Le Creuset cooking pot very expensive is there

[dis2cruise]

Update....

I got a le creuset 7 1/4 qt round Valencia (. Light orange color) I went to my local tanger outlet I paid with tax $185.00. I looked up same size/color amazon, Macy's and a few other places wanted $285.00 plus tax thanks everyone....now to cooking yeah

 

[ExPirateShopGirl]

I hate telling my mother what I want for Christmas, even though she begs. Example? Glad you asked...

Two years ago I told her I wanted a 2 3/4 quart Le Creuset soup pot for the stove. These are specially made for small batches of soup, which I make all the time. Christmas morning I unwrap a 7 qt Martha Stewart stock pot because (and I quote) it was 'bigger, cheaper and almost the same color' as the Le Creuset I asked for... and I only asked for it because she INSISTED I tell her exactly what I wanted so she didn't have to guess. Moms. Gotta love em.

Needless to say I donated the Martha Stewart pot to Catholic Charities and went out and bought my lemongrass 2 3/4 qt soup pot.

 

[budbeerlady]

Update....

I got a le creuset 7 1/4 qt round Valencia (. Light orange color) I went to my local tanger outlet I paid with tax $185.00. I looked up same size/color amazon, Macy's and a few other places wanted $285.00 plus tax thanks everyone....now to cooking yeah

Congrats!!!! You will LOVE it!!!! We hit the outlets everytime I need to scratch my Le Creuset itch. I love it when they hand you a 40% off coupon! My most used is still me Doufeu 7 1/4 qt. Not the prettiest in flame orange but man does food taste wonderful after stewing all day in that baby. My least used is the huge black rissotto pan, that is a big pan but I couldnt pass it up at $140 last summer at the outlet. Least used means a couple of times a month, the others are used daily/weekly.

 

[Evi]

Honestly you can find Le Creuset on sale all the time they even have outlet stores now.

 

[DawnM]

I just got my first Le Creuset pan. I love it. I have this one:

http://www.amazon.com/Creuset-Squar...SBI4/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1319047865&sr=8-1

I got it at a yard sale for $4 and it looks like it has never been used! I won't pay full price or even half, I just can't see spending that much on pans.....but I will get them used for a fraction of the cost.

 

[thomas998]

Cooks Illustrated reviewed several Dutch ovens and they actually recommended a brand that is sold at WalMart (Tramontina) as their best buy, as well as Le Creuset as their best heavier choice.

I went with the Tramontina, which sells for 1/4th the cost of the Le Creuset. It suits my needs and I have no complaints. Both the Le Creuset and the Tramontina were rated 3 stars by the CI reviewers.

I was going to recommend the same thing... For those wondering why there is such a price difference it is mostly due to the fact that Tramontina is a company in Brazil, the minimum wage for a job in Brazil is about $150/month... compare that to the average wage of someone in France... no comparison in the cost of production... also France must import raw materials, Brazil supply a huge chunk of the iron ore on the world market so again they have a huge cost advantage, all that translates into much lower prices for the products... You can also find very good Tramontina knives that are solder much cheaper than knives of equal quality from Europe.

 

[dis2cruise]

I just got my first Le Creuset pan. I love it. I have this one:

http://www.amazon.com/Creuset-Squar...SBI4/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1319047865&sr=8-1

I got it at a yard sale for $4 and it looks like it has never been used! I won't pay full price or even half, I just can't see spending that much on pans.....but I will get them used for a fraction of the cost.

Wow $4.00 now that's a deal

 

[luvmy3]

I was going to recommend the same thing... For those wondering why there is such a price difference it is mostly due to the fact that Tramontina is a company in Brazil, the minimum wage for a job in Brazil is about $150/month... compare that to the average wage of someone in France... no comparison in the cost of production... also France must import raw materials, Brazil supply a huge chunk of the iron ore on the world market so again they have a huge cost advantage, all that translates into much lower prices for the products... You can also find very good Tramontina knives that are solder much cheaper than knives of equal quality from Europe.

Actually, Tramontina manufacturers some of their aluminum cookware right here in the US. However their enameled cast iron is manufactured in China. They do manufacture their knives in Brazil and their stainless and hard anodized cookware as well.

