A Dutch oven is just a heavy pot you can use on top of the stove or put in the oven. You don’t have to put it into the oven, you can use it on top of the stove for the whole time of cooking.

I would think it would be ideal for making a roux because it would be less likely to scorch on the bottom.

I have probably cooked more gumbo than any other thing in my entire life. I have never made it in the oven though. I do have dutch ovens in cast iron, coated cast iron like Le Crueset, and even Magna Lite, but I always have made roux in a cast iron skillet and then transferred it to a large stainless steel pot to finish the gumbo.

I always make béchamel in LC round pot. My mother used our our stainless pots instead, so I don't think it matters.

A Dutch oven is just a heavy pot you can use on top of the stove or put in the oven. You don’t have to put it into the oven, you can use it on top of the stove for the whole time of cooking.

I hesitate to use my large Dutch oven on the stove in my new apt. which has a glass cooktop that I am not used to cooking with. I do have a lighter weight stainless pot I could use, but wanted to see if anyone had made gumbo in a Dutch oven, in the oven.

I used roux made in an oven recently, and it was great - it takes more time, but less work because you don't have to constantly stir it like you would on a stove. I'm sure some purists hate the idea, but it worked well, as I could prep the rest of the ingredients while the roux cooked. I did make the rest of the gumbo in the Dutch oven (enamel coated cast iron) as well - on the stove top - but that was as much for convenience as anything else.

I have seen recipes that say you can brown the flour in the oven first, like on a jelly roll pan, then make the roux with that to reduce stirring time. I've never tried it though.

I've also heard of toasting the flour in the oven first, especially if you want a dark roux, but I have not tried that either.

Lucille, if your large Dutch oven has a perfectly flat bottom, it should be fine on your glass topped stove. (As long as you don't drop it on it.) But if it has a ridge around the bottom, I would check with the manufacturer of the stove before using it.

It's been pretty cold here lately, Gumbo sounds so-o-o-o- good!

Rusty

Thank you Rusty but the roux mixture is already in the oven so this will be a grand experiment. I do have times now that I'm older where my hands no longer had the strength they used to have so I'm thinking it might be best to use the oven for this particular piece of cookware.

I completely understand that, Lucille! I gave all my cast iron cookware away because I could no longer handle it.

Rusty

Looking forward to hearing how it turns out in the oven.

It turned out well although I chickened out and stopped cooking the roux at dark caramel instead of mahogany. Oven roux is more forgiving and to me, easier.

I am happy your experiment turned out well. I just wanted to echo the statement that you can cook on a glass top with a Dutch oven. I have a glass top stove and use my Le Crueset Dutch oven on it all the time!

Lucille, do you have to stir it every so often when making it in the oven?

Yes, depending on what recipe you read, every 20 or 30 minutes.