The drawback to induction for me is it is the pot itself that cooks the food, which is why it is fast, but it is really easy to burn the crap out of stuff, it took me a while to realise an induction cooker is the equivalent of pouring pasta sauce directly onto the element of an old coil cooker. I have always relied on the pot to disperse and moderate the heat as much as keep the liquids in.
I actually prefer coil ranges to this as at least with them I can hold my hand over the element and get a sense of how hot it is, with induction you have no choice but to gauge the tempreture by its effect on the food, which for alot of things is too late.
Last edited by afc wimbledon; 10-30-2011 at 03:51 PM.
I have gas, thinking of getting something else, because cleaning the gas one is a pain in the ass. The cleaning of that thing is what intrigues me?
How much more are they?
Well for the freestanding there's quite a price premium. The one I have my eye on, a GE Profile PHB925SPSS has an MSRP of $2800. There are less expensive options, but the main problem is induction cooktops are much more prevalent than freestanding ranges.
Gas isn't an option for my place. I've cooked on coil-tops all my life so I'm looking forward to something better.
I was quite interested if afc's comments, about the first negative comments I've seen regarding induction technology. I gather we will have a learning curve on what temperature setting to use for various meals. But if I understand correctly, once we learn that setting the element to '3' works well for frying an egg, then '3' will always be the same temperature forever more - no more tweaking the knob up or down.
Anyway, in taking the 'temperature' of the thread it looks like most people who've used induction cooking is in 'flavour.' I appreciate everyone's input.
Last edited by BloodFetish; 10-30-2011 at 04:02 PM.
Reason: couldn't pass up a stupid pun...
Had a Bosch dishwasher, washer and dryer for about 7 years. Never had a single issue. All three were top notch.
It depends on the model. The top of the line Bosch stuff is still fantastic. The other stuff, that Bosch just licences its name to, and is sold at the Brick is crap. Although it has made Bosch very profitable, its reputation has taken a huge hit because of these inferior products.
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The drawback to induction for me is it is the pot itself that cooks the food, which is why it is fast, but it is really easy to burn the crap out of stuff, it took me a while to realise an induction cooker is the equivalent of pouring pasta sauce directly onto the element of an old coil cooker. I have always relied on the pot to disperse and moderate the heat as much as keep the liquids in.
I actually prefer coil ranges to this as at least with them I can hold my hand over the element and get a sense of how hot it is, with induction you have no choice but to gauge the tempreture by its effect on the food, which for alot of things is too late.
Try switching to different cookware. A cast iron pan will naturally distribute heat evenly. A wok will allow different temperature zones, etc.
I have an induction cooktop, the 6 burner Viking Professional series. I have had mine for almost 3 years now, since we remodelled our house. This is exactly what mine looks like.
As others have mentioned, induction is not new, it has been in Europe for ages. That is why most cookware in Ikea is induction compatible.
Any pot or pan that a magnet will stick to is induction compatible. That of course will automatically include any regular or enamelled cast iron, the old fashioned speckled enamel roasters, carbon steel woks, and the like. Stainless steel is made induction compatible with an encapsulated base that includes some magnetic material. You can also make your cookware induction compatible by purchasing magnetic discs that you can put on top the induction burner and then put your cookware on top of the disc. Outside of some large stock pans, all of my cookware was already induction compatible so I never had to buy a bunch of new cookware when I got my induction cooktop. If you want to do an extra low simmer, you can put a silicone pad on top the induction burner and then put the cookware on top of the silicone pad. Ikea sells those. I have some and here is why they are nice, not just for simmering. They are magnetic as well, and will stick to the bottom of the the pot or pan you are using. That means you can take the pot that is hot, put it on the silicone disc which will stick to the pot, and put that right on your table for serving. The silicone pad will protect the table.
You can put your hand on the surface of the induction burner and turn it on and nothing will happen, unless you would be wearing some ring that might be magnetic and would transfer the heat. The only way the glass top actually heats up is from the heat on the bottom of the pot, not from the actual induction burner. However, this is nothing like the heat from a radiant cooktop. So...if you were not mindful when cooking and something boiled over, no problemo. The glass cooktop will mostly be cool except perhaps where the bottom of the pot was. You can simply take any towel or cloth and wipe the mess up. That cloth will not get hot or start on fire. That also means that if something does boil over, it will not burn and get crusty and be hard to remove from the glass cooktop. To clean my cooktop, I first wash it with a fairly wet soapy dishcloth. Then I rinse that off with a dishcloth that has been rinsed and is no longer soapy. Then I just dry it with a dish towel and it is sparkling clean. In three years, I have maybe had to use a dab of glass cooktop cleaner 5 times? And that is a dab about the size of the nail on my pinkie finger. I have never had to scrape my glasstop and it is like new, not one scratch.
