Square Dutch Oven

[bigbob2]

  Camp Chef has just come out with a 13" square 8 quart cast iron dutch oven that is the greatest thing since "canned beer" for cooking in the RV.  The lid, which has a flat inside ribbed surface doubles as a griddle. I just bought one and have cooked a chicken and a pork butt in it and they both turned out great.  I haven't tried it yet with charcoal, but it will probably work just fine.  It is perfect for soups and stews in the rv.  There just isn't anything you can't cook in a dutch oven.  I have always had difficulty with uneven heating in the rv oven, but the cast iron's mass seems to even things out.  The only down side is that it is heavy, but with the small rv oven causing hot spots, that is an advantage.  With winter coming on, I am looking forward to doing soups, chilli, etc... Those are things I call comfort foods.  All you dutch oven cooks should check it out.
BigBob

 

[Olys45]

Huh, I wonder what the point of going to a square (or even offering one) is.

To answer my own question, I guess it is along the same lines as a "Hot Dish" (casserole, to the people in the other 49 states outside of the Peoples Republic of Minneeesotah), but made out of cast iron.

Oly

 

[John From Detroit]

The reason pots are round is that gives the greatest volume for the amount of metal needed,, SQUARE however fits in cubbords, and ovens and other square places better. (Heck it even fits in round places better)

Read my posts about OPTIMA batteries,  They apply here as well.

If you draw a square, and then draw a circle tangent to all 4 sides of that suqare, it has only something like 3/4 (I think it's 73%) of the area of the square,

Thus for the same amount of cubbord space, you get roughly 1/3 more volume in a square dutch oven than in a round one.  That simple.

And the griddle lid is nice too, however kind of defeats the idea, but hey, if it works, don't knock it.