Dutch Oven Sizes....?

[The Big Lebowski]

In a bit of a pickle as i'm buying a dutch oven as a wee treat... Only thing is, not sure about sizes

I want to feed about half a dozen with a stew or curry/chilli ect, but it has to be light enough to carry between camps.

A 4 litre seems about right, do you know if one is big enough to get three medium chickens 'on-end' in?

Dead mind, not hitching a lift

Tia, al.

 

[lab72]

I have a four ltr and is just right for 3 folk and can roast a chicken and veg and potatos in it hope that helps

 

[dave53]

hi al i thought you liked to travel light that will be bigger than your rucksack lol regards dave

 

[tommy the cat]

http://papadutch.home.comcast.net/~papadutch/dutch-oven-intro.htm#Intro
Try that not very good posting small link type things!
D

 

[The Big Lebowski]

Cheers guys! link was perfec

Just a little something for meets dave, up the site or RC/NW/Moot ect, but it probably will come close to the weight of my kit LoL!

hi al i thought you liked to travel light that will be bigger than your rucksack lol regards dave

 

[Jaysurfer]

I've got a 4l and i find that is ideal for chillis etc and feed 6-8 ppl on a regular basis.
It can easily fit a whole chicken and veg but is not big enough for 2 chickens. However pigeons, guniea fowl and similar saize birds you could fit 6 or so in.

Cooking on a dutch (once you have cracked it...) is a great experience so have fun.

 

[The Big Lebowski]

Cheers Jaysurfer.... One 4ltr ordered

Good to know you cook for 6-8, i would have cous-cous/rice/palenta separate to bulk things up

Quite looking forwards to trying one out now, as will be the other 5 or so LoL!

atb, al.

 

[Broch]

Mmm; not sure now. I've just ordered a 4L Dutch oven (before reading this thread) and hope it's big enough for 6 at a camp.

Time will tell

Cheers,

Broch

 

[MartinK9]

12 Ltr one here, heavy but will feed loads in one go, if there are only 3/4 to feed we don't fill the DO all the way.

 

[The Big Lebowski]

Cheers for that Martin... One of the requirements is i can also carry it from place to place, so too much weight would be an issue. I think the 4ltr alone comes in around 15lb, so I'm gessing the 12 would be 30lb+ :yikes:

I'll maybe get something bigger in the future, but hopefully this should do for now.

As long as i get first scoop, its all good LoL

al.

 

[Jaysurfer]

As i said I've never had any issue for mine and can easily manage roasts.
The most I have fed is eight but that was with a chilli.... I then wrapped spuds n foil and threw on the fire and had some salad. So it depends very much on what you are planning to cook.

For larger groups I always find chilli/ curry or stew is best and easier...

You will need to play alot with the oven, finding out the best height above the flames for different kinds of cookng etc.

I once did roast pork - was meant to take 2 hours in an oven at 200 C, was dojnje in thwe dutch after 30 mins!!!
But the chilli i did was slow cooked over 4 hours or so so the rump steak that was used melted in your mouth and that was one of the best meals i've ever had.

Nothing like a fire, a group of friends and a decent meal cooking in a dutch to make you appreciate the smaller things in life!

 

[santaman2000]

Hard to tell for sure cause we measure them by diameter here but 4 liter sounds like a 10 or 12 inch oven so it should be close to mine. I love mine. Just cut up the meat and veg, plop the legs straight onto the coals, pile more coals on the lid wait for supper (patiently, yeah like I'm ever patient for supper. LOL). At breakfast just put the upside down lid on the coals and you have a fantastic griddle. Best bet when in doubt over size is, "Two smaller is better than one large." Total capacity will be the same but you're not locked into it being a single recipe meal unless you want it to be. You'll enjoy whatever you decide. Oh do get a propper one with legs and a lip on the upper part of the lid to hold the coals on top; the others work well enough but they're really meant for a propper fireplace with a hearth. Again though, you'll enjoy whatever; cast iron just makes good food!

 

[The Big Lebowski]

Thanks for that Santaman! Some good reading...

The 4ltr (4.25qt) turned up friday, seems well made (long legs, lip on lid) and is just about manageable to carry on a long treck.

You could cook for 6 no problems, maybe more depending on what you cook and I'm looking forward to christening it as soon as i get the chance to clean and season.

Regards, al.

 

[santaman2000]

Thanks for that Santaman! Some good reading...

The 4ltr (4.25qt) turned up friday, seems well made (long legs, lip on lid) and is just about manageable to carry on a long treck.

You could cook for 6 no problems, maybe more depending on what you cook and I'm looking forward to christening it as soon as i get the chance to clean and season.

Regards, al.

Congradulations. Enjoy it and the company you'll attract to the smell of food on the fire!

 

[Stratts]

Al, you mnd me asking where you got it and how much please? Been thinking about 1 for a while and am now gonna get one but want to be sure of the quality,

Cheers

 

[Harvestman]

And you gave me stick for carrying a cast-iron bakestone to a meet! Now you want to carry 15lbs of dutch oven!