A few months ago I made potato leek soup, and it was one of the most annoying recipes I’ve ever attempted. Besides having to meticulously clean dirt out of every crevice of my leeks, I had to use three separate saucepans to fit the entire recipe; one even boiled over and made the flame on my burner go crazy. Cooking is relaxing, they say, but not when you almost burn down your apartment.
I’m no Michelin-starred chef, but I know my cooking skills were not to blame here—I just didn’t own the right cookware. Thankfully, this past Christmas, my parents—in lieu of more tchotchkes I don’t need—gave me a Le Creuset stockpot, and it’s quickly proven itself to be a kitchen staple that’s changed my entire cooking workflow.
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Sure, we all know that Le Creuset is highly GOATed in the world of cookware, but we all hear nonstop about the brand’s iconic Dutch oven; as it turns out, the stockpot is just as essential. Here’s why it’s such a workhorse (and how it changed the game for my own cooking).
What exactly is a “stockpot”?
A stockpot is a tall, wide pot designed specifically for making soups and broths; it’s typically the largest pot found in a home kitchen and is basically the equivalent of a soup cauldron. Its generous size and height make it ideal for simmering large quantities of liquids for long periods of time, and less prone to boiling over.
As far as Le Creuset’s stockpots go, the smallest size (six quarts) is large enough to make at least seven servings, while the biggest size (20 quarts) can definitely feed a small village—or at least an entire potluck. It’s an incredibly tall, deep pot that makes it virtually impossible for any spilling to occur even while you whip up a large batch of Italian wedding soup.
The Le Creuset stockpot features an enameled coating over lightweight carbon steel, which makes the liquid inside boil faster and retain more heat. It’s also stain-resistant, in case you’re dealing with stubborn spices like curry powder. Le Creuset also says it’s ideal for cooking pasta and boiling seafood (BRB while I plan my future seafood boil party). It’s safe for all cooktops and features a heat-resistant knob that will never burn your hands (as someone with a healthy and hard-earned fear of hand-related injuries, this is a major point of appeal).
First impressions
I was in the market for a giant pot specifically designed for soups, although I didn’t have an exact product in mind. I came across Le Creuset’s Stockpot while browsing cocottes—I’m always trying to optimize my cookware arsenal for my small apartment. I was also enticed by the incredible reviews; for instance, it has a 4.5-star average rating on Amazon, with one reviewer writing an extremely poetic excerpt that sealed the deal for me. “There are moments when I find myself aimlessly wandering into the kitchen, not to cook, but to bask in the sheer elegance of my Le Creuset pot,” wrote the reviewer. “In essence, this pot has turned my kitchen into a rarefied retreat, where culinary dreams and artistic aesthetics collide.”
When I finally received the stockpot (as a gift, yay), the first thing I noticed was that it’s quite large, but I was willing to sacrifice cabinet space to never have to deal with cleaning up accidental spillovers ever again. At just 6.3 pounds, it’s surprisingly lightweight despite its sizeable steel body. There are handles on each side to make transporting huge batches of soup easy from the stove to the table. I also noticed the rim of the pot is made of stainless steel, which Le Creuset says prevents chipping and cracking. I received the pot in the color “Caribbean,” which is a turquoise color with a glossy finish, but there are 12 other colors to choose from such as the brand’s OG shade “Flame,” which is that signature bold, punchy orange.
Cooking in a stockpot
Le Creuset wasn’t lying about the “fast heating performance” its stockpot delivers. I noticed that my broths would start bubbling within a few minutes, even at just a medium heat.
In addition to boiling liquids rapidly, the pot cooks vegetables and meat evenly, too. I want to talk about the best soup I’ve ever made in my life: coconut curry chicken and rice soup with cilantro. I’m super proud of this soup, given I made it up using random things in my fridge and pantry. First, I cooked chicken marinated in coconut curry with carrots, onions, a bay leaf, salt, and two cups of broth on low heat for 20 minutes. Typically, I’d use olive oil or butter for added flavor, but the marinade was saucy enough that I felt I could skip that step.
When the chicken was almost fully cooked, I removed it from the pot to shred while adding two cups of cooked rice, curry powder, and more broth to simmer for 20 minutes. The chicken was so tender it fell apart, while the broth’s flavor was so rich and aromatic that I couldn’t wait to assemble a bowl of the finished product. I added the chicken back in for 10 more minutes for all the flavors to come together. The entire soup was finished in about an hour, which proves that despite its somewhat intimidating size, this stockpot is ideal for easy and quick weeknight dinners that you can throw together after coming home famished.
If you’ve ever cooked with curry, you know its potential to stain everything in sight. The curry powder may have stained my nails yellow, but not this pot. It was easily washed off with soap, water, and the help of my good friend Scrub Daddy. This pot isn’t dishwasher-safe, but that’s fine given the low-maintenance cleanup.
TL;DR: Gone are my days of using multiple pots for a soup recipe. Looking back, it sounds so ridiculous—I can’t believe I didn’t own a stockpot sooner.
I’m just getting started on my soup-making journey. It’s #soupszn after all, so it’s safe to say Le Creuset’s Stockpot and I are in for a lot of quality time together in the kitchen. Next on my list? Tortellini soup with sweet sausage to channel my Italian heritage. In the words of A.J. Soprano, “No f*ckin’ ziti?”
You can purchase Le Creuset’s Stockpot on its website and Amazon.
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