new kitchen: gas or induction hob?
Discussion
Having the kitchen redone soon and wondering what induction hobs are _really_ like to cook on?
All the info/marketing suggests they should be brilliant - extremely controllable, instant heat, plus the big ones are just a large zone and you can put the pans anywhere, however I was wondering what they're like to use 'for real'.
Got a massive 6-ring Smeg gas hob at the moment which has been brilliant so really wondering if anyone has made the switch and if you're happy or have regretted it...
kryten said:
What I don't know is what the problems with Induction are - obviously the marketing types don't tell you those...
Only some pans etc work (i.e all the copper bottomed and ali stuff doesn't). They're also quite deep so you have to leave a fair amount of room under where they're fitted. And they need cool air under there as well (most have fans in).Gas hob went in the skip, shiny new induction hob fitted.
Brilliant.
Instantly controllable
No heat wasted up the sides
Each 'ring' has 20 power settings - I know that saute potatoes are perfect at 7.5
Take a pan off and the power stops - put it back on, power comes back on.
Each ring can be set by a timer to turn off or beep when ready - I can set the spuds to 12 mins and go watch TV.
Any stainless steel pans will do, you don't need expensive designer ones.
Very easy to clean
No sticky-up bits so you can put stuff on it
To me now gas hobs look ugly and old-fashioned. In a way, gas is analogue, induction is digital
Brilliant.
Instantly controllable
No heat wasted up the sides
Each 'ring' has 20 power settings - I know that saute potatoes are perfect at 7.5
Take a pan off and the power stops - put it back on, power comes back on.
Each ring can be set by a timer to turn off or beep when ready - I can set the spuds to 12 mins and go watch TV.
Any stainless steel pans will do, you don't need expensive designer ones.
Very easy to clean
No sticky-up bits so you can put stuff on it
To me now gas hobs look ugly and old-fashioned. In a way, gas is analogue, induction is digital
Edited by Simpo Two on Tuesday 24th November 18:05
sleep envy said:
you pay a fortune for decent pans that you can use on an induction hob
No you don't. Cheap carbon steel pans are very, very good and are a perfect match for induction. And pretty much any stainless steel saucepan will work fine too. Personally, I reckon I would go for induction if I were in the market for a new hob. The only proviso being that it would need to have nice, intuitive controls (preferably knobs). A few that I've used have had complicated touch-sensitive buttons that make it hard to control things quickly and easily. The main thing I don't like about gas is that it is difficult to simmer on - I find it doesn't perform so well at lower temperatures.
uncinqsix said:
sleep envy said:
you pay a fortune for decent pans that you can use on an induction hob
No you don't. Cheap carbon steel pans are very, very good and are a perfect match for induction. And pretty much any stainless steel saucepan will work fine too. sleep envy said:
uncinqsix said:
sleep envy said:
you pay a fortune for decent pans that you can use on an induction hob
No you don't. Cheap carbon steel pans are very, very good and are a perfect match for induction. And pretty much any stainless steel saucepan will work fine too. A lot of mid-ranged "copper bottomed" pans have a substantial layer of ferritic stainless in the base and will work fine on induction. Solid copper is very good and won't work on induction, but is is massively expensive so you end up paying a fortune anyway.
Another vote here for induction. Binned my old gas hob and blanked the suppy off at the T junction for the fire.
It's very, very controllable. For example, for pasta, I stick mine on boost, the water is boiling in about 40 secs. Drop it down to 7 and stick the timer on, perfect pasta every time.
Because there is no flame run-off up the edges, I know the rim of the pan won't be hot and can lift it up to drain.
If something should overboil, it switches off and beeps to warn me.
Contrary to the adverts, the glass does actually get hot, but only in a localised area and a lot less than the area around a gas / ceramic hob plus it cools down really quickly too.
It's Easy to clean, being one flat sheet of glass and it looks quite good too.
We cooked dinner for my mum the other day at her house on her gas hob and the mrs said "Look, I'm cooking on a fire, it's just like camping".
It's very, very controllable. For example, for pasta, I stick mine on boost, the water is boiling in about 40 secs. Drop it down to 7 and stick the timer on, perfect pasta every time.
Because there is no flame run-off up the edges, I know the rim of the pan won't be hot and can lift it up to drain.
If something should overboil, it switches off and beeps to warn me.
Contrary to the adverts, the glass does actually get hot, but only in a localised area and a lot less than the area around a gas / ceramic hob plus it cools down really quickly too.
It's Easy to clean, being one flat sheet of glass and it looks quite good too.
We cooked dinner for my mum the other day at her house on her gas hob and the mrs said "Look, I'm cooking on a fire, it's just like camping".
sleep envy said:
uncinqsix said:
sleep envy said:
you pay a fortune for decent pans that you can use on an induction hob
No you don't. Cheap carbon steel pans are very, very good and are a perfect match for induction. And pretty much any stainless steel saucepan will work fine too. Two saucepans and a casserole/frying pan - £25 from Homebase
Possibly the reason that TV shows still use gas is that the majority of people/celebs/guests find it easier to understand.
We have gas at present but when we do our kitchen I shall be venturing in to the world of induction.
My partner's parents have it and on boost it will boil a litre of water in under a minute. With my gas and pans you'd be waiting 5.
Instantly controllable, more efficient and easier to clean.
Why not look at having both?
My partner's parents have it and on boost it will boil a litre of water in under a minute. With my gas and pans you'd be waiting 5.
Instantly controllable, more efficient and easier to clean.
Why not look at having both?
Simpo Two said:
sleep envy said:
uncinqsix said:
sleep envy said:
you pay a fortune for decent pans that you can use on an induction hob
No you don't. Cheap carbon steel pans are very, very good and are a perfect match for induction. And pretty much any stainless steel saucepan will work fine too. sleep envy said:
Simpo Two said:
sleep envy said:
uncinqsix said:
sleep envy said:
you pay a fortune for decent pans that you can use on an induction hob
No you don't. Cheap carbon steel pans are very, very good and are a perfect match for induction. And pretty much any stainless steel saucepan will work fine too. Gassing Station | Food, Drink & Restaurants | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff