Geri B

Saw this mentioned on recipe thread...not knowing what it was, I searched...interesting...yes, I have seen these before. My question on these is cleaning.......I am a stainless steel pot person....I know they're clean, I can scrub them! I do have a clay flat thing that I have used, but it cannot be cleaned with soap, just hot water...now I don't use because it looks gross.......Are they heavy? Just curious......


Should be Romertopt!
oops! After I posted, I saw title misspelled and can't figure out how to correct...sorry

Onebyone

I have one with lid. I use it a lot. It isn't heavy at all compared to my Staub and cast iron. If you use soap, clay will absorb the soap and become brittle over time and may have a soap taste in the food. It's easy to clean with a scrubby and hot water. The color will become darker except where it is glazed. It roasts and bakes food great. My flat pizza stone is black as night. It is suppose to get black. I rinse it in hot water and scrub lightly to remove any grease and food. It stays in my oven all the time unless I need the space.

SewingSew

In case anyone is curious, a Romertopf is a clay cooker with a lid. Many are glazed on the bottom, while some are also glazed on the top, making it easier to clean them. They also come totally unglazed. Lining the bottom with parchment paper makes cleanup easier. Soaking them overnight with water in them helps a lot. Adding 1-4 tablespoons baking soda to the water helps to get rid of pungent odors. My manual says that you can use a minor amount of dish detergent to clean the glazed bottom, but I avoid using soap on the unglazed portion as it can clog the pores and I don't want my food to take like soap. The manual says that the bottom can go in the dishwasher, but I would never put this in a dishwasher because temperature changes can cause it to crack. Also you should always let it cool before cleaning. And never use anything abrasive on the unglazed portion. You can use salt as a cleanser.


When I was in high school, we lived in what was then known as West Germany. Like many German cooks, my mom's German girlfriend swore by her clay cooker, particularly for roasting hens, so mom went out and bought one and then never used it. She gave it to me. Mine is a Schlemmertopf made my Scheurich in Klenheubach, West Germany. Now considsider this was purchased in 1976, before the Berlin Wall came down. Years later, I purchased a larger clay pot, and it was manufactured by Scheurich in Reston, Virginia. It was called the "Magic Clay Pot".


You always put it in a cold oven to start and never set a hot one on a cold surface. As I stated before, you soak the lid in water before using it, and then the natural juices of the food are released during cooking. There is supposed to be no better way to prepare a roast or a beef stew. You don't have to brown the food first because the clay cooker will take care of that. You can make soups and casseroles and baked apples and baked beans and apple strudel. I have read that some people make bread in them, but I have never tried that. I have also read that tamales are a real treat when baked in clay.


Geri, I also love stainless steel cookware, but I love my cast iron too. I understand what you mean by wanting your cookware to look clean, but in the cooking world, things like seasoned clay cookers and seasoned pizza stones show character if they are black, and they are coveted. If you go to Ebay, you'll see people bidding against one another for blackened pizza stones. I would pay more for a well seasoned cast iron skillet than I would for a new one. I have a mortar and pestle that I will be proud to hand down to my daughter because it smells like basil and garlic, etc. And I have several strands of pearls that smell like my perfume, and one day I know one of my children will smell my pearls and feel my presence. Even things that don't appear to be shiny and clean sometimes have great value.

donna13350

I have had a clay garlic baker for many years and use it often, and I do wash it. The thing with clay bakers is that the clay absorbs water, and it can crack if it's got water in it and then you put it in an oven..that's why people think you can't wash them...the trick is to never soak them, and wash them quickly, then let them dry very, very well before you use them.

Geri B

Well, after checking prices on these, I am not at all interested in trying one! My luck, I'd buy, use once, then somehow drop it and there it would be on the floor in pieces. I'll just stay with the collection of p&p I have.

Pete

Had the one that was glazed on the inside.....loved it, until I stupidly put it in a sink of cold water.....yup, it cracked.

vschieve

Only surgical stainless steel is safe.http://happycookingco.com/hidden-dangers.cfm. Supposedly the very safest cookware is ceramic coated cast iron, such as Staub and Le Creuset.