I almost left this 1 quart Descoware sauce pan at the Salvation Army store on Sierra Highway because it was pretty shabby looking. Stained inside and out. I hadn’t heard of Descoware before, but it looked like good stuff…enameled cast iron, which I’ve been curious about.
The price of new Le Creuset and the like has kept me from jumping in. A 1-quart French oven is selling on Amazon for $94.00 right now. I decided that it was worth a $7.50 gamble to see if I could clean this one up to the point I’d be happy using it.
Wow, I wish I’d taken a before photo. I used a Scotch Brite pad and some baking soda and this baby is shining now.
Apparently, Julia Child used this stuff on her television show in the sixties. I found a website for Fans of Descoware–gotta love the Internet!–that says that it’s valued by people who use it, but hasn’t become expensive in a collectible sense. I think that the lid and pan are probably from different sets, but I don’t mind. It’s like a sunny day in the California poppy fields near our home on the edge of the Antelope Valley, CA.
I had a fennel bulb in the fridge, so I decided to try braising it in a little chicken broth, white wine and garlic. Finished with a little sprinkling of Parmesan cheese that I browned under the broiler at the last minute.
It was the first time I’d braised anything, and it was yummy. I ate it right out of the pot while watching a behind the scenes look at Downton Abbey. The only problem was that it stayed so hot it was hard to wait until it wouldn’t burn my mouth!
It cleaned right up again after cooking. Fun Monday find!
