Yellow Dansk Kobenstyle Sauce Pot by Jens Quistgaard

As I mentioned in my very first post, I am intrigued and look for the odd or rare mid-century modern item. In this case I managed to find this Kobenstyle sauce pot for a paltry $3.53 at Goodwill. I already have a few other pieces, including two large and one medium dutch ovens (red, yellow and turquoise) and a large yellow paella pot (really more of a covered skillet only I don't have the lid) so this was a welcome addition, and the first such that I've found at Goodwill (the others were found at yard sales or flea markets). The bottom is marked Dansk Designs France and IHQ. The handle is turned teak. This is one of the better condition pots I've come across - they usually are chipped up a bit as the enamel can be quite fragile.

Dansk produced the Kobenstyle line starting some time in the 50's and continuing into the 80's - the later versions I've seen have black/dark gray bottoms instead of having the enamel continuing round the bottom of hte pot. The line was designed by Jens Quistgaard (his mark is the "IHQ" that appears on some pots) and had some interesting innovations - the lids could easily be lifted using the handle of a kitchen tool - also, due to the cross-design the pots were easy to stack. Contrary to popular belief,  Dansk International Designs Ltd is and always has been an American company. Dansk was founded in 1954 by Ted Nierenberg (an American entrepreneur), with is partner Jens Harald Quistgaard, a Danish designer. Apparently over the course of 30 years Quistgaard designed most of the company's products. Some products are still being offered - a few years I purchased an updated version of these pots (the handles are hollow and rounded, but the pots are the same shape - couldn't resist the red!), and this past Christmas Crate and Barrel offered some Dansk-marked pepper mills and serving bowls. You can also find other items for sale on dansk.com.

Regarding enamelware - as I mentioned, it's quite fragile and should not be handled like a regular steel pot (it's basically glass applied to metal and the edges in particular are quite delicate). You should not use metal utensils (I prefer the wooden spoon myself) and avoid holding bright sauces in the pots for extensive periods (tomato sauce especially!). I haven't tried this method, but reportedly you can boil the whole pot in a larger pot filled with water and a bit of baking soda for 10 minutes fully submerged. Afterward scrub with a nylon scrubbie and the stains are supposed to come right out. You then apply some white vinegar to the finish and buff out back to an enamel shine. I've read that those were also the instructions provided by Dansk for the care of these pots.

I hope you enjoyed this one as much as I did researching it - John