What sucks, is I can’t afford a comparable induction range that cooks as well, and quickly, as gas. Unless I can get some sort of rebate, buying a new range is out of the question.
If you’re not commonly using more than 1 or 2 heating elements at a time, portable induction cooktops are significantly less expensive than an entire induction stovetop ($50-60 each). I wouldn’t want it as a permanent solution, but it works.
Just a warning for people that see this, generally you’re going to want to spend more like $150 because you want to make sure you get a unit that has true variable power and not duty cycles. If you get one with Duty Cycles you’re likely going to hate it because temperature control is going to be almost impossible unless what you want is full blast or almost nothing.
If the only thing you do is basically turn the stove on to high and that’s it then you won’t care but if you ever do anything that needs to hold a very specific temperature you are going to definitely want a unit that has a true variable power inverter so that it can actually change the power output instead of attempting to approximate that through Duty Cycles (turning on full blast then off in cycles)
This is also something you want to look for in a microwave.
It is something that is not very well documented for products either. The cheap ones without variable power obviously won’t advertise it but many of the ones that do have the capability also don’t advertise it well, or even at all for whatever reason. It makes a huge difference when trying to cook anything on any setting other than high.
I’ve been using a single-burner induction cooktop as my primary cooktop for over a year now, and it’s awesome. I very rarely need more than one burner, and have never needed more than two. Paying $50 for a cooktop vs $5000 for a range is a pretty easy choice.
I also have a large toaster oven and generally avoid any dishes that would require a full-size oven. That toaster oven was not cheap, though, unlike the induction cooktop.
I mean, a countertop plug-in model is only a few hundred bucks for the good ones with actual true variable power. And thanks to their insanely higher efficiency because they’re literally making the pot the heating element thus very little heat not going directly into the food those countertop models generally can boil water much faster than a gas range can even if it has the hyper burner or whatever your particular range marketing team decides to call it.
So you both use less power than a range, have better temperature control (as long as you get a unit with true variable power and not Duty Cycles) and faster heating speeds!
Just make sure it has true variable power, for whatever reason a lot of the full range tops only have Duty Cycles. I was originally looking for a range top but after tons of searching and only finding duty cycle models unless i spent like 3kI gave up and got the countertop ones instead
If you live in an area where you regularly have to worry about what’s for dinner if the power cuts, then gas stoves are probably not your biggest concern.
Damn my bad. I’m just saying that it’s better to prioritize public health issues like food insecurity and reliable electricity over gas stove emissions in areas of the world where funding or ability is limited. Didn’t think that was a privileged take.
Reliable electricity is going to be more difficult as electrical grid will strain and fail because of higher ambient temperature, thanks to climate change.
I’d rather spend $1000 on an induction than $500 for an inferior electric coil range. But either way, this has spurred me to save up money for an induction stove, so I can have a similar cooking experience to gas.
I believe gas stoves are included in the IRA rebates for replacing gas appliances with electric. That is, assuming you are in the US, meet the income requirements, and that they ever become available in your area.
If you are in Massachusetts, there’s a $500 mass save rebate for a new induction stove if you are replacing a gas stove. Take before and after pictures, and document everything because the process is a pain.
If you live in another state, there may be something specific to your state.
What sucks, is I can’t afford a comparable induction range that cooks as well, and quickly, as gas. Unless I can get some sort of rebate, buying a new range is out of the question.
If you’re not commonly using more than 1 or 2 heating elements at a time, portable induction cooktops are significantly less expensive than an entire induction stovetop ($50-60 each). I wouldn’t want it as a permanent solution, but it works.
Just a warning for people that see this, generally you’re going to want to spend more like $150 because you want to make sure you get a unit that has true variable power and not duty cycles. If you get one with Duty Cycles you’re likely going to hate it because temperature control is going to be almost impossible unless what you want is full blast or almost nothing.
If the only thing you do is basically turn the stove on to high and that’s it then you won’t care but if you ever do anything that needs to hold a very specific temperature you are going to definitely want a unit that has a true variable power inverter so that it can actually change the power output instead of attempting to approximate that through Duty Cycles (turning on full blast then off in cycles)
This is also something you want to look for in a microwave.
It is something that is not very well documented for products either. The cheap ones without variable power obviously won’t advertise it but many of the ones that do have the capability also don’t advertise it well, or even at all for whatever reason. It makes a huge difference when trying to cook anything on any setting other than high.
I’ve been using a single-burner induction cooktop as my primary cooktop for over a year now, and it’s awesome. I very rarely need more than one burner, and have never needed more than two. Paying $50 for a cooktop vs $5000 for a range is a pretty easy choice.
I also have a large toaster oven and generally avoid any dishes that would require a full-size oven. That toaster oven was not cheap, though, unlike the induction cooktop.
It is not just the range replacement, but also adding the electrical requirements.
This isn’t that big of an issue, but another one is that I have to replace almost all of my cookware because it’s not induction compatible.
I mean, a countertop plug-in model is only a few hundred bucks for the good ones with actual true variable power. And thanks to their insanely higher efficiency because they’re literally making the pot the heating element thus very little heat not going directly into the food those countertop models generally can boil water much faster than a gas range can even if it has the hyper burner or whatever your particular range marketing team decides to call it.
So you both use less power than a range, have better temperature control (as long as you get a unit with true variable power and not Duty Cycles) and faster heating speeds!
Related Technology connections time!
https://youtu.be/eUywI8YGy0Y
There’s a Fridgidare that costs ~$1000. So, if I’m gonna spend a few hundred, I might as well get that and make payments.
Just make sure it has true variable power, for whatever reason a lot of the full range tops only have Duty Cycles. I was originally looking for a range top but after tons of searching and only finding duty cycle models unless i spent like 3kI gave up and got the countertop ones instead
Induction doesn’t work in case of powercut either.
If you live in an area where you regularly have to worry about what’s for dinner if the power cuts, then gas stoves are probably not your biggest concern.
Shove your privilege where the sunlight doesn’t shine.
Damn my bad. I’m just saying that it’s better to prioritize public health issues like food insecurity and reliable electricity over gas stove emissions in areas of the world where funding or ability is limited. Didn’t