Nothing is as energy efficient as induction cooking, in fact most claim that it is at least 60% more efficient than other types of cooking units. Only the part of the induction burner that the pot actually covers and touches is used. My cooktop shows pot sizes within the induction burner surface....so the burner has 3 sort of rings of various sizes. Those rings show the best pot size for that burner. So if your pot only covers the small ring inside the burner, that is the only part of the induction burner that will actually be used. In other words, the only portion of the induction burner that will use energy is the portion that is covered by the base of the pot or pan that you are using.
Nothing heats faster than induction, nothing, period. No heat is radiated like with electric coils or gas, so pot handles do not heat up, the air around the cooktop remains cool, and therefore, so does the cook and the kitchen.
The whole range of heat you desire is so easy to adjust...I think each of my burners has something like 15 to 18 settings, but they are basically continuously variable. In one respect, it is exactly the same as gas or perhaps a bit better than gas. When you turn the heat off, it is instant off, since the glass portion of the cooktop is not radiant. With gas, the metal grates could perhaps hold a bit of residual heat. Simmering is also one of the fortes of induction cooking...I should perhaps clarify that by saying it is with my cooktop since I have one from the professional series.
What should you look for in an induction cooktop?
Number one thing should be that each induction burner operates independently and is on its own circuit. Otherwise, what happens with some units, is when you are drawing extra power, for say wok cooking, it will draw that power from another burner that you might be using, and then that one will power down. Also, check what the watt rating is for each burner and see if it suits your needs. I have 6 burners. Left front is 8” 3,700 watt boost, 2300 watts. Left rear is 6” 1,400 watts. Center front and center rear are both 7” 1,850 watts. Right front is 6” 1,400 watts. Right rear is 8” 3,300 watt boost/2,300 watts.
Number two, you will require a 50 to 60 amp service so that will probably be an extra electrical cost. You should also instal a surge protector right in that electrical line as well.
Number three, keep in mind that you need around 6 inches of dead space and air below the unit. That was not a problem for me. I have my cooktop mounted in my island which is 5' x 5' and below it, I have storage for my larger cookware and saute pans. I could have put my oven below the cooktop as well but I wanted the oven in a different place.
Number four, they are not cheap. Mine set me back over $5 grand...but I absolutely love it and would never go back to anything else. I will clarify that by saying I have had a coil unit by Thermador which I absolutely loved and a professional gas unit that I absolutely hated...in fact, it lasted about 2 months, out it went, and in went the induction unit.
Number five, you should have a good quality set of cookware, with flat bottoms. Flat bottoms are essential with induction cooking. If your cookware is not induction compatible, you will have to factor in the cost of some new cookware as well.
Used an induction range for a couple years cooking in a restaurant. Love them. Never even considered getting one in my house, but that would be pretty sweet. They're so fast.
The drawback to induction for me is it is the pot itself that cooks the food, which is why it is fast, but it is really easy to burn the crap out of stuff, it took me a while to realise an induction cooker is the equivalent of pouring pasta sauce directly onto the element of an old coil cooker. I have always relied on the pot to disperse and moderate the heat as much as keep the liquids in.
I actually prefer coil ranges to this as at least with them I can hold my hand over the element and get a sense of how hot it is, with induction you have no choice but to gauge the tempreture by its effect on the food, which for alot of things is too late.
That is why you need a good set of cookware, with heavy bases. You get better cookware by going to places that supply restaurants with their cookware. Not only will the quality of the cookware be better, it is usually cheaper than buying at places like the Bay, Sears, and the like. Also, they sell cookware individually, so you get what you want, not what comes with the set.
The quality of the induction cooktop is what will determine how it performs. That is no different than with any other cooking unit. A lot of early induction units were just about power. That is not the case now. Induction has as much range in their settings now and maybe more than other cooking units.
And as with any other appliance, when you get a new one, you have to practise a bit with it to know how it performs. Induction units are like gas units, each burner has a different watt rating and it is imperative that you match the type of food you are cooking with the right burner and with the right cookware.
Last edited by redforever; 10-31-2011 at 12:52 AM.
These are apparently big in Japan. My friend talks about them alot. You can stick your hand on a hot stove and not feel anything. Put anything metal on it, and it will get red hot.
Not true. If the material is not something a magnet will stick to, nothing will happen at all. So put on an aluminum pot, you will be standing there till hell freezes over before you cook any food in that pot.
And induction units do not get red hot. Radiant ranges do though.
Induction units sound great. However I cannot argue for or against them as I have never used one. I would like to try.
I will agree that cookware/pans hold a big difference. And by extrapolation I would assume any fancy range will probably get ruined by a 20 dollar pan.
Induction units sound great. However I cannot argue for or against them as I have never used one. I would like to try.
I will agree that cookware/pans hold a big difference. And by extrapolation I would assume any fancy range will probably get ruined by a 20 dollar pan.
I dont see why the cheap pan would ruin the range. However, that cheap $20 pan will not hold up, no matter what kind of range you use, and food certainly will not cook the same in that cheap pan.
