Descoware

Descoware is a discontinued brand of porcelain- or enamel-coated cast iron cookware[1][2][3] Among notable Descoware pots are dutch ovens.[2][3] Although Descoware is now little-remembered, specialist sources hold that it was the favorite cooking ware of American cooking instructor and television personality Julia Child, more so than Le Creuset whose association with the chef has been widely reported.[4] Child regularly used Descoware on her television show The French Chef.[5] The Smithsonian Institution's installation about Child's kitchen featured a large orange Descoware pot on top of Child's own stove.[6]

Descoware enameled cast iron cookware. (Back left poêle à frire with lid, front: fish baker, back right: round terrines of different sizes

It was created by David E. Sanford of the D.E. Sanford Company, later known as Desco Corporation. Sanford purchased the manufacturing rights to the Bruxelles Ware process from General Housewares Corporation in the 1940s, giving him the right to sell the products in the United States.

Bruxelles Ware was originally manufactured in France. Sanford changed the brand name, and contracted to have Descoware manufactured in the 1950s. After forging in Japan, the wares were sent to be porcelainized in updated colors in Belgium. Descoware weighed about 35 percent less than competing brands of cast-iron cookware, giving it a decided advantage. Descoware also offered matching porcelain-coated aluminum accessories.

The economic growth that Descoware helped generate helped both the Belgian and Japanese economies recover from World War II, and Sanford was Knighted in the name of Belgium's King Baudouin I in 1958 for his role in trade relations.

Descoware remains a sought-after brand of cookware and has a loyal fanbase; single pieces are often found in thrift stores, and may fetch from $20 to over $150.00 USD on eBay. Two of the original colors were originally called cherry flame and citron, but are referred to as orange flame and yellow today. While yellow and orange were common, there were pieces made in other colors, including blue, as well.[7]

See also

References
  1. Collin, R.; Collin, R.H. (1987). New Orleans Cookbook. Alfred A. Knopf. p. 11. ISBN 978-0-394-75275-4. Retrieved October 21, 2017.
  2. Hansen, Barbara (September 25, 2002), "Chicken Hamen", Los Angeles Times, And what size pan? I used the biggest I had, an old Descoware Dutch oven that holds about 6 quarts. By the time I added 6 cups of water to a pot jammed with ingredients, it was so full I didn't dare bring it to a boil as directed
  3. O'Neill, Zora; Reynolds, Tamara (2009), Forking Fantastic!: Put the Party Back in Dinner Party, Penguin Books, Gotham Books division, ISBN 978-1-101-14866-2, "Some sort of midsize saucepan. This one you definitely want to have a heavier bottom. Think of it as a safety cusion—it will save a distracted cook from many scorching disasters. Zora has a groovy orange Descoware enamel-coated cast-iron pan ... A Dutch oven. This is used to refer to a specific shape of the pot, but the term now often refers to any heavy large pot (5–8 quarts) with a lid. ... keep an eye out for sales on Le Creuset, or, if you're lucky, vintage Descoware and other old brands.
  4. Little, Harriet Fitch (September 3, 2022), "The home in 50 objects from around the world #44, Julia Child's soup pot: The 1960s celebrity chef introduced Americans to French cooking and quality cookware", Financial Times, Le Creuset is the long-reigning heavyweight champ of the wedding gift registry. This makes sense metaphorically: a cast-iron vessel with a lifetime guarantee must appeal to nervous couples on the cusp of forever. This 1973 cocotte, also known as a French oven, is functionally identical to the company's first prototype, forged in the French town of Fresnoy-le-Grand in 1925, although the T-shaped handles were the innovation of Italian industrial designer Enzo Mari. What really distinguishes it is its provenance. It was the favourite soup pot of chef Julia Child and is now on display at the National Museum of American History as part of an exhibition that recreates the revered chef's home kitchen. ... Although her allegiance to the brand is now legend, many specialist sources suggest she was more fond of the competitor brand Descoware. But Descoware is now barely a footnote in culinary history, whereas Le Creuset remains so popular that teens on TikTok regularly joke about arranging sham marriages just to score a full set. History, even that of pots and pans, is written by the winners.
  5. Lange, Alexandra (2011-11-16). "Midcentury-Modern Cookware for a Thrifty-Chic Thanksgiving". Gourmet. Condé Nast. Archived from the original on 2011-11-22. Retrieved 2022-11-08. Descoware, made in Belgium, was Julia Child's pick: On her stove at the Smithsonian National Museum of American History sits a big orange pot she used on her pioneering television show.
  6. "What's Cooking: Julia Child's Kitchen at the Smithsonian". Smithsonian Institution.
  7. Goldberg, Michael J. (1996). "Descoware and Druware". Groovy kitchen designs for collectors, 1935-1965 : with value guide. Schiffer. pp. 153–155. Descoware came in yellow, orange, or a combination of the two, as well as a few other odd choices like blue. Frying pans and casseroles are most often found.
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