Not ok to leave an enamaled cast iron dutch oven on the stove top?

[joefrompa]

Hi all,

I have a enameled cast iron dutch oven. Fairly recent purchase.

I had been putting it on my stove top with about .5 gallon of water in it to humidify the room a bit. Even when the stove top hit 450-500 degrees, it never boiled, it simply steamed a little bit.

Anyway, several times it ran out of water. I filled it back up, no big deal, or so I thought? Now, the enamel feels rough all around the bottom and looks like its starting to break up.

I thought enameled iron was perfectly fine at these temps, even with nothing in them. Was I wrong? Or is it a dutch oven enamel issue?

Joe

 

[logger]

Unless it's a cooktop stove, I would not place it directly on the stove. Thats why they sell the trivets to place under them. Hope its not too late to save it.

 

[tiber]

WHERE YOU AT JOE?

"Feels rough" is probably a buildup of salts on the bottom of the oven. These will go away if you pour boiling water in it.

Enameled cast iron goes through a process called crazing where the enamel surface cracks faintly under the glaze. Like so: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/20/RuWare-V&AFE;.1-1970Det.jpg

I wouldn't worry about it, this is probably just something in the formulation of the enamel, which is why stoves don't craze.

 

[kenny chaos]

Maybe poor quality dutch oven.

 

[My Oslo heats my home]

does the dutch oven have the built in 'feet (legs)'? Or was the oven surface to surface?

 

[joefrompa]

The stove has a cooktop edge that sticks out 7" from the fireplace wall. The dutch oven was placed directly on it, similar to how it is placed directly under a gas stoves flames or an glass stove-top.

Tiber - I'm near Malvern, PA

The enamel has faint crack lines in it that I can feel with a fingernail, so I'm guessing it's delaminating...

 

[spirilis]

ah I have an enameled cast iron pot that's getting the same way--started after I left the pot go dry one time with the stove running. Luckily I don't use it for anything serious (just a steamer off the woodstove) but I know what you mean. Seems very hard to get off and embedded in the enamel somehow.

 

[My Oslo heats my home]

I like Loggers answer, the trivet would be safe