 

[thomas998]

Actually, Tramontina manufacturers some of their aluminum cookware right here in the US. However their enameled cast iron is manufactured in China. They do manufacture their knives in Brazil and their stainless and hard anodized cookware as well.

Didn't know they had switch production to China... I can't comment on the quality of one from there, ours is older and wasn't made in China... hopefully the quality hasn't suffered with the move like it has with most things that get made there.

 

[luvmy3]

Didn't know they had switch production to China... I can't comment on the quality of one from there, ours is older and wasn't made in China... hopefully the quality hasn't suffered with the move like it has with most things that get made there.

My dad has one that was made in China and he uses it at least 4 times a week, and hasn't had any issues so far. He likes it so much I am thinking of getting him a skillet and a grill pan to go with it. I'll check the LC outlet first but I wouldn't pass on the Tramontina brand.

 

[sukhakuli]

For those that use Le Creuset, what kind of pot rack do you have? I need a pot rack really bad, but I can't find one that will hold a set of Le Creuset because they are so heavy.

 

[vicki_c]

I probably wouldn't hang mine on a rack. I keep ours in cabinets/drawers.

 

[cpster]

Cooks Illustrated reviewed several Dutch ovens and they actually recommended a brand that is sold at WalMart (Tramontina) as their best buy, as well as Le Creuset as their best heavier choice.

I went with the Tramontina, which sells for 1/4th the cost of the Le Creuset. It suits my needs and I have no complaints. Both the Le Creuset and the Tramontina were rated 3 stars by the CI reviewers.

I also have a Tramontina dutch oven that I use all the time and love! I can simmer on the lowest heat setting on my stove. Great heat retention. I got mine from Amazon a couple of years ago.

 

[Pigeon]

I got a cheap 5 qt dutch oven knock-off from Aldis for $40. The thing is awesome.

 

[LBIJim]

Have a Martha Stewart (K-Mart, not Macy's) that's at least 10 years old. Never had a problem, still works great. I think it was about $45.

I've been tempted to buy a LeCreuset piece many times but could never justify the price.

Jim

 

[npmommie]

I love my Le Creuset! I find pieces in TJ Maxx and Marshalls. there is also an outlet fairly close.
good stuff,
and I keep it in cabinets

 

[budbeerlady]

For those that use Le Creuset, what kind of pot rack do you have? I need a pot rack really bad, but I can't find one that will hold a set of Le Creuset because they are so heavy.

I keep switching mine around. I have used the triangle stand type racks and then they were on an antique biscuit rack I had. They would be way to heavy to hang up like I do my frying pans.

Currently most of mine are shoved into an antique pie safe until I finish moving some stuff around the dining room. I like to have them where I can easily grab them or tell Dd what color to grab me for cooking. Even Dd has her own Caribbean blue pan, its the 2 1/4 braiser. She knows she will have that pan forever if she takes care of it.

 

[DawnM]

That is why I yard sale "shop" in the wealthy areas! Chances are she got it as a gift and really didn't know its value.

Funny thing is, I didn't even notice the name on it when I was looking at it. It just seemed like a very nice heavy duty pan. Then when I saw what brand it was, I HAD to get it!

Dawn

Wow $4.00 now that's a deal

 

[girli565]

For those that use Le Creuset, what kind of pot rack do you have? I need a pot rack really bad, but I can't find one that will hold a set of Le Creuset because they are so heavy.

Mine stays on my stove, it's so pretty I use it as decoration, lol.

I plan on buying another one soon and have been seeing on the cooking shows that many of the sets have just a plain wire shelving unit, very industrial looking, to hold pots, pans and baking stuff. If I had the space I'd have one of those because I love the look and I love seeing all my cookware, plus it's easily accessible.

Right now I have a bakers rack that I put my dishes, wines, liquors, and cookbooks on. I wanted to use it for my Le Ceurset stuff but I worry that they're too heavy.

 

[ExPirateShopGirl]

For those that use Le Creuset, what kind of pot rack do you have? I need a pot rack really bad, but I can't find one that will hold a set of Le Creuset because they are so heavy.

I have 4 key pieces of Le Creuset that I don't put on a rack. One does stay on the stove because I use it to saute veggies several times a week. The other pieces are large and hold spots in the shelves of my walk-in pantry. Same goes for my main cookware, Calphalon. It's all too heavy and my ceiling is too high to hang them from racks.