Le Creuset

I use my enameled cast iron dutch oven for cooking stuff like curry or chili between baking batches of bread. The enamel washes up well without leaving any hint of whatever you cooked in it.

I have several Le Creuset  pots collected over the years - long before they got so expensive ! I use them for everything , from making marmalade, soups, stews, curries and baking bread ! Never had a problem.

good luck with your new purchase , Merlie.

I drop my ready-to-bake boules/batards onto a piece of parchment paper (large enough so I can easily lower it into the preheated pot and then take out the baked bread without burning my hands). Never stains my enameled pots and the transfer is so easy. The paper can be used mulitple times before it gets too brittle.

This also avoids any other flavours from your other cooking penetrating your breads.

Le Creuset and other similar pots are EASILY cleaned of those nasty stains:  place them in a plastic garbage bag into which you place an ammonia-soaked (nonsudsing, please) piece of crumpled newspaper.  Seal (knot, twist tied, whatever) the plastic bag and let sit for several days.  Open the bag, throw it and the newspaper away, and use water and a dampened sponge to rub off the now easily removed stains.  Voila!  Most, if not all, of those nasty stains come off easily.

my enameled dutch oven for more that baking.  I also use Parchment...I use it to line my pans for most everything these days....it definitely makes clean up a breeze from chicken to ribs, etc.

For cleaning if needed, I use bar keeper's friend which comes in both liquid and powder.  Its mild enough and doesn't scratch that I use it on my ceramic stove top as well.

I bought mine (24cm Le Creuset DO) and wil try it for bread. If you look at their manual... they say NEVER (capitalised) to heat it up empty or dry (they brush it with oil in their bread recipe)... and put the bread with the cold casserole dish in the pre heated oven... Now this goes against everyone's experience with bread baking in a dutch oven (where you heat up the pot till it is blazing hot)... is the Le Creuset different in any way as opposed to other manufacturers ? (like Lodge for ex)....

I haven't tried any special chemical cleaning, but my LC is definitely worn from bread baking.  Dark splotches now cover the bottom, which I cannot remove with soap and elbow grease.  I've recently switched to a combo cooker and I'm much happier. They are far less expensive, more appropriately sized for your average boule, and I don't worry about ruining it.