How to clean a Dutch oven: enameled or bare cast iron

Step by step: how to clean a dutch oven

Safety first. Let the pot cool before it meets water: cold water in a hot Dutch oven can crack enamel, and a full pot is heavy. When you boil a baking soda solution in it, use oven mitts on both handles and pour away from you.

1. 1

   Check which kind of Dutch oven you have

   A glossy, colored or cream interior is enameled cast iron (Le Creuset, Staub, Lodge enamel and similar). A matte black interior with no coating is bare, seasoned cast iron. The cleaning is similar, but bare cast iron needs drying and oil afterward and never soaks.

2. 2

   Let it cool, then scrape out food

   Leave the pot until it is warm, not hot. Scrape out leftover food with a plastic pan scraper or wooden spatula. Warm residue releases much more easily than food that has cooled and set overnight.

3. 3

   Wash with warm soapy water

   Wash inside and out with warm water, a few drops of dish soap and a sponge or nylon brush. Dish soap is fine on both kinds; Lodge says modern dish soap is not strong enough to strip seasoning. Wash the lid, the knob and the underside of the rim too.

4. 4

   Boil off burnt-on food

   If food is stuck to the bottom, add about 2 cups of water and 4 tablespoons of baking soda and bring it to a boil for a few minutes. Scrape the bottom with a wooden or plastic tool while it bubbles. Pour it out, let the pot cool a little, and wash as usual.

5. 5

   Treat stains on enamel

   Light staining on a pale enamel interior is normal and does not affect cooking. To brighten it, rub with a damp cloth and an enamel or ceramic cookware cleaner, following the label. For deep stains, see the stain section below.

6. 6

   Dry it completely

   Dry the pot and lid right away with a towel, paying attention to the rim and the underside of the lid. Water left on the exposed iron rim of an enameled pot is what causes rust there. Do not leave either kind on a dish rack to drip dry.

7. 7

   Oil bare cast iron

   Set a bare cast iron Dutch oven on low heat for a minute or two until bone dry, then rub a very thin layer of cooking oil over the inside with a paper towel. Wipe off any excess so it does not turn sticky. Oil the rim of the lid as well.

8. 8

   Store it with the lid ajar

   Store the pot with the lid off or propped open with a folded paper towel or pot protector, so moisture can escape. A sealed lid traps humidity, which leads to musty smells in bare cast iron and rust on enamel rims.

Enameled vs bare cast iron Dutch ovens: what changes

Both kinds are cast iron, but the enamel coating changes what is safe. Enamel cannot rust inside and handles soaking; bare iron can rust and needs seasoning kept up.

Lodge’s cast iron cleaning page says not to soak or dishwasher-wash bare cast iron, and to save steel wool for rust. Its enameled cast iron care page says enamel is technically dishwasher safe but that Lodge prefers hand washing to preserve the finish.

How to get burnt food and stains out of a Dutch oven

Boil water and baking soda in the pot, then scrape: it loosens almost any burnt layer without scratching. For stubborn stains on enamel only, a short dilute bleach soak is the manufacturer-approved last resort.

• Burnt food: Lodge suggests boiling 2 cups of water with 4 tablespoons of baking soda for a few minutes, then using a pan scraper. Made In gives a similar ratio (about 2 tablespoons per 4 cups of water) and says to scrape gently with a wooden or other non-abrasive utensil.
• Persistent stains on enamel: Lodge says to soak the interior for 2 to 3 hours in 3 tablespoons of household bleach per quart of water, then wash and rinse well. Use this only on enamel, never on bare cast iron, and never with vinegar or other cleaners in the pot.
• Bare cast iron with burnt residue: scrape, boil water in it, scrape again, then wash, dry and oil. If the seasoning came off, reseason it as in our cast iron skillet guide.

Rust on the rim, flakes and smells

Rust, black flakes and lingering smells are common and all fixable at home.

• Rust on an enameled pot’s rim: Lodge says it comes from drip drying, the dishwasher or a damp cupboard. Clean it with a nylon sponge and dish soap, dry it well, and rub a little cooking oil around the rim to seal it.
• Black flakes in a bare cast iron pot: Lodge’s troubleshooting page says these are carbonized bits of oil from the seasoning and are not harmful. Scrub, dry and oil the pot, and they stop as the seasoning builds back.
• Smells after fish or curry: wash well first. If the smell lingers in bare cast iron, Lodge suggests covering the surface with table salt overnight and rinsing, or baking the pot at 400°F for 15 minutes.
• Heavy rust on bare iron: see how to remove rust from cast iron.

Mistakes to avoid

• Pouring cold water into a hot enameled Dutch oven, which can crack or craze the enamel.
• Leaving a bare cast iron Dutch oven to soak overnight, which rusts it.
• Scrubbing enamel with steel wool or a metal scraper, which leaves gray marks and scratches.
• Storing the pot with the lid sealed, which traps moisture and smells.
• Using bleach on bare cast iron, or adding vinegar to a bleach soak.
• Heating an empty enameled pot on high to burn residue off, which can damage the enamel.