Cousances

Cousances was a French cookware manufacturer, known for enameled cast iron pans ("cocotte" in French).^[1]^[2] The Cousances foundry in northeastern France began making cast iron pans in 1553; four centuries later, it was acquired by Le Creuset in 1957.^[3] Cookware under the Cousances brand continued to be manufactured by Le Creuset into the early 1980s. A conspicuous design of the company was a dutch oven called the Doufeu in which a sunken lid was kept at a reduced temperature by placing ice cubes atop and allowing the steam inside to recondense. As the inside of the lid was dotted with smooth protrusions, the condensed droplets sprinkled back evenly on the cooking food to baste it.^[4]^[5]

History

Cousances enameled cast iron skillets, pans, gratins, and pots were produced in the town of Cousances-les-Forges^[6] and had features which distinguished them from their competitors, Le Creuset, Descoware of Belgium, and the Scandinavian Copco. Among those features were the base, which was left without enamel (like Copco) but sealed against rust with the final glaze (unlike Copco), and the skillet design which was a French version of the classic American skillet popularized by Griswold and WagnerWare, having two pour spouts, a cast on handle, and a lifting tab on the largest of the handled skillets. That skillet design was altered to include rounded sides for tossing/ sauteeing, and the lift tab being added to smaller skillets for easier pouring. That refinement made the Cousances 20 cm and 26 cm skillets a hit with cooks, who use the skillet as a saucepan for gravies and glazes, because the gravies could be made right in the skillet in which the chops or chicken was fried, and glazes could be perfected much more easily than in a deeper saucepan, and the finished product was easily poured into other containers thanks to the tabs, spouts and handles.

Acquisition

The Cousances designs are now produced by Le Creuset from the original patterns, in the original foundry/factory. The small, round medallion style logo which once read "Cousances, Made in France" around the centimeter size, now reads "Le Creuset, Made in France". Le Creuset has changed the colors of the cookware in the old Cousances patterns; but Cousances pots, pans, skillets, roasters and Dutch ovens are still to be found as used pieces, and are recognizable by the medallion logo, glazed natural color cast iron bottoms, which they share with the Le Creuset current line.

References

^ David, Elizabeth (1999) [1964], French Provincial Cooking, Foreword by Julia Child, Penguin Books, pp. 47–48, ISBN 978-1-101-50123-8, from the 1983 editon: French vitrous-enamelled cast-iron pots, made by the famous firms of Le Creuset and Andre of Cousances, are now imported in quantity and in a large range of sizes and shapes. They are widely distributed.
^ Hesse, Georgia (1988), The Penguin Guide to France 1989, Penguin Books, p. 151, Across the street , at 48 , rue Montmartre , is A. Simon's kitchenware annex , where a stock of Sabatier and Tour Eiffel knives and Cousances and Le Creuset enameled cast - iron cookware await the would be kitchen wizard
^ Narins, Rachel (2019), Cast Iron: The Ultimate Cookbook, Kennebunkport, Maine: Ceder Mill Press Book Publishers, p. 745, ISBN 978-1-60433-888-1, Cousances – Originally a foundry in northern France, Cousances began production in 1553. The historic company existed for centuries before it was purchased by Le Creuset in 1957. The company still sporadically reissues some fo the Cousances line in limited editions that are available online or at select retail outlets.
^ Home Economics, vol. 26, Forbes, 1980, p. 27, An unusual buy in casserole dishes is the Doufeu, a practical design from the French cast iron cookware company, Cousances. Rather than allowing steam to escape during cooking, the indented lid of the Doufeu is filled with cold water or ice cubes before cooking. This cools down the lid so that when steam from the cooking food comes into contact with it, liquid condenses back into the casserole. Small elevations on the inside of the lid collects the droplets and ensure even sprinkling of the liquid across the food. Although primarily designed for use on the top of the cooker, the Doufeu can be used inside the oven.
^ Consumer Guide (1978), The Cook's Store: How to Buy and Use Gourmet Gadgets, Simon & Schuster, p. 60, The doufeu is a pot made of enameled cast iron and designed and manufactured in France by Cousances to recreate the traditional way of cooking. But instead of hot coals, one places ice cubes in the doufeu's concave lid while the pot simmers on the stove. The ice helps steam to collect on the underside of the lid and drop back into the pot to baste the meat. The weight and thickness of the pot's cast iron construction promote even heating and retention ; the tight - fitting lid minimizes evaporation. To Use: Brown meat or poultry in the doufeu. Add a small amount of liquid and the seasonings. Place lid filled with ice on casserole. Simmer over low heat on top of stove.
^ Wikipedia France

External links

Description at Le Creuset website

[french-provincial-cooking-1] David, Elizabeth (1999) [1964], French Provincial Cooking, Foreword by Julia Child, Penguin Books, pp. 47–48, ISBN 978-1-101-50123-8, from the 1983 editon: French vitrous-enamelled cast-iron pots, made by the famous firms of Le Creuset and Andre of Cousances, are now imported in quantity and in a large range of sizes and shapes. They are widely distributed.

[hesse-penguin-guide-2] Hesse, Georgia (1988), The Penguin Guide to France 1989, Penguin Books, p. 151, Across the street , at 48 , rue Montmartre , is A. Simon's kitchenware annex , where a stock of Sabatier and Tour Eiffel knives and Cousances and Le Creuset enameled cast - iron cookware await the would be kitchen wizard

[narins-cast-iron-cousances-3] Narins, Rachel (2019), Cast Iron: The Ultimate Cookbook, Kennebunkport, Maine: Ceder Mill Press Book Publishers, p. 745, ISBN 978-1-60433-888-1, Cousances – Originally a foundry in northern France, Cousances began production in 1553. The historic company existed for centuries before it was purchased by Le Creuset in 1957. The company still sporadically reissues some fo the Cousances line in limited editions that are available online or at select retail outlets.

[home-economics-cousances-4] Home Economics, vol. 26, Forbes, 1980, p. 27, An unusual buy in casserole dishes is the Doufeu, a practical design from the French cast iron cookware company, Cousances. Rather than allowing steam to escape during cooking, the indented lid of the Doufeu is filled with cold water or ice cubes before cooking. This cools down the lid so that when steam from the cooking food comes into contact with it, liquid condenses back into the casserole. Small elevations on the inside of the lid collects the droplets and ensure even sprinkling of the liquid across the food. Although primarily designed for use on the top of the cooker, the Doufeu can be used inside the oven.

[doufeu-consumer-guide-5] Consumer Guide (1978), The Cook's Store: How to Buy and Use Gourmet Gadgets, Simon & Schuster, p. 60, The doufeu is a pot made of enameled cast iron and designed and manufactured in France by Cousances to recreate the traditional way of cooking. But instead of hot coals, one places ice cubes in the doufeu's concave lid while the pot simmers on the stove. The ice helps steam to collect on the underside of the lid and drop back into the pot to baste the meat. The weight and thickness of the pot's cast iron construction promote even heating and retention ; the tight - fitting lid minimizes evaporation. To Use: Brown meat or poultry in the doufeu. Add a small amount of liquid and the seasonings. Place lid filled with ice on casserole. Simmer over low heat on top of stove.

[6] Wikipedia France

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]