Enamel Cookware?

Q: As some of you know I only moved to Australia around 5 months ago to be with my irc sweetie (we are planning a wedding now) and as a result I wasn't able to bring over allthe cookware from my apartment in canada (my brother has since inherited it all for his new apartment). My fiances mother has given us varous pots and pans, i bought a large pot/pressure cooker which i am able to use for soups and large pots of sauces etc, but money is REALLY tight for us right now, he is a student and I left behind a massive student loan which is sucking out allthe money I am making, so we can't afford to outfit our kithcen just yet in all the reaaly nice, yet somehow expensive cookware, and frankly there are other things highrer on our list than nice dishes and pots and pans. Anyway to my questinos... I was in a discount shop the other day and saw a small enamel roaster for around 12 or 13 dollars. I have been looking for a roasting pan for cmall chickens and turkeys and to also make homemade baked beans and casseroles (we don't have any casserole dishes as of yet, only a couple of cake tins which i cook meat on witha rack (don't you love improvisation?). My questino is, is an enamel pot alright. Will I get a couple years out of it? Any comments or suggestinos are GREATLY appreciated. Thanks in advance.

A: The traditional oven roasting dish in Australia and NZ is an enamelled, pressed-steel item which typically lasts several lifetimes. These days there are inexpensive versions made in China which have thinner metal, and I assume that that's what we have here. I bought a really large one myself a while ago, and the enamelling seems to be of good quality and not prone to chipping. It might be best not to use it on top of the stove as a pan (the way my mother makes her gravy by making a roux from the roasting juices and reducing it on the top of the stove), if only because the thinner metal might tend to have hot spots. I'd say, go ahead and buy it. You might find that you never need a "nicer" one. Well, in Grandma's day they were probably made better. All the enamel-ware I have ever had eventually rusted due to chips and scratches. Now I use stainless steel roasters and can clean them thoroughly, no worry about scratching.

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