Give me your best vegetarian recipes for a Dutch oven
October 3, 2019 9:00 AM Subscribe
I just bought a beautiful Dutch oven (5 1/2 quarts, Le Crueset, French Riviera color). What should I make in it? There are two of us, both vegetarian. I love to cook and bake, and we camp a lot in summertime. Thanks!
Smitten Kitchen's Mushroom Bourguignon
posted by Perplexity at 9:20 AM on October 3, 2019 [1 favorite]
posted by Perplexity at 9:20 AM on October 3, 2019 [1 favorite]
Russ Parsons' no-soak oven-cooked beans are outstanding in a Dutch oven.
posted by Lexica at 9:29 AM on October 3, 2019 [1 favorite]
posted by Lexica at 9:29 AM on October 3, 2019 [1 favorite]
When I make ghee(video, but it's the best most comprehensive instructions I've found), I prefer to do it in my Le Creuset because it doesn't have hot spots.
Cream of cauliflower soup, with or without the blue cheese fritters
posted by Lyn Never at 10:03 AM on October 3, 2019 [1 favorite]
Cream of cauliflower soup, with or without the blue cheese fritters
posted by Lyn Never at 10:03 AM on October 3, 2019 [1 favorite]
I make a brown rice and lentil pilaf thing in a big dutch oven. No definitive recipe, just:
- Saute, til starting to brown, a large diced onion in some butter & oil with some cumin seeds. Add some raisins or dried apricots when the onions are almost done and let them puff up in the oil.
- Stir in brown rice and stir it up in the onions until the rice is all toasty & fragrant as if you are making risotto.
- Use a spatula and pack down the rice into a layer, then add lentils (any color, just not split or hulled) on top of the rice/onions in a second layer.
- Gently pour on hot stock or broth, approximately 2x the volume of the rice, plus 2x the volume of the lentils, plus another 1/2 inch or so (depending on the size of your pot, you'll figure it out). So if you are using 1.5 cups each rice and lentils, use 6-7 cups stock). Don't let the rice and lentils stir up, they should be in separate layers.
- Dump on half a bunch of cilantro, chopped up. stems are fine. Save the other half of the bunch for later.
- Cover and simmer for an hour or so. You can also put it in a low oven. In an ideal world, the lentils will cook through in 30-40 mins, and then steam as the rice finishes up in 45-50 mins. You can peek and add more hot water if it's looking really dry, or let the lid sit ajar if it's too wet.
- Serve with the rest of the cilantro on top and some yogurt and hot saucy sauce.
That's it, it's basically cooking rice and lentils in the same pot at the same time. That's how I use my dutch oven most often.
posted by niicholas at 10:41 AM on October 3, 2019 [9 favorites]
- Saute, til starting to brown, a large diced onion in some butter & oil with some cumin seeds. Add some raisins or dried apricots when the onions are almost done and let them puff up in the oil.
- Stir in brown rice and stir it up in the onions until the rice is all toasty & fragrant as if you are making risotto.
- Use a spatula and pack down the rice into a layer, then add lentils (any color, just not split or hulled) on top of the rice/onions in a second layer.
- Gently pour on hot stock or broth, approximately 2x the volume of the rice, plus 2x the volume of the lentils, plus another 1/2 inch or so (depending on the size of your pot, you'll figure it out). So if you are using 1.5 cups each rice and lentils, use 6-7 cups stock). Don't let the rice and lentils stir up, they should be in separate layers.
- Dump on half a bunch of cilantro, chopped up. stems are fine. Save the other half of the bunch for later.
- Cover and simmer for an hour or so. You can also put it in a low oven. In an ideal world, the lentils will cook through in 30-40 mins, and then steam as the rice finishes up in 45-50 mins. You can peek and add more hot water if it's looking really dry, or let the lid sit ajar if it's too wet.
- Serve with the rest of the cilantro on top and some yogurt and hot saucy sauce.
That's it, it's basically cooking rice and lentils in the same pot at the same time. That's how I use my dutch oven most often.
posted by niicholas at 10:41 AM on October 3, 2019 [9 favorites]
CHICK PEA CURRY
SERVES 4 to 6 Prep time -15 mins Cook time - 70 mins
Ingredients
* 2 (15 ounce) cans chickpeas (drained and rinsed)
* 1 14 oz can coconut milk
* 3/4 cup red onion, chopped
* 1 red pepper, chopped
* 1 large sweet potato, diced
* 2 apples, diced
* 4 garlic cloves, minced
* 1 tbsp freshly grated ginger
* 1 1/2 tbsp mild curry paste
* 2 teaspoon sugar
* 1 teaspoon dried mustard
* 1 teaspoon cumin
* 1 teaspoon turmeric
* 1 teaspoon salt
* 1 teaspoon allspice
* Chopped cilantro for garnish (optional)
Directions
Preheat oven to 375. Mix all of the ingredients into a casserole dish or roasting pan and stir. Cover and bake for 70 mins, stirring once halfway through. Serve over rice or other cooked grain.
Alternative: slow cook for 6 hours on low instead of baking.
posted by Ftsqg at 11:08 AM on October 3, 2019 [3 favorites]
SERVES 4 to 6 Prep time -15 mins Cook time - 70 mins
Ingredients
* 2 (15 ounce) cans chickpeas (drained and rinsed)
* 1 14 oz can coconut milk
* 3/4 cup red onion, chopped
* 1 red pepper, chopped
* 1 large sweet potato, diced
* 2 apples, diced
* 4 garlic cloves, minced
* 1 tbsp freshly grated ginger
* 1 1/2 tbsp mild curry paste
* 2 teaspoon sugar
* 1 teaspoon dried mustard
* 1 teaspoon cumin
* 1 teaspoon turmeric
* 1 teaspoon salt
* 1 teaspoon allspice
* Chopped cilantro for garnish (optional)
Directions
Preheat oven to 375. Mix all of the ingredients into a casserole dish or roasting pan and stir. Cover and bake for 70 mins, stirring once halfway through. Serve over rice or other cooked grain.
Alternative: slow cook for 6 hours on low instead of baking.
posted by Ftsqg at 11:08 AM on October 3, 2019 [3 favorites]
Chickpea Tikka Masala
Creamy Poblano Chile Soup with Corn and Mushrooms
Green Gumbo
Herbed Rice (Sabzi Polo)
Persian New Year's Noodle Soup
Root Vegetable Osso Buco
Simple Ribollita
posted by zsh2v1 at 11:13 AM on October 3, 2019 [2 favorites]
Creamy Poblano Chile Soup with Corn and Mushrooms
Green Gumbo
Herbed Rice (Sabzi Polo)
Persian New Year's Noodle Soup
Root Vegetable Osso Buco
Simple Ribollita
posted by zsh2v1 at 11:13 AM on October 3, 2019 [2 favorites]
I bake a bread every other day in my Dutch oven. Rarely a no-knead bread, though they are delicious, my kids prefer other types. The Dutch oven is good for all the breads that like a blast of high heat.
And then I cook all sorts of stews in it. I'm surprised ratatouille hasn't been mentioned yet, I'm sure that recipe was born in a Dutch oven, hundreds of years ago. I make caponata in it. For stews like these and all the others, I also use it instead of a slow cooker, when I need that. I start the stew on the stovetop, and then put the whole thing into the oven on very low heat for whatever time I need it to slow cook. I guess you could do the reverse of that and finish a mac n cheese in the oven on high heat after making the sauce on the stovetop and mixing in the pasta.
Yesterday we had mushroom ravioli, and I made a sauce of butter, pasta water and grated cheese in the Dutch oven because it keeps the heat after I take it off the fire, so I could mix the ingredients without them suddenly separating. It's a bit of the same with a bechamel sauce, I can take it off the heat for the last few minutes so it doesn't burn but still thickens. Also: in this case I used a silicone whisk, but I could have used a steel one without problems.
posted by mumimor at 11:41 AM on October 3, 2019
And then I cook all sorts of stews in it. I'm surprised ratatouille hasn't been mentioned yet, I'm sure that recipe was born in a Dutch oven, hundreds of years ago. I make caponata in it. For stews like these and all the others, I also use it instead of a slow cooker, when I need that. I start the stew on the stovetop, and then put the whole thing into the oven on very low heat for whatever time I need it to slow cook. I guess you could do the reverse of that and finish a mac n cheese in the oven on high heat after making the sauce on the stovetop and mixing in the pasta.
Yesterday we had mushroom ravioli, and I made a sauce of butter, pasta water and grated cheese in the Dutch oven because it keeps the heat after I take it off the fire, so I could mix the ingredients without them suddenly separating. It's a bit of the same with a bechamel sauce, I can take it off the heat for the last few minutes so it doesn't burn but still thickens. Also: in this case I used a silicone whisk, but I could have used a steel one without problems.
posted by mumimor at 11:41 AM on October 3, 2019
You can seriously use it for just about anything and everything. I use my dutch oven for everything from boiling water for pasta to making bread to making chili.
If I had to do it all over again, I wish I wouldn't have wasted my time with cookware that wasn't cast iron.
posted by vitout at 11:42 AM on October 3, 2019 [3 favorites]
If I had to do it all over again, I wish I wouldn't have wasted my time with cookware that wasn't cast iron.
posted by vitout at 11:42 AM on October 3, 2019 [3 favorites]
Going to make this Serious Eats recipe for butternut squash black bean chili this weekend in my Dutch oven now that we're getting some fall weather, and I am very excited about it.
posted by the primroses were over at 2:45 PM on October 3, 2019
posted by the primroses were over at 2:45 PM on October 3, 2019
French onion soup! The best thing about this recipe is that if you stop after you take it out of the oven, you don't have soup, but you have a whole mess of well caramelized onions, ready to be used on a sandwich or in the recipe of your choice.
posted by Adridne at 7:18 PM on October 3, 2019
posted by Adridne at 7:18 PM on October 3, 2019
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posted by saladin at 9:18 AM on October 3, 2019 [1 favorite]