In 1997, the Utah State Legislature approved H.B. 203, designating the Dutch Oven as the State Cooking Pot (Utah Code). The bill was sponsored by Representative Craig Buttars (R-Lewiston). When asked about the bill, Buttars said there are more Dutch ovens sold in Utah than just about anywhere else and the annual Festival of the American West in Logan is the site of the “world championship Dutch oven cookoff.” The Dutch oven celebrates the heritage of explorers, wranglers, sheepherders, and pioneers in Utah. The bill was signed into law by Governor Mike Leavitt on March 13, 1997.

A Dutch oven, also called a Dutch pot or casserole dish, is a thick-walled cooking pot with a tight fitting lid. Traditionally, Dutch ovens are made of cast iron, but are also found in brass, copper, aluminum, and tin. The origins of the Dutch oven are believed to come from the Netherlands during the 17th century. There are several theories about where the name “Dutch Oven” comes from? 

1. The Dutch oven’s origins can possibly be traced to Abraham Darby, an English craftsman in the early 18th century. He adapted a Dutch metal casting method to produce more affordable cast iron cookware, offering an alternative to brass and copper. In 1704, Darby journeyed to the Netherlands to study their casting techniques, specifically the use of sand molds for brass vessels. Subsequently, in 1707, he patented a comparable casting process involving molding sand and baking the mold to enhance casting smoothness. This method, inspired by the Dutch, was instrumental in the creation of the Dutch oven.
2. The name “Dutch oven” came from early Dutch traders or salesmen who were peddling these newly manufactured cast iron pots or ovens.
3. Dutch ovens got their name from the Dutch settlers in the Pennsylvania area who brought over their cast iron pots/kettles.

Early American colonists and settlers valued cast-iron cookware because of its versatility and durability. Dutch ovens were used to cook, boil, bake, stew, fry, and roast. The term “Dutch oven” historically referred to several distinct cooking implements: a legged cast-iron pan or kettle with a lid, an open-sided rectangular box for roasting, and a baking compartment within a brick hearth (Dutch Oven – Iron or Tin or … Brick?, Researching Food History).

Westward-bound explorers and settlers took Dutch ovens with them. Explorers and mountain men, like Jim Bridger and Peter Skene Ogden, used the kettle versions on the trail but appreciated the standard three-legged, flat top with a rim version together with its “lite” breads, tasty fruit cobblers and delicious stews when they wintered in. A Dutch oven was among the gear that Lewis and Clark carried with them on their Corp of Discovery expedition (May 1804- September 1806).

When the early Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS) pioneers came to Utah they brought along their Dutch ovens. Pioneer trains gearing up near Independence, Missouri were given a list of essentials with the Dutch oven at the top of the list, the people-powered handcart companies chose to include the heavy pots for their long pull to Utah and the miners digging in the canyons around Bingham, Price and Cedar City counted the black pots almost as essential as their picks. The versatility of the Dutch oven allowed pioneers to bake bread, roast prairie chickens, or cook a stew or pie of buffalo or deer meat. 

It’s been asked why Dutch ovens are used by more Utah families than other states and perhaps it’s because for Utahns, families have a special significance and particularly their pioneer forbearers. It’s a unique and generational bonding experience for families to gather around a campfire after a meal from the same kind of Dutch ovens and tell the stories about and history of their pioneer ancestors.

Handcart Pioneers (also known as the Handcart Pioneers Monument) is a 1926 bronze sculpture by Torleif S. Knaphus in Temple Square in Salt Lake City. LDS pioneers used handcarts to transport their belongings to Utah. The Handcart Pioneers sculpture shows a Dutch oven hanging from the front of the handcart.

Torleif S. Knaphus Handcart Pioneers Monument (Deptford Pudding)

Today, the Dutch oven not only looks the same but is still made basically the same way. The term “Dutch Oven” has endured for well over 300 years. While there is debate over the origin of the term, there is no doubt about the versatility and durability of the “Black Pot.” There are two primary styles of pots still used by enthusiasts:

1. Camp Oven – These pots have 3 legs to hold the pot above the coals, as well as a rimmed lid to hold coals and keep the ashes out of your dish. 
2. Dutch Oven – These pots do not have legs, and the lid is slightly domed. Most commonly used in a home oven, setting it on a trivet will provide you with the functionality of a camp oven.
   International Dutch Oven Society (IDOS) 2011 Brochure

The cast iron Dutch oven is also the State Cooking Implement of Texas and Official State Cooking Vessel of Arkansas.