This beautiful rustic cazuela dish is perfect for preparing classic Spanish dishes or your favorite casserole. Each solid terra cotta cazuela has a durable blue glaze, and will add a beautiful burst of color to your kitchen. Artisans craft these rustic dishes at the foot of the Pyrenees Mountains, as they have for centuries. The hefty terra cotta retains heat, allowing for even cooking and preserving warmth even as your dish is served. We find that cazuelas are our all around favorite in the kitchen, perfect for preparing hot dishes or as a serving dish for any kind of tapa or snack. The glaze on the cazuela is perfectly safe for all applications – it contains no lead. How to Cure Your New Cazuela for Cooking: If you are planning on cooking with your cazuela, you will need to soak and cure it using the following directions. Soak the entire dish in water to cover for 12 hours. Drain and wipe dry. Rub the unglazed bottom with a cut clove of garlic (we are not sure how the garlic works, but why argue with tradition?) Fill the dish with water to 1/2 inch below the rim, then add 1/2 cup of vinegar. Place the dish on a flame-tamer over low heat and slowly bring the water to a boil (no flame tamer? Crumple a sheet of aluminum foil and create a ring that you place over your burner to create about an inch of space between the heat and the cazuela). Let the liquid boil down until only about 1/2 cup remains. Cool slowly and wash. Your cazuela is ready for use – the garlic has created a seal. This technique has been used since the Middle Ages. It seasons the pot, kills bacteria and hardens the unglazed parts. To clean, soak in sudsy water and scrub with a soft brush to remove any hardened food. If you have not used the cazuela for an extended period of time, you may need to re-cure it before use.

These delightful small cazuela dishes will add a touch of pizazz to your table! This traditional cooking and serving dish has a bright blue glaze, and is perfect for serving tapas and other small dishes. You can even sizzle shrimp or roast potatoes right in the oven. Cazuelas are an essential tool in our kitchen, perfect for holding diced herbs or garlic for recipes, or roasted Marcona almonds for a snack. Our artisan potter in Catalunya forms each cazuela, then adds small handles by hand – called “orejas” in Spain. Both the bright blue glaze and the clear interior glaze are food safe and lead free, perfect for serving your favorite Spanish snack. Our cazuelas come from the town of Breda, where they have been making terra cotta cookware since Roman times. The sturdy terra cotta holds heat, great for keeping meals warm even after the dish is brought to the dining table. How to Cure Your New Cazuela for Cooking: If you are planning on cooking with your cazuela, you will need to soak and cure it using the following directions. Soak the entire dish in water to cover for 12 hours. Drain and wipe dry. Rub the unglazed bottom with a cut clove of garlic (we are not sure how the garlic works, but why argue with tradition?) Fill the dish with water to 1/2 inch below the rim, then add 1/2 cup of vinegar. Place the dish on a flame-tamer over low heat and slowly bring the water to a boil (no flame tamer? Crumple a sheet of aluminum foil and create a ring that you place over your burner to create about an inch of space between the heat and the cazuela). Let the liquid boil down until only about 1/2 cup remains. Cool slowly and wash. Your cazuela is ready for use – the garlic has created a seal. This technique has been used since the Middle Ages. It seasons the pot, kills bacteria and hardens the unglazed parts. To clean, soak in sudsy water and scrub with a soft brush to remove any hardened food. If you have not used the cazuela for awhile, you need to re-cure it.

Cazuelas, terra cotta dishes, have been used in Spain since antiquity. They are the oldest manifestations of domestic life — and can be seen at every archeological dig dealing with Iberian housing. Cazuelas are one of the original vessels used for a developing cuisine. Our cazuelas are clearly the best you can buy. They are made according to a Roman formula which has been employed for centuries in this area of Spain near the Pyrenees. Although terra cotta is nothing more complicated than moistened clay, fired with an interior glaze so it can hold liquids, this particular cazuela is made of a special clay to which small pebbles have been added to strengthen the bowl and increase its heat retention. They are fired at a higher temperature for durability. These handsome cazuelas may be brought to the table straight from the oven. An 8-inch diameter dish is a good size to roast almonds, serve fabada stew, calamares, or other traditional dishes. The glaze on the cazuelas is lead-free: safe for the stovetop or oven. How to Cure Your New Cazuela for Cooking: If you are planning on cooking with your cazuela, you will need to soak and cure it using the following directions. Soak the entire dish in water to cover for 12 hours. Drain and wipe dry. Rub the unglazed bottom with a cut clove of garlic (we are not sure how the garlic works, but why argue with tradition?) Fill the dish with water to 1/2 inch below the rim, then add 1/2 cup of vinegar. Place the dish on a flame-tamer over low heat and slowly bring the water to a boil (no flame tamer? Crumple a sheet of aluminum foil and create a ring that you place over your burner to create about an inch of space between the heat and the cazuela). Let the liquid boil down until only about 1/2 cup remains. Cool slowly and wash. Your cazuela is ready for use – the garlic has created a seal. This technique has been used since the Middle Ages. It seasons the pot, kills bacteria and hardens the unglazed parts.

A 15-inch diameter, 3 inch deep terra cotta cazuela dish is a good size to cook garlic shrimp, fideua and all kinds of other paella dishes and other traditional dishes such as fabada for a large group. Terra cotta is basic clay, low fired with an interior glaze. Our premium cazuelas are unique in that they are made by potters following the traditional Roman formula of mixing tiny pebbles into the clay which strengthens the dish and increases its heat retention. The handles are applied by hand. La Tienda is the only source of this kind of cazuela in America. The glaze on the cazuela is perfectly safe for all applications — it contains no lead. We provide directions for a simple seasoning (essentially soaking in water for a few hours) which renders the cazuela good for stovetop, oven or microwave. When cooking with terra cotta, the key is to increase heat gradually.