Wawa's Ramblings

I have been eyeing the french ovens from Le Cruset and Staub for the longest time, ever since I read about it on various websites and in Molly Steven's book 'All about braising'. But the exorbitant price tag for a just a cast iron pot has been a great deterrent, though I have been dropping hints to CK and KT on what I really wanted for a housewarming gift. I bought an oval Le Cruset terrine during a sale a few months back but discovered later that it was not big enough to cook my stews.
When Takashimaya had their sale last week, we popped by the household section to check out the prices. Le Cruset had a pretty good offer for their sets, a 26 cm round french oven and cast iron frying pan for about $330. Staub was also offering 20% + 10% (for card members) off their french ovens. After much thought and going back and forth the two counters, we finally decided to get the signature Staub 'La Cocotte', for $384.

The Staub looks much prettier and seemed more sturdy, plus it had a black matte enamel interior and self basting spikes underneath the lid. Also, I do not have any use for another frying pan that came bundled with the Le Cruset.
Cooked a Moroccan lamb stew (recipe by Gordon Ramsey) in my new Staub and the smell of lamb that wafted through the kitchen was intoxicating. I used 800 g of lamb cubes for this recipe and the pot was only half full. This means that I could double the quantities next time and freeze for future meals. The lamb was meltingly tender and delicious, infused with the spices and sweetness of the dried apricots. I served the lamb with focaccia bread from Cedele Bakery and sauteed portabello mushrooms. Yummy....

Labels: home cooking, lamb