The most common email we get isn't about brands. It's "which size?" And it matters more than brand, because an oversized pot means sad shallow braises and an undersized one means cooking dinner in two batches forever. Here's the whole answer in one table, then the reasoning.
Dutch oven sizes by household
| Size | Capacity | Feeds | What it actually fits |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20cm | 2 to 2.5L | 1 to 2 | Soups for two, rice, small braises, sides |
| 22cm | 3.2L | 2 to 3 | A generous curry, four lamb shanks at a pinch |
| 24cm | 4L | 3 to 4 | Family casserole, a 1.4kg chicken, a standard sourdough loaf |
| 26cm | 5L | 4 to 6 | Big braises, a large chicken, batch cooking with leftovers |
| 28cm | 6.1L | 6+ | Two chickens' worth of stew, extended family Sundays |
| 32cm | 8.8L | A crowd | Marae-scale boil-up, stock, the whole rugby team |
The size we'd pick first: 24cm / 4 litres
If you're buying one dutch oven, buy the 24cm. It handles the weeknight casserole for four, browns a whole chicken without wedging it in, and it's the sweet spot for sourdough: the loaf from a standard 500g-flour recipe fits with room for oven spring. It's also the size your wrists will thank you for. Cast iron gets heavy fast, and a full 24cm is about as much as most people want to lift out of a hot oven.
Our 24cm options run from the Pyrochef 24cm at $169 to the French-made Chasseur Gourmet 24cm at $459. Same size, different depth of tradition; both will outlive the recipe book.
When to size up to 26cm
Go 26cm/5L if you regularly feed five or more, batch-cook for the freezer, or want leftovers as a policy rather than an accident. It's the classic family size. The trade-off is weight: our Chasseur 26cm weighs 5.4kg empty, so it tends to live on the stovetop rather than in a cupboard. That's not a flaw. A dutch oven on permanent display is a dutch oven that gets used.
When small is right
The 20cm/2L is genuinely useful for couples, flats and as a second pot for sides and sauces. At $149 for the Pyrochef 20cm, it's also the cheapest way to find out how much you'll use enamelled cast iron before committing to a bigger one.
Round or oval?
Round suits almost everyone: it matches your element and heats evenly. Oval earns its place for one dish, the long braise. Shanks, a whole fish, a rolled roast. If those are your cooking, the oval Chasseur is the tool; if you're not sure, you're a round person.
Still torn between two sizes? Email us at hello@thecastironshop.co.nz with how many you cook for and what's on high rotation, and a real person who cooks with this gear will answer within a business day.
