Have you checked your local tractor and farm supply? Sometimes you can find some real gems at farming co-ops and such. Grainger should also carry some good deals. The thing is, rarely does anyone think of those kinds of stores for kitchen supplies so you can generally get some good prices on top shelf items. Edit: Forget Grainger. I just looked on their supply list and nope, no Dutch ovens.
I recommend LeCreuset or Staub. FYI, "top-tier" LeCreuset is the Signature line and Amazon absolutely carries it. Most of the signature pieces now come with metal knobs instead of the black phenolic. The LeCreuset outlet stores have good deals if you live near one, and they carry the secondary line ("classic") that still has black phenolic knobs, as well as some Signature pieces and a few factory seconds. I have purchased items in both lines and can't tell much difference; they all come with LC's lifetime guarantee. It would be good if you could go to a LeCreuset retail store or outlet and get a feel for the size you want. My most used dutch oven is a 5 qt since I'm cooking for 2 these days. My largest one is a 7 qt but it is VERY heavy when full of food. ETA--I have purchased one Lodge ceramic cast iron dutch oven and returned it. It was chipped right out of the box. Also, Lodge ceramic coated pieces are made in China, not the USA.
I spent several hours yesterday comparing various models of immersion blenders. My old Mueller finally bit the dust and I will not buy another one of that brand. I also won't buy another Kitchenaid since I didn't like the style of the blade housing so I gave that one to my daughter. I watched a few videos comparing various models and narrowed it down to the Breville or Vitamix. The Breville comes with a bunch of accessories that I know I will never use, but it is cheaper and less powerful than the Vitamix. (Amazing that the Breville was not the most expensive for a change. ) Amazon has the Vitamix on sale for Black Friday, plus I have some rewards $$ so I am probably going to buy that one.
I want one of these- least I think so. I see myself making all those carb free do dads I see on U TUbe and Facebook
Yup. Except for storage. I no longer do church pot-lucks, so may take a Crock Pot to Goodwill. I have 3 of them. I recently used my original 1980s one for the first time in years to make oxtail stew, and saw a great oxtail recipe on America's Test Kitchen yesterday. They used a dutch oven. That's what has me on this mission. I probably could use a Crock Pot for the low & slow phase...8 hours on Low versus the recipe's 3 hours in a 300° oven.
You could always fall back to a plain iron Dutch oven @John Brunner I still have the ones I bought 50+ years ago and no chips there.
I hate to publicly admit this, but I had one that came with the cast iron set I bought back in the 70s...and I gave it away. It imparted a funny taste to everything I made in it. At least is wasn't Lodge or Gridwold. The entire set of 3 skillets, the oven and the lid set me back $19. But they've been seasoned for nearly 50 years.
I go to the outskirts of Richmond at least once a month for urological stuff, and just discovered a Williams Sonoma about 3 miles up the road from my doctor's office. Right now I'm leaning towards sticking with the Crock Pot. I guess it's good that I don't have a larger place. But I AM gonna by the fat separator I saw on that episode. I typically cook such things the day before I serve them so the fat can solidify overnight and be lifted off as a complete sheet...and oxtails have a lot of fat on them.
If you go to W-S, check to see if they have a store brand or different brand (Cuisinart, etc.) in the ceramic cast iron. They may have a quality piece for a good price. Also, if you have a Home Goods, Marshall's, etc. you can find random deals on name-brand kitchen stuff.
You can just look up tractorsupply.com and search to see if they have what you want and they are pretty good at shipping.