Gas or electric? Home cooks everywhere debate this age old question. They like the speed of electric, but the control and responsiveness of gas. But what if you could get all the good qualities of gas and electric cooking in one? Well you can. It’s called induction.
How Does Induction Work?
Instead of using an electric or gas-heated element, induction cooktops use electric currents to heat pots and pans directly through magnetic induction. If you want to get more technical, the electric current passes through a coiled copper wire under the cooking surface, creating the magnetic current. This only works with magnetic cookware, such as cast iron or stainless steel. To know if your cookware would work with induction, try sticking a magnet to the bottom.
Induction Cooktop Benefits
What do you lose with induction? All the wasteful energy loss. Cooking with induction is 70% more efficient than gas and 20% more efficient than electric. Because the heat is direct, your pots and pans heat up quicker. In fact, boiling is 50 percent faster with induction than electric cooktops. Home cooks appreciate the precise temperature control induction provides.
Cleanup is easier because spills don’t burn onto the surface. You can stick a hundred-dollar bill between an induction burner element and a pot of boiling water without worry. This also makes induction cooktops popular choices for kid- and pet-safe kitchens.
Due to its recent rise in popularity (induction has been around since the ’70s but only took off recently), brands now make induction ranges in addition to induction cooktops. We can’t wait to see more people delight in the ability to cook like they’re using gas without the cost and hassle of switching from electric.
Featured image via Frigidaire
The type of appliances installed in a home can be a huge selling point for perspective buyers. We build homes for a living and recently went to a meeting at one of appliance vendor’s showroom. They were introducing a new product line of commercial grade appliances featuring induction cook tops and hired some of the area’s top rated chiefs to demonstrate how the appliances work. After the demonstration they went over sales figures and showed that trends for upper end appliances were increasing due to the popularity of cooking shows. We agreed with the sales figures because many of our upper end homebuyers have been consistently requesting high-end commercial grade appliances installed in their homes. Long story short, invest in upper end appliances!
I can’t wait either – I find myself cringing a bit now when people want to put a huge honking stainless steel gas range in a new kitchen. I’m sure it won’t be long ’till they seem hopelesly old-fashioned
That’s just America, though, I think 🙂