After scrolling through the hype on this website, I found two very reasonably priced enamel cast iron cookware sets. http://products.mercola.com/cast-iron...
Anyone have any experience with them? I recently purchased two Rachael Ray enamel cast iron pieces and would like to expand my collection without going broke.
Thanks.
acadia
Jul 14, 2008 10:56AM
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CHOW Pick, posted July 08, 2009
Food Media, posted July 09, 2009
Green, posted July 07, 2009
Wine and Drinks, posted April 24, 2009
Looks like part of the Creuset look-a-like tsunami flowing from China. What a repellant ad, too! I've not seen any off-brand, celeb-chef branded Chinese-made stuff that comes close to French-made for fit-n-finish and chip resistance. Frankly, I'd also have some concerns, their screaming ad notwithstanding, about lead content--not all enamel is created equal. In the end, your get what you pay--caveat emptor.
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Though I generally disagree with Kagemusha's knee-jerk reaction to non-French enameled cast iron, I would not do business with Mercola. Can't stand fear-mongering tactics. Besides, if you're going to go with cheapo enameled cast iron, you can get cheaper than Mercola too unless you really want all those pieces. And you want to buy cheap enameled cast iron only where you can inspect it and/or return it easily. It's heavy to ship, so generally this means you want to go look at it in the store, where you can pass it over if it doesn't look that great.
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Less reflex than reflection, Crazy One. The Chinese stuff I've seen feeds the "cookware-as-decor" malady among those who think only affluent chumps buy LC. Trust me, I love reverse snobbery but draw the line at substandard product that doesn't deliver over the long run.
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Care to explain where the reverse snobbery is in checking out a cheaper product's quality before making a buying decision? Isn't that just smart, with the cost of everything going through the roof?
I'm also curious where I suggested to buy a "substandard" product. I suggested to look carefully at them. Everyone ultimately has to do what they are comfortable with. Deciding to stick with the top brand you know is fine. Suggesting that anything other than LeCreuset is "substandard" or "decor" is just flat wrong.
Everyone's priorities are different. Why isn't that just okay, instead of insisting upon telling the OP the pieces he/she already bought and is satisfied with are no good?
What, exactly, should the OP do in your opinion? Go broke, I guess....
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I think the OP should be aware of the false economy of buying this stuff and other knock-offs. Staub and LC aren't cheap but tend to go the distance. Careful shopping can put these brands in your kitchen at fair prices. The copies look great at first blush but aren't always as durable. There are too many serviceable alternatives to bargain enameled cast iron to bother with it. I just don't see the value in the knock-offs. Sorry.
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And that's fine. We can disagree, though, right? I'm sure there are certain items for which I would insist upon that type of brand loyalty, backed by long experience, the same way you are here. The cast iron just happens to not be one of them, for me. And I think it's reasonable for me to share that in this kind of thread, given that I have bought and used off-brand cast iron in addition to LC.
I am sure we can accommodate both opinions in here.
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I am a die hard LeCreuset fan for enameled cookware. Yes, it's expensive but it is an investment to last a lifetime. I am fortunate to have outlet stores in my area and a family friend who works there so I get the outlet price plus 50% off. I've been slowly buying up pieces to add to my collection.
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I've seen this his videos on YouTube... I would heartily aggree with CrazyOne about the fear mongering -- he says everything is bad for you! Except this product, which he happens to sell. His science is poor -- Flourine destroying to ozone layer? Come on, at least Wiki it, if not actually do some research. All of his garabage sciencetific medical videos rant about Teflon (and the ozone destroying Flourine they release) which then conveniently morphs into an infomercial... all for our safety. Please, do not give this man a penny of your money!
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I bought this set of cookware about nine months ago and it has been great. It's the only cookware we use and have found no negatives. Dr. Mercola is good at hyping his products but there are other companies and products he speaks highly of that he has no profit from. One of the most neutral reviewers I have seen is naturalnews.com.
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What is the advantage of enameled cast iron over plain cast iron? is it supposed to be healthier because you don't get too much iron leached into your food?
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This Mercola guy doesn't say anything bad about your basic cast iron, but he keeps flashing it into people's faces that the enameled is better looking, and won't rust. I think some people prefer the enameled b/c you can wash it just like other pots and pans, and b/c it's prettier.
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Actually, in one of his YouTube videos he does say very negative things about plain Cast Iron, mentioning that extra cast iron is very, very bad for you; citing that excess iron is a very serious disease. While I won't argue the veracity of his claims that haemocromatosis (the condition of having excess iron) is a terrible infliction to have, he neglects to say that this is a rare disease and with a mostly genetic component to it.
He's purposely misleading people to buy his cookware, peroid.
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It's non reactive, so if you do acidic cooking you don't have to worry about replenishing the seasoning by cooking something fatty/oily later.
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OK, that makes sense, Rockfish. And while I do use plain cast iron, and I know it has been used for centuries, I sometimes wonder how unhealthy the iron that is leached out into the food is. Perhaps it would be best to switch to enameled cast iron...
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They also say that cooking your food over an open fire is bad for you, b/c the charred food can cause cancer. Funny that people would have had to have cooked their food on an open fire long before they made ovens. People have been cooking on cast iron for centuries, like werewolf mentioned, and yet no one has had problems with them. When we switched to cooking w/o cast iron, there became more cases of anemia.
I'm not trying to discourage anyone from cooking with the enameled cast iron, b/c I do think that it is very pretty, and it would be nice to cook acidic foods, and not have to worry about the seasoning, etc, but I just don't buy that it's superior to basic cast iron, b/c the basic is bad for your health.
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I bought the whole Dr Mercola set 5 weeks ago and the following happened:
first and foremost: the packaging was terribly smeilling: benzene in the plastic!
I found the quality of the pots (I checked the blue enamel carefully) not that good but dismissed that thought and started cooking. A month later the largest cooking pan lost the blue color on the bottom and the iron appeared with lots of rust. I looked at it under the microscope and saw it was entirely rusted and dangerous for the health as anything.
I had to throw the pan away and with that all cookingware. I went back to my (first) quality stainless steel pots and pans and am happy I did.
Ofcourse I sent a big complaint to Mercola but have not heard from them.
Their cookingware is of a third grade quality.
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i bought it...loved it for a while. one of the pieces now has enamel bubbling up and breaking off :0(.
i am now looking for a saucepan again...it lasted about 1.5 years
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Mercola is a quack, a scam-artist, and a liar. I wouldn't trust him to tell me it's raining if we were both standing in a monsoon.
Also, I don't think the Mercola cookware is enamel cast iron. It's some kind of ceraminc polymer. In typical Mercola fashion, he won't reveal the chemical make-up.
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I had never heard of Mercola before, but several posters here seem very familiar with him. Has he hawked other stuff in the past?
Just curious- for all I know he's the Sham-Wow guy...
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Why don't you try payless cookware instead, actually they specialize in all kinds of enameled cast iron cookware. There are more colors and styles that are in highest quality. The most important thing is that the price on this site is unbelieveable low, and they have all kinds of sets that include everything you might need in everyday life. I purchased a 15 PC set (a friend highly recommended), and I am very satisfied. Here is the IP: www.paylesscookware.com.
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