I use mine with legs on my propane range. It just has to be the kind with short legs. Mine has two inch legs and fits perfectly over the grates(or whatever they're called-I can't think, it's too early and my dd2 has already been plucking the tops off of cucumber sprouts for me!) I guess any legs wouldn't work on electric ranges though. Isn't cast iron great!!!!
I can just fit it in my oven, but the rack bows slightly when it is full! I don't dare put it on my glass top stove, though. I browned those ribs in my big cast iron skillet first then deglazed the pan by saute'ing onions and garlic and then putting the juice from the tomatoes in the pan to get all the browned goodness.
It was sooooo good, and I made enough for dinner tonight, too! For four people. Awesome.
Hey, Noobie, I have the 14 lbs of leaf lard, run through the meat grinder last night, in the Dutch oven and in my oven on low all day today! If that doesn't permanently season it, I don't know what will!!
That dutch oven has been in almost constant use! I rendered 20 lbs of suet into tallow this week, freezing most of it for soapmaking and made one big pan of suet cakes for the bird feeder with some. The chickens and turkeys loved the "cracklin's!" One day I will make tallow candles "just because...."
Tonight we had the White Rock rooster (aka "Stew") for dinner. He was the one that would attack my dad or dh on occasion. See, my policy of rooster soccer has paid off for me! Dad went out to feed four days ago and found Stew all bloodied and getting attacked by the tom turkey and the guinea cock. Too bad, because he led his harem furthest afield, and I was hoping they'd get to the matted oak leaves on the south end of the pasture.
Stew spent that night in a dog cage to protect him from the hens when the timer light came on in the wee hours. Dad dispatched him early, before the neighboring daycare kids arrived. He sat in a bowl in the spare fridge aging for three days, then was browned in bacon fat and cooked in the dutch oven with some water and some parsnips, rutabagas, and carrots.
We also served him with brocolli florets and plogues (buckwheat pancakes) and butter. He was tender and delicious, even though he was almost a year old and not a smidge of fat on him.
My father commented on how his mother always cooked chicken for a long time in a dutch oven, and it was always delicious and tender.
Now that we really know how to age and cook chickens of laying breeds, we decided to order the "Frypan Special" from Cackle Hatchery this year, all cockerels from heavy laying breeds for a very decent price.