I’ve found a stunning £40 buy that rivals Le Creuset at Wilko - this casserole dish is a dead ringer for one of the most summery colourways

Unless you’re new here, you’ll probably be well aware that here at Ideal Home, we dedicate a lot of time to finding the best affordable Le Creuset alternatives - and Wilko’s Kitchen Master 24cm Round Casserole Dish (£39.99) is the latest I’ve tracked down.

When it comes to the best cast iron cookware, it doesn’t get much better than Le Creuset. The French cookware brand is famed for its high-quality designs and beautiful colourways. But if your budget doesn’t quite stretch to Le Creuset, that doesn’t mean you should miss out on quality cookware.

Available in stylish blue, black and orange colourways, Wilko’s Kitchen Master round casserole dish looks just like its designer counterpart - and this is everything you need to know before you decide to invest in it.

The Kitchen Master 24cm Round Casserole Dish is perfect for soups, stews and slowcooking, making it a fantastic addition to any home chef’s kitchen. It also claims to have great heat retention so will keep your meals piping hot when transferring from stove to table.

Furthermore, with a capacity of 4.5L, its £39.99 price tag makes this dish great value for money, with its capability to feed the whole family and even have some left over. The dish can be used on the hob and is oven safe up to 240°c or gas mark 9. However, it isn’t dishwasher safe, so make sure to clean it with care.

Wilko’s rich blue shade looks incredibly stylish and would suit any of your kitchen ideas. It’s a close match to Le Creuset’s Azure shade, which is inspired by the Mediterranean sea - perfect if you’re looking to bring that summer holiday feeling to your kitchen.

While Le Creuset can rarely be beaten on quality, it is a once-in-a-lifetime investment, as shown by the brand’s lifetime guarantee. I’d say it’s a worthy investment, but with pots costing upwards of £200, you may not want to spend that amount right now and that is where knowing the best Le Creuset alternatives comes in handy.

As well as Wilko’s casserole dish, Habitat’s Cast Iron Casserole Dish (currently £23.33) is available in five different colourways and has hundreds of five-star reviews. And while slightly more expensive than Wilko, ProCook’s Cast Iron Casserole Dish (£65), is also one of Ideal Home’s best-rated cast iron dishes.

More Alternatives

Will you be testing Wilko’s casserole dish? Or do you think the original Le Creuset casserole dish cannot be beaten?