Having meals every day is of utmost importance. But cooking these meals can be tiring, especially if you have to go to work and have many errands to run. Recipes for a Dutch oven are the solution to this problem. These recipes are packed with flavor and nutrients. Take a look at some advantages of cooking meals every day in good quality Dutch ovens.
Saves Time
Dutch oven recipes are time-saving, especially because they do not require any elaborate prep or constant monitoring. Once you set a dish in the oven, you do not need to worry about it. The oven will do all the work and you can slow cook any dish, even tough cuts of meats or vegetables that have not been boiled or blanched. The slow cooking will make sure that the meat and vegetables are cooked through and tender. You will not have to spend any time checking the dish. As the dish is cooking in the oven, you can go back to your chores, do some office work or finally start reorganizing your kitchen.
No Chance of Scorching
Dutch ovens are thick-walled and therefore, high or low temperatures can be easily maintained throughout the cooking period. The heat is distributed evenly and this reduces the risk of scorching any dish. Since Dutch ovens can retain heat, you can cook a meal over medium or medium-low heat. You do not need to increase the temperature, except for frying or speeding up the cooking process. Even if you do keep the heat on medium-high, the oven will not get scorched and your dish will remain perfect!
Meals in Large Batches
If you wish to do meal planning, then Dutch oven recipes are the best choice. These recipes are usually for multiple servings and you can store the leftovers and eat them at a later time. Large Dutch ovens can hold up to 12 liters and that will come to almost 12 servings. You can make large batches of each recipe and plan your meals for a week. The recipes can also be easily adjusted to make as many servings as you need. These slow-cooked meals can be refrigerated and then heated up in batches whenever you want.
Better Taste
The recipes that are meant for Dutch ovens are mostly for slow-cooked meals. The dishes are prepared over low or medium heat, over a long period. The temperature and the time draw out the flavors from the meats, vegetables, pulses, and condiments that you add into the Dutch oven. The more time you allow for the flavors to mix, the more delicious the meal is going to be. Slow cooking in a Dutch oven also tenderizes meat and brings out the juices, allowing them to mix with the broth or flavors from the other elements of the dish. This is why Dutch oven recipes taste so much better than dishes cooked quickly over a stovetop.
Clean-Up is Easy
After a tiring day at work, the last thing you want to do is clean dirty dishes and scrub the stovetop. If you cook a meal in a Dutch oven, you only need to wash the oven and your chopping board. The recipes that you can cook in a Dutch oven can include many ingredients but you do not need too much space or too many utensils for prep. The dishes will also not splatter and so your countertops are going to be completely clean. Since Dutch oven recipes are slow-cooked, you can even add small whole vegetables like baby potatoes and carrots. You can also throw pieces of meat into the Dutch oven, directly from the chopping board. This means that you do not have to bring out bowls to keep the chopped vegetables or meats in and so you will have fewer things to clean.