An induction cooktop or range is simply an electromagnet you can cook with! Conventional ranges use a “burner” coil under the ceramic top that gets hot and heats the pot or pan by radiant heat transfer. The burners get hot, and that heat directly transfers to the cooking utensil through contact. Pans on conventional ranges, take a while to get hot, and a bit to cool off. Conventional hot elements also pulse on and off, making it difficult to control temperature precisely.
In an Induction top, there are copper wire coils under the ceramic top that replace the conventional “burners.” They create a magnetic field as the current is passed through them, the magnetic field produces heat instantly by exciting the molecules in the steel pots and pans. The varying strength of the magnetic fields controls the heat. Induction provides the same precise control as cooking with gas, adjusting the flame to control the heat to the pan.
Induction cooking requires that the pots and pans be electrically conductive, like steel and cast iron. You can’t cook on an induction top with glass or aluminum pans as they are not conducive.
A simple test for the compatibility of your existing cookware is to do a magnet test. If a magnet sticks to the pan, they will work with Induction. Cookware manufacturers now indicate “induction compatible” on new individual pieces and sets of cookware.
Induction cooking is FAST! There is a bit of a learning curve at the beginning. Start at lower temperature settings than you would have with your old range so as not to burn your food. Induction speed is impressive, think of boiling a pot of water in about a minute and a half!
Induction tops still get hot, but the heat comes from heat transferred from the pan and is not as hot as a conventional cooktop. It is still a good idea to keep fingers away from the top surface until it cools. There are fans under the cooktop surface to help keep things cool.
The bonus feature associated with induction cooking is in saying goodbye to starch boil-overs that can leave permanent marks etched into the ceramic top on a traditional range.
Induction tops and ranges have the built-in safety of not being electrically active unless a pot or pan is on the element, and most require that 60-70 percent of the cooking area be covered before they will turn on.
The newest development in induction technology is cooktops that have a “cook anywhere” surface. Pots and pans can be placed anywhere on the top and are detected automatically on the cooking surface. A small touch screen controls temperatures on the cooktop, making it easy to select each pot or pan individually, and a slider to increase or decrease the energy to the pan for precise temperature control.
First introduced at the Worlds’ Fair in Chicago in 1933, induction cooking has grown in popularity, and now make up about 8% in market share for cooktops and ranges. This number is on a steady upward curve as more cooks discover the joy of induction cooking.
Come in and take the first step in getting excited about cooking all over again.