I feel comfortable using it for anything!

Mickey · February 6

For the most part (the way I understand it) is not to let it sit for long periods after cooking with tomato product in it. The cooking part is not really a problem.

JRWhitee · February 6

I have made beef chili, chicken chili and baked beans and never noticed a metallic taste. I also remove the food from the dutch oven after the cook. I could see if the cook was left in the DO for a while or refrigerated in the DO that could happen.

fishlessman · February 6

theres not enough tomatoes in beans to make a difference, go cook the beans. i wouldnt simmer tomatoe sauce all day in it though

Eggcelsior · February 6

As long as the CI is well seasoned(pre-seasoned ones are sufficiently seasoned), acid-containing foods are fine to cook in it over relatively short periods of time(A few hours). If you cook in CI all the time, you are less likely to notice it anyway. Storing is a different issue. Letting something like chili sit overnight in CI(lets say you want to allow the chili flavors to concentrate for dinner tomorrow so you just leave it in the pan to reheat the next day) and allow the acid in the chili(tomatoes, vinegar) to start leaching iron from the pan giving it a tinny taste. More often than not, this won't be an issue.

I can smell when this happens from a mile away, thanks to all the GI bleeds/trauma I've dealt with over the years in ICU nursing. Anyone who deals with blood in large quantities knows what I'm talking about. I can also pick it up in baby formula. Ugh.

fishlessman · February 6

Eggcelsior said:

As long as the CI is well seasoned(pre-seasoned ones are sufficiently seasoned), acid-containing foods are fine to cook in it over relatively short periods of time(A few hours). If you cook in CI all the time, you are less likely to notice it anyway. Storing is a different issue. Letting something like chili sit overnight in CI(lets say you want to allow the chili flavors to concentrate for dinner tomorrow so you just leave it in the pan to reheat the next day) and allow the acid in the chili(tomatoes, vinegar) to start leaching iron from the pan giving it a tinny taste. More often than not, this won't be an issue.

I can smell when this happens from a mile away, thanks to all the GI bleeds/trauma I've dealt with over the years in ICU nursing. Anyone who deals with blood in large quantities knows what I'm talking about. I can also pick it up in baby formula. Ugh.

just dont simmer fresh tomatoes into sauce, i ruined a brand new preseasoned lodge skillet that way, the preseasoning flaked off for fifty or so cooks before i took i grinder to it to fix it right.

Eggcelsior · February 6

That's what my enameled CI is for.

fishlessman · February 6

Eggcelsior said:

That's what my enameled CI is for.

mine too, i knew better, but somewhere in the preseasoned lodge literature it said it was ok
:))they lied and know i really know. its my best skillet now, i polished it smooth

Eggcelsior · February 6

Nice. I am amazed at how rough their finish is compared to my Wagner or Griswold. If I ever have to re-season, I will polish it down too.

SWVABeanCounter · February 6

As others have mentioned, as long as it's seasoned, its fine. Just make sure you clean it according to instructions and apply a light coat of cooking oil when done.

CeramicChef · February 6

Acidic foods such as tomato based products will indeed strip the seasoning from cast iron. Now you may have sufficient seasoning in your DO that bare metal isn't hit, but I never risk it with my cast iron. I have a dedicated porcelain coated DO I use for tomato based cooks. Whether you use porcelain or not is up to the individual, but as for me ...

AleBrewer · February 6

I bought a large Lodge DO to use in the Egg. It was pre-seasoned, and my first cook in it was a big pot of chili on the Egg. While I couldn't really detect any metallic taste to the chili, I could see a difference in the DO.

I'm now looking to buy a large (7qt) Le Creuset enameled DO.

Eggcelsior · February 6

Look for a used one on ebay or craigslist. New is $325 retail. If you are okay with a "second", the LC outlet has them for around $250

AleBrewer · February 7

Yeah...we have an outlet nearby in Maine. Only trouble is paying sales tax up there!

We got a 15qt Le Creuset "goose pot" a few years back as a gift....that thing is Gigantic! and heavy too.....but it's a bit much for my normal batch of chili.

Eggcelsior · February 7

I want that pot so bad. You can almost bathe in it!

Dnl · February 7

Thanks for all the comments and hints. I think I will try a pot of baked beans on a weekend that I'm alone so if they do have any kind of a metallic taste it's only me that has to eat it. :-&

fishlessman · February 7

Dnl said:

Thanks for all the comments and hints. I think I will try a pot of baked beans on a weekend that I'm alone so if they do have any kind of a metallic taste it's only me that has to eat it. :-&

its a newengland tradition to cook beans in castiron buried in the ground on a bed of hot rocks and coals, i dont think you will have a problem with a bean cook

dlk7 · February 7

I made smoked chili in my lodge DO last night with no problems. As others have said, don't leave it in the DO very long after the cook.

Mickey · February 7

Eggcelsior said:

I want that pot so bad. You can almost bathe in it!

NO PICTURES PLEASE L-)

AleBrewer · February 7

Why not? We had to endure the pork chop tittie picture!!!

CeramicChef · February 7

Eggcelsior said:

I want that pot so bad. You can almost bathe in it!

It's gonna take the jaws of life to pry that mental image outta my mind's eye! God help me, I'm scarred for life! And I thought this was family friendly!

SamFerrise · February 7

Unless you like the metallic iron taste use a glazed dutch oven and you will be cool.

Charlie tuna · February 7

Don't know the age of this cast iron pot, but i'm thinking they never heard of "glaze" back then. Just did an all day chili cook and we don't taste any metallic taste!!!??

Eggcelsior · February 7

Charlie tuna said:

Don't know the age of this cast iron pot, but i'm thinking they never heard of "glaze" back then. Just did an all day chili cook and we don't taste any metallic taste!!!??
[IMG]http://i367.photobucket.com/albums/oo112/2728charlietuna/CastIronPot003.jpg[/IMG]

No photo is loading, but I bet you have a good seasoning on the pot.

Charlie tuna · February 7

The pot !

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