Several years ago, I was given a 3 1/2 quart Le Creuset French Oven as a gift. I had coveted my in-laws’ Le Creuset oven and they were kind enough to get me one of my own. This started a trend and I now have a few pieces of Le Crueset cast iron cookware including skillets, sauté pans, a grill pan , a pizza pan, and a few french ovens . It has become my favorite cookware and gets used on a daily basis.

My first 3 1/2 quart french oven was used most often. Over time, the enamel became more and more dull and eventually most food began to stick. I think it may have started when I jumped on the no-knead bread craze and used it to bake bread at high temperatures. (A bit of advice, if you do this, get an inexpensive cast iron oven and save your Le Creuset for lower temperature baking.)

Lucky for me, Le Creuset of America has a wonderful life-time warranty. I called their customer service number and spoke to a representative. She told me they would have to inspect the piece and would either offer me a new one at at discount or send me a new one for free. I also had to pay for shipping it to them. I thought that was more than fair and shipped off my small french oven with the given RMA.

Replacement Le Creuset French Oven

A few weeks later, I got a call from Le Creuset and they told me they were going to give me a new one! The only problem was that they no longer made the color I had and I would have to choose a new one. I chose the Caribbean blue as I already have a few pieces in that color as it is my favorite.

When I received the new french oven I was elated. This was tempered slightly when I went to wash my new oven and realized that the lid was chipped in a few places. A phone call to Le Creuset and they quickly and kindly remedied the problem. They sent me a return-shipping label and promptly sent me a new one that is perfect.

I really love that they stand behind their products. They are expensive, but they work so well, are much safer than teflon, and are meant to last a lifetime. If not, they offer replacements to make the customer happy.