A Casserole Dish is any dish deep enough to layer in the variety of ingredients in a standard casserole recipe. In inches, casseroles dishes are typically between 2 and 2 1/2 inches deep. What makes casserole dishes unique is they serve as both the baking dish and the serving dish. Straight from the oven to the table!
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What are Standard Size Casserole Dishes?
A casserole or hot dish usually comes in a 9″x 9″ size or a 9″ x 13″ oblong size. Each size has advantages depending on the type of casserole recipe you plan to use.
For the record, you can use them interchangeably, but if you use the longer oblong casserole dish, then the recipe cooks more quickly. That is due to the ingredients being more thinly layered in the dish.
If you want to portion them out for smaller families, try making them in two 2-quart dishes. Bake one now and freeze the other for later. Just adjust the cooking time.
Is a Casserole Dish the same as a Baking Dish?
A casserole dish is used pretty interchangeably with the term “baking dish”. However, there is subtle distinction to define each. At the end of the day though, nothing comes down to preventing using them for the same recipes.
Quite simply, a casserole dish offers the luxury of being prettier to look at. For good reason. Because a casserole dish also functions nicely as a serving dish.
Sure, you can serve a casserole made in a baking pan like a Dutch oven for example, but it doesn’t look as nice on the table as an enamel casserole dish.
What Are Casserole Pans Made Of?
These days, casserole pans come in a variety of materials. The most important quality is an even width and conducting heat efficiently. After that, then they come priced low to high depending on the type of material.
- Cast iron – The workhorse of casserole pans. A well seasoned cast iron casserole pan lasts multiple generations. Drawback is they weigh a ton.
- Pyrex – Not as pricy as enamel, but close. Easy to clean up and nice even heat distribution, but they also break much easier. You won’t ever break a cast iron casserole but you can crack a pyrex casserole easier than you think.
- Enamel – These tend to be pricier, but the easy clean up can make them so worth it in the long run.
- Tin – Old fashioned but still around just because they last forever and work great. Downside is they are harder to clean.
- Aluminum foil – Super cheap and disposable. Great for pot lucks where you don’t want to hassle with clean up afterwards.
My favorite casserole dishes have the following qualities:
- dishwasher safe, oven safe, broiler safe
- glass or ceramic for easy clean up
- are deep dish so they are versatile
What Is The Best Size For A Casserole Dish?
Whether you use a round cast iron pan for a casserole, use a 9″ x 9″, or a 9″ x 13″, it is handy to know what volume your casserole recipe makes.
The recipe will dictate the dish size but having a larger one on hand means you can make any of the recipes. Just adjust the baking time.
When reading the recipe and meal planning, you can choose to multiple 1 quart dishes, 2 quart dishes, or put it all in a 3 quart dish. Depending on how you are going to enjoy it later.
Depending on the size of the dish, the amount of servings can vary. The servings in a 9×13 will likely differ than an 8×8 pan, also depending on the type of recipe and the thickness of the finished meal.
Do Casserole Dishes Come With Lids?
Most casserole dishes these days do come with handy snap on plastic or heavy lids made of glass or metal. A lidded casserole comes in handy for storing leftovers, especially if you might need to freeze it for a while.
Get one with a lid if you have a choice.
If you know that your casserole or hot dish recipe will need to be covered while baking, you can’t go wrong with dutch ovens. Also called a casserole pot, I use my dutch ovens for soups mainly but I like them for a casserole too.
Favorite Casserole Dishes
- 8×8 baking dish
- 9×9 square dish
- 3 quart casserole dish
- 4 quart baking dish
- 2 Quart Dish with Lid
- 2.5 Quart Glass Oblong Baking Dish
If you love this recipe as much as I do, pin this to your favorite casserole Pinterest board and share it on your favorite social media channels!
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