Le Creuset (, meaning "the

crucible A crucible is a ceramic or metal container in which metals or other substances may be melted or subjected to very high temperatures. While crucibles were historically usually made from clay, they can be made from any material that withstands te ...

") is a maker of enameled cast-iron cookware. The company's first model was manufactured in the town of Fresnoy-le-Grand in France in 1925 and was similar in function to a

dutch oven A Dutch oven (not to be confused with masonry oven) is a thick-walled cooking pot with a tight-fitting lid. Dutch ovens are usually made of seasoned cast iron; however, some Dutch ovens are instead made of cast aluminium, or ceramic. Some metal ...

, but with T-shaped handles designed by the Italian industrial innovator

Enzo Mari Enzo Mari (27 April 1932 – 19 October 2020) was an Italian modernist artist and furniture designer who is known to have influenced many generations of industrial designers. Early life and education Mari was born in Novara, Italy, and he ...

. The Le Creuset dutch oven is on display in the

Smithsonian Institution The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums and education and research centers, the largest such complex in the world, created by the U.S. government "for the increase and diffusion of knowledge". Founded ...

National Museum of American History The National Museum of American History: Kenneth E. Behring Center collects, preserves, and displays the heritage of the United States in the areas of social, political, cultural, scientific, and military history. Among the items on display is t ...

Washington DC ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

as a part of the recreation of the chef

Julia Child Julia Carolyn Child (née McWilliams; August 15, 1912 – August 13, 2004) was an American cooking teacher, author, and television personality. She is recognized for bringing French cuisine to the American public with her debut cookbook, '' ...

's kitchen. It has been widely reported to be her favorite cooking pot, though specialist sources hold that it was the dutch oven of Le Creuset's now-less-remembered competitor

Descoware Descoware is a discontinued brand of porcelain- or enamel-coated cast iron cookware Among notable Descoware pots are dutch ovens. Although Descoware is now little-remembered, specialist sources hold that it was the favorite cooking ware of legend ...

that was her real favorite. The company also makes many other types of cookware and bakeware, from fondue-sets to

tagine A tajine or tagine ( ar, طاجين) is a North African dish, named after the earthenware pot in which it is cooked. It is also called or . Etymology The Arabic () is derived from the Berber 'shallow earthen pot', from Ancient Greek () 'fr ...

History

Le Creuset was founded in

Fresnoy-le-Grand Fresnoy-le-Grand () is a Communes of France, commune in the Aisne Departments of France, department in Hauts-de-France in northern France. Industry The cookware manufacturer Le Creuset is based in the town and was founded there in 1925 by Arman ...

Aisne Aisne ( , ; ; pcd, Ainne) is a French department in the Hauts-de-France region of northern France. It is named after the river Aisne. In 2019, it had a population of 531,345.Picardy Picardy (; Picard and french: Picardie, , ) is a historical territory and a former administrative region of France. Since 1 January 2016, it has been part of the new region of Hauts-de-France. It is located in the northern part of France. Hi ...

at the crossroads of transportation routes for iron, coke, and sand. Armand De Saegher (a Belgian casting specialist) and Octave Aubecq (a Belgian enamelling specialist) opened the foundry in 1925. That same year, the first cocotte (or French oven) was produced, laying the foundation for what is now an extensive range of cookware and kitchen utensils. Flame (orange), was used for the first piece. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, Le Creuset began to focus on continually improving cast iron. In the 1950s the designer

Raymond Loewy Raymond Loewy ( , ; November 5, 1893 – July 14, 1986) was a French-born American industrial designer who achieved fame for the magnitude of his design efforts across a variety of industries. He was recognized for this by ''Time'' magazi ...

introduced a futuristic type of cookware. In 1957, Le Creuset purchased a competitor, Les Hauts Fourneaux de Cousances, and began producing items such as a grill and a fondue set. The cookery writer

Elizabeth David Elizabeth David CBE (born Elizabeth Gwynne, 26 December 1913 – 22 May 1992) was a British cookery writer. In the mid-20th century she strongly influenced the revitalisation of home cookery in her native country and beyond with articles and bo ...

promoted Mediterranean cooking in the UK and was a Le Creuset promoter, particularly in her 1969 booklet 'Cooking with Le Creuset'. One of the colours of blue in the cookware range was created for her The current Le Creuset logo was introduced in 1970 as a symbolic representation of metal casting and moulding. Loewy

In the 1970s

designed distinctive Dutch ovens and saucepans with domed lids and typical handles. In the 1980s JC Barrault's "Futura" line was launched. The company was purchased by Paul van Zuydam in 1988. In 1995, Le Creuset began exploring new product categories: stainless steel, stoneware, silicone, enamel on steel, textiles and forged hard-anodized aluminium. Le Creuset offers a variety of colours, from bright (e.g. cherry, a gradated red) to muted (e.g. dune, a gradated off-white). Its discontinued colours include cobalt (gradated blue-violet), black onyx (solid black), kiwi (gradated light green), as well as slate, granite, cactus, and citron. In addition to their standard colors, Le Creuset partners with major kitchenware retail brands such as Williams-Sonoma and Sur La Table to offer unique "exclusive" colors which are only available for purchase through their respective stores. LCSauce (2)

Le Creuset kitchenware gained new fans amongst users of social media in 2020 as a high value designer brand.

Production

To manufacture their

cast-iron cookware Heavy-duty cookware made of cast iron is valued for its heat retention, durability, ability to maintain high temperatures for longer time duration, and non-stick cooking when properly seasoned. Seasoning is also used to protect bare cast iron fr ...

, the Le Creuset

foundry A foundry is a factory that produces metal castings. Metals are cast into shapes by melting them into a liquid, pouring the metal into a mold, and removing the mold material after the metal has solidified as it cools. The most common metals pr ...

uses standard

sand casting Sand casting, also known as sand molded casting, is a metal casting process characterized by using sand as the mold material. The term "sand casting" can also refer to an object produced via the sand casting process. Sand castings are produced i ...

methods. After hand finishing, items are sprayed with at least two coats of enamel. The Le Creuset Signature range of cast iron cookware is coated in a minimum of three coats of enamel. The enamel becomes resistant to damage during normal use. Currently, all Le Creuset cast-iron cookware is still manufactured in the company's foundry in Fresnoy-le-Grand. The process was featured on

BBC Two BBC Two is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It covers a wide range of subject matter, with a remit "to broadcast programmes of depth and substance" in contrast to the more mainstream an ...

's Inside the Factory. Le Creuset products that are not cast-iron may be made in other countries, such as

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

(accessories or silicone products),

Thailand Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is bo ...

(kettles and ceramics), England (enamel cleaner), Portugal (stainless steel), and Swaziland (clay pots).

Image gallery

File:Le Creuset.jpg, alt=Vintage casseroles by Raymond Loewy, Vintage casseroles by Raymond Loewy File:LC small (2).jpg, alt=Individual casseroles, Individual casseroles File:LCshallow (2).jpg, alt=Shallow casserole in 'grape' colour, Shallow casserole in 'grape' colour File:2019 12 Le Creuset fonte tomate caquelon Enzo Mari.jpg, alt=Fondue pot designed by Enzo Mari, Fondue pot designed by Enzo Mari File:2014-09-26 15.25.03 최광모.jpg, alt=Le Creuset shop display, Le Creuset shop display File:Le Creuset tea kettle - Sarah Stierch.jpg, alt=Le Creuset tea kettle, Le Creuset tea kettle File:Le Creuset Enamel Cast Iron Cookware.jpg, alt=Le Creuset Enamel Cast Iron Cookware, From left: Le Creuset Dutch oven, saute pan, small wok, and rectangular baker

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Creuset, Le French companies established in 1925 Kitchenware brands Manufacturing companies established in 1925 Manufacturing companies of France Vitreous enamel

History

Production

See also

Image gallery

References

External links