Can’t Stand the Heat? Don’t Leave the Kitchen, Try an Induction Cooktop!

Published by Green by Design under Kitchen

These days the best chefs are likely to do something that looks crazy: they’ll turn a stove burner up to high and stick their hand right on the surface of the cooktop!

Ah, but it’s all for the sake of love. And this stunt isn’t done with just any random Wolf or Amana. Many top-flight chefs de cuisine are amorous (in a professional way) about induction cooktops. Not only can you put your bare hand directly onto an induction burner and not be harmed, but you can also cook meals faster, more safely and more fuel-efficiently than is possible to do using stoves fired by gas or electricity.

What’s so special about it? Typical electric stoves create heat by converting electric energy to heat energy by resisting the free flow of electric current. But owing to the wonder of electromagnets, on an induction cooktop the cookware — saucepot, frypan, Dutch oven or Chinese wok — becomes the heat source itself. This is topsy-turvy to the notion of the way the traditional burner operates.

As long as the cookware can conduct magnetic energy — this admittedly cuts out  aluminum, tempered glass and certain other cookware materials — it will work on an induction cooktop.

Since the induction method performs without open flames or hot burners, burn accidents are minimized. Grease fires? Fuggedaboutit; it’s not even possible. In summer months, that sauna we call a kitchen stays much cooler when the induction method is used.

Induction is the most efficient method known today. Induction cooktops are up to 90% efficient, meaning that an extremely minuscule portion of the energy they produce is wasted; most of it goes to cooking food, not to warming the kitchen ceiling. And that in turn means induction tops offer a generous improvement over the efficiency of gas at 40% or electric stoves at around 70%.

The amount of energy used in preparing meals with an induction cooktop is proportional to the size and thickness of the specific cookware utilized in cooking. With the induction method, you can cut conventional cooking times in half; boil water in as little as three minutes. And because heat adjustment with the induction method is instantaneous, cooking becomes easier. No wonder so many chefs are smiling!

Slim and space-saving, induction cooktops are ideal for small spaces and special-needs designs. Their sleek minimalist appearance will appeal to your aesthetic sensibilities. And because induction cooktops are baby’s-bottom smooth (at least, relative to a cast-iron burner or griddle), they are a breeze to clean.

There are some potential drawbacks (which can be overcome): To cook with induction, your kitchen needs to be wired for 220 volts, and if you’ve been using glass, copper or aluminum cooking vessels, they won’t work with the induction top’s magnetic element. Steel or iron-based pots and pans are required. Testing your current cookware is a piece of cake; if a magnet sticks to it, you can induction-cook with it.

With prices ranging from about $300 for a single element to as much as $4000 for a quad-element,  it’s possible to find something to fit your budgetary needs – remember, induction-cooking also saves you time and energy.

Check out the SINC1-110 by SUMMIT for a single-element unit it’s a great way to test out the technology without breaking the bank – although you should be advised that residual heating is a feature of this cooktop.

Or if you’re sure you’ll need at least two elements (and really, who doesn’t?), Diva makes a nice dual-element induction cooktop that allows your wallet to maintain its preferred profile. Now go put on your tall white toque, look in the mirror and smile. Just like Emeril! Bam!!

The Summit Two Zone Built-In Induction Cooktop (model: SINC2220, approx: $479) is a two zone, smooth-top, built-in cooktop. It cooks in as little as half the time, and can use half the energy of conventional electric smooth-tops or coil elements. It features genuine Ceran black glass with a beveled edge, and has 3100 watts of power (one 1800 watt power zone, and one 1300 watt conventional zone). Other features include 8 variable power settings, touch controls, timer settings and digital displays. Safety features include a child lock, an automatic safety switch off and a residual heat indicator. It also has easy clean up and an elegant black finish!