Cooking ultimately comes down to two simple goals: preparing delicious meals for your loved ones and making the process enjoyable for yourself. This naturally leads us to seek cookware that accomplishes both objectives.

Enameled cast iron cookware — from gorgeous Dutch ovens to versatile skillets and grill pans — stands out as one of the most exceptional tools in any home kitchen. These pieces combine the superb heat distribution of cast iron with a smooth, non-reactive enamel coating that prevents acidic ingredients like tomatoes, wine, and vinegar from interacting with the metal beneath. As a bonus, they often come in stunning colors that brighten your kitchen’s aesthetic.

But if you’ve invested in a modern glass cooktop, you might have concerns about using these beloved (and often expensive) pieces on its delicate surface. Let’s address this important compatibility question.

The Good News About Enameled Cast Iron on Glass

Unlike bare cast iron with its rough, porous bottom surface that can easily scratch glass-ceramic cooktops, enameled cast iron generally works beautifully on these smooth surfaces. The porcelain enamel coating creates a smooth base that’s much gentler on your stovetop.

Glass-ceramic cooktops are remarkably durable materials — tough, translucent, heat-resistant, and long-lasting. They’re manufactured through a specialized crystallization process that gives them their unique properties. However, despite their durability, they remain vulnerable to scratches from rough cookware.

Those scratches aren’t just cosmetic concerns. For many of us, those permanent marks on an otherwise pristine cooking surface can be genuinely frustrating — at least until we eventually get used to seeing them.

Enameled cookware eliminates this worry. Its smooth vitreous coating won’t scratch the glass-ceramic surface during normal use. That said, it’s still wise to lift rather than drag your cookware and avoid excessive movement during cooking.

Getting Your Money’s Worth

Quality enameled cast iron represents a significant investment. On the day of writing, a 7-quart Le Creuset Dutch oven averaged about $410 across major retailers. Le Creuset’s premium pricing reflects their exceptional quality standards — they reportedly discard numerous pieces that don’t meet their exacting criteria.

With such a substantial investment at stake, it’s perfectly reasonable to wonder whether using these pieces on a glass cooktop might damage the enamel coating. While enameled cookware generally performs well on glass cooktops, some simple precautions will help preserve both your cookware and stovetop.

Using Enameled Cast Iron on Glass Cooktops

Match Your Cookware to the Right-Sized Burner

Always select a heating zone that matches your cookware’s base size. When a burner is significantly larger or smaller than your pan’s bottom, uneven heating can cause the metal to expand and contract in ways that stress the enamel coating, potentially leading to chips or cracks over time.

Never Preheat Empty Pans

Unlike their bare cast iron cousins, enameled pieces should never be preheated empty. Always add a small amount of oil or butter before turning on the heat. An empty enameled vessel can reach extreme temperatures quickly, potentially damaging the enamel coating.

Avoid High Heat Settings

While traditional cast iron can handle virtually any temperature, enameled versions require more gentle treatment. Most manufacturers recommend keeping temperatures at medium-high or below. Excessive heat is the most common cause of enamel damage.

For reference, most enameled cast iron is oven-safe only to 400-450°F — significantly lower than bare cast iron’s limits. This same temperature sensitivity applies to stovetop cooking.

Prevent Liquids From Boiling Dry

Never allow liquids to completely evaporate in your enameled cookware. When this happens, temperatures can spike dramatically, potentially damaging the interior enamel coating and exposing the underlying cast iron.

While Cook’s Illustrated correctly notes that minor interior chips don’t render the cookware unusable (you’re just exposing the food-safe cast iron beneath), it’s still preferable to maintain the intact enamel surface.

Avoid Thermal Shock

Never place room-temperature enameled cookware directly onto a scorching-hot burner. This sudden temperature differential creates thermal shock that can crack or chip the enamel coating. Always heat enameled pieces gradually.

Debunking a Common Myth

You may have encountered online stories about enameled cookware melting and fusing with glass cooktops. Rest assured, this is virtually impossible under normal cooking conditions. Vitreous enamel melts at temperatures exceeding 1,000°F — far beyond what household cooktops can generate.

Neither cookware experts nor appliance engineers consider this a realistic concern. In decades of combined cooking experience with these materials, we’ve never witnessed or credibly heard of such an occurrence.

The Bottom Line

With proper care, enameled cast iron works beautifully on glass cooktops. The smooth enamel bottom won’t scratch your cooktop surface like bare cast iron might, and the cookware’s exceptional heat retention means your meals stay warm longer than with most alternatives.

By following these simple guidelines — matching burner sizes, avoiding empty preheating, keeping temperatures moderate, preventing boil-offs, and avoiding thermal shock — you’ll enjoy the benefits of this exceptional cookware while preserving both your glass cooktop and your investment in quality enameled pieces.

Your kitchen deserves both beauty and functionality. With enameled cast iron and your glass cooktop working in harmony, you’ll achieve exactly that.