DaTerra Cucina8 Qt Nonstick Ceramic Dutch Oven with Lid – Large Stock Pot, Oven & Induction Safe, Heavy Duty, Lightweight, Lead & PFOA Free, Volcanic Black | Made in Italy

This product works as advertised, and it very lightweight and yet conducts/retains heat very well. The coating is ceramic, not teflon, a big big BIG difference for browning veggies and roasts before cooking them in the oven. Here is what I did on my first use of this product: a GREAT tasting pot roast all in this this one pot. Here's what you can fit easily in it in case you are wondering. Browned 8 small onion halves, 8 carrots (cut into 2 inch lengths), 8 stalks of celery cut into 2 inch lengths in about 5 tablespoos of olive oild, and set them all aside. Then I bowned a (salt and pepper coated) 4.5 lb chuck roast on all sides, left it in the pot, threw the veggies back in aound it. Boy, on high heat, this very quickly and evenly seared it all. 2 cups of red wine and 4 cups of low sodium beeft broth (use enough liquid to almost cover the roast), 8 cloves of garlic (peeled and sliced in half), 4 sprigs of fresh rosemary and 4 sprigs fresh thyme all went in next. Covered and roasted the whole thing in the oven heated to 200 degrees for three hours, then threw in some sliced mushrooms and cooked it for anther 3 hours. Time will vary but cook it until the meat falls apart when touching it with a fork. I took out the meat and veggies and all solid material, leaving only the juice (did not have a lot of fat). Then dissolved three tablespoons of flour in water and dropped that into the liquid, and heated to a boil on the stove top, then simmered for a few minutes....and out came some delicious gravy. Yup, all of this in one pot, and it was pefect as well as easy! The best thing is cleaning the pot was a snap. Everything scrubs right off with no effort at all. Note: The handles outside the grips do get very hot--that is probably the only flaw/warning for this (they could have made the handles much wider and the grips wide enough to handle the pot without hot pads--use the same caution when handling the lid. Other things I like is this dutch overn is much taller than many so it is also perfect for making a large pot of chili or soup. It would also easily accomodate a large whole chicken. Excellent for slow cooking as you would using a crock pot, only this pot is much bigger than most of those. I highly recommend it.

I’m not much of a cook, but I do appreciate good tools. I mostly cook big batches: stews, chili, braised meat / vegetables etc; that means Dutch ovens. After wearing out umpteen non-stick pieces (and ingesting who-knows-how-much Teflon), I finally spent on something that will last. I got one stainless steel (Calphalon Contemporary 8 qt) and this Vesuvio 8 qt, and was able to do a couple side-by-side comparisons.My biggest preference is ease of cleaning, even moreso than cooking characteristics. Weight is not a consideration; I would have gotten cast iron if it was easier to clean.Browning meat (pork shoulder, chicken thighs, using oil) was a similar experience in both DOs. Both did very well, but the Calphalon was prone to slightly sticking, esp with chicken; Vesuvio’s ceramic was PERFECTLY non-stick, and yet evenly browned meat in a pleasing manner. Slow-cook braising was the same for both; I assume most any vessel does this without issue. Meals were plenty good, considering my skill level.Cleanup was the difference maker. The Calphalon immediately showed signs of slight tarnishing after washing; I know how to resolve it, but would prefer as few steps as possible. The Vesuvio is perfect in this regard; cleanup is a breeze.I’m not unhappy with the Calphalon steel, but the Vesuvio is a better performer. It’s deeper profile is an incentive to try deep frying, while the shallower steel will be good for sautes. I hope both will last forever, or at least some years beyond those cheap Teflon items.Vesuvio is well-built, lightweight, stylish, and super-easy to wash. Doing business with a friendly mom-and-pop operation is another plus. Sooner than later, my teflon fry pan will fail. Its replacement will be Vesuvio.

I recently received a DaTerra frying pan as a gift, and my family LOVED that so much I had to purchase the 8 Quart Dutch oven. These pots and pans are the best. Frying an egg is our test of a good pan and this one passes with flying colors. I love that I can put this in the oven for casseroles, bread, or to keep items warm. The glass top is perfect for seeing the progress of whatever I'm cooking.Best of all, - clean up is a BREEZE. That's what makes the Dutch Oven SO great to cook with. Who likes cleaning up anyway? Well with this, you're clean up time is cut in half. Maybe more. I'll be replacing my old pots and pans with DaTerra, - it's a beautiful set and it makes cooking and cleaning enjoyable. Highly recommend DaTerra!

Been using It for about two weeks now and absolutely love it. We did a lot of research at the heavier ones and wanted to try to avoid spending a stupid high amount for certain other brands. This one is amazing. So far we’ve made many dishes in it and everything has been excellent. Being so light weight it makes it more usable and you actually want to use it more. Cleans like a charm. Have nothing but positive things to say about it. In time if this changes we will update the review but right now we would definitely buy it again. And in fact want to investigate what other products this company sells. We like the fact that it is not have a finish that ships off like made in some countries. Do your research before spending the money. This is a great deal in our opinion. A great product at a great price.UPDATE: using it a few more weeks and every time it is amazing. We both are Totally loving this!