It keeps your meat/veges/potatoes etc from sitting in any grease that cooks out of the meat. Also, I like to be able to place a very small amount of water in the roaster before closing it up to help keep everything moist and the trivet prevents the meat from sitting in it. I have #8, #9 & #10 dutch ovens made by Griswold, the forerunner to your Wagner. The rings in the lid absolutely will give you a bath when rinsing.

Thanks! It seems like the trivet is too low to keep the meat out of grease on mine, but I can see how it would work with a little water.

It keeps the meat from "boiling" and becoming grease laden. I have several sitting around. My mother and grandmother's would never dream of cooking a roast without one. Keeps the meat, they said, from frying in it's own grease. Meat today is much leaner...I rarely use one any more.

Before the advent of the rack in the roaster, one made a bed of root vegetables to set the roast on. I don't disagree with the others, but another thing that raising the roast does is keeps it from getting too hot on the bottom. I still do the vegetable thing when I make a butterflied roast chicken, but a thinner layer. If you read a lot of the old recipes--those that have some description--they often would make a gravy using the pan juices puréed with the cooked down vegetables.

I see. Maybe I'll try it. It's just so very very low! :)

I don't use them either. We think the best bites are the bits that are down on the bottom, whether the meat is beef, pork, Turkey or chicken. And the best potatoes are the ones on the bottom, too.

I have the same one Fori, including the original glass cover as well. Found this at a garage sale couple blocks from my house, owner said it was his grandmother's.
I could not pass it up to add to my collection! ... it cooks wonderfully :)

I'm missing a lid!!??????? O No!! :)

I do appreciate all the tips. I will have to try using it properly.

(Is it ever improper to use a 90 year old Dutch oven on a modern induction cooktop? Because that's a perfect combo for candymaking!)

I know you were kidding, but there is one circumstance where the old pot is inappropriate on the induction--when it has gnarls or sharp bits that can scratch the surface (along which a cave-in crack can form). Be careful with spills on the candymaking because sugar crystals can also scratch. :)

I don't have induction anymore, but that particular pot is safe--easily the slickest, flattest, smoothest-bottomed pot I have. Wish they still made them like that. Also half the weight of a modern version, but heavy enough to stay put while being stirred on a glass cooktop.