-

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 2 mins (2005-12-03 09:36:02 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

A heavy pot with a tight-fitting domed cover used for braising, steaming, or baking on top of stove.

TERMIUM

I've never heard of a Dutch oven either. . .Just providing another option!

well that's what ours is called :)

it is what is used for making big quantity of stew; soup in canteens. It is the side above a pan but is usually made of metal so it is not a dish

Suezen has of course already suggested this term, so my reason for chipping in is merely to give some background information about the essential character of a 'faitout' (as I have observed it empirically and have been taught), and also to dispel some of the generalizations that are going around in answers and comments, and which I think are at times erring on the misleading.

1) The term 'faitout' is a very common term, and has sufficient 'Grandma's folksy cosiness' about it to get it hijacked as a marketing term by various manufacturers for all sorts of utensils that may be more or less far-removed from the true concept.

2) 'faitouts' often are large, it's true, though the term often does also get applied to smaller ones that in UK English we'd simply call a casserole

3) They are more likely to be made out of metal than anything else (aluminium, stainless, enamel, copper...), but other materials are possible (cast-iron, pyrex...) I think once it starts being made of earthenware etc., it almost certainly ceases to qualify (and there are other more appropriate terms available)

4) Certainly in larger sizes, one of the key features is that they are taller then their diameter --- this makes for less evaporation, and hence why they are ideal for soup. The reverse, a pan that is wider than it is tall (ideal for jam...), should properly be called a 'traiteur' --- though many non-professionals wouldn't make that distinction.

5) This sort of cooking pot is more likely to be used on top of the stove than in the oven (although of course that wouldn't be excluded, except by their size)

6) Strictly speaking, a Dutch oven / roaster is something quite specific and different; in this case, it has a domed (not flat) lid, which is often of significant depth compared with the bottom 'half', and is designed specifically for roasting --- think chicken pan. At least, that's my understanding of this term!

I base the above on my own knowledge from catering college in the UK, as well as professional restaurant kitchens over here, and the advice of my restaurant-owning partner, and from general observations of these things on sale in shops and catalogues over here.

I'm sorry, but I do not see how by any stretch of the imagination a lidded, usually metal pan can ever be referred to as a 'dish', except by very sloppy use of language...


--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 1 day 7 hrs 41 mins (2005-12-04 17:14:56 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

For those doubting Thomases, and especially for Britally who can pass it on to her/his girlfriends (best, second-best, Sunday or otherwise...), here's how OED defines 'dish' and 'pan'

dish
1 A broad shallow flat-bottomed vessel for holding food to be cooked or served, now esp. one with a shape other than circular and having some depth; a glass vessel with a stem or base for holding an individual portion of food; in pl. also, table vessels collectively after use. ...

pan
1 A broad usu. metal vessel, with a flat base and often a handle, used for domestic purposes; esp. one for heating food in. ...


--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 1 day 7 hrs 47 mins (2005-12-04 17:20:15 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

A quick (non-exhaustive) Google reveals that although many websites do indeed associate 'Le Creuset' with 'casserole dish', many of these seem to be US, whereas Le Creuset themselves talk simply about 'casseroles' (without the '...dish')

Maybe there's a difference in BE / AE usage here?


--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 1 day 9 hrs 11 mins (2005-12-04 18:44:39 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

Actually, I suspect the distinction wide / tall is probably best made in English using pan / pot..

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 1 day 9 hrs 16 mins (2005-12-04 18:49:46 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

https://www.nevilleuk.com/product_list.asp?p_subcategory=CB2...

Here's one manufacturer who calls the catering sized variety a 'deep stockpot with lid' --- you need to scroll down to the 6th item to find a photo of exactly what the term 'faitout' conjures up for me --- though please note that item #2, the smaller 3.3 litre version, is referred to as a 'casserole'

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 1 day 9 hrs 26 mins (2005-12-04 18:59:57 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

Here's a nice UK page that illustrates together a stewpan (traiteur)and a stockpot (faitout) [lidless, on this occasion!]:

http://www.bslh.net/Aluminiumcookware.htm

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 3 days 4 hrs 20 mins (2005-12-06 13:53:26 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

Sometimes one misses the obvious! Robert & Collins Super Senior dictionary also gives stew-pot as a translation for faitout --- though interestingly, the EN > FR volume gives 'cocotte' for 'stew-pot / pan', which I would actually dispute, at least as far as 'pot' is concerned; 'cocotte' would be more appropriate as a translation for 'saucepan'

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 4 days (2005-12-07 21:49:04 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

Despite all this highly entertaining and hopefully informative discussion, the plain fact of the matter is that the item in Conor's needs to be short and to the point, and in keeping with the rest of the list. Given that you are going to translate faux ami n° 1 'casserole' as 'saucepan' (aren't you?), I would suggest that the missing item for your list would be quite simply 'casserole'


--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 4 days (2005-12-07 21:52:32 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

Regarding my last-but-one note, I must correct one error; I should not have said that "...'cocotte' would be more appropriate as a translation for 'saucepan'..." --- I should of course have said "...as a translation for 'casserole'..."

This non-equivalence of casserole in EN and FR is a daily cause of headaches for me, my neighbour getting exasperated when she asks for a 'casserole' and I give her a 'cocotte' ;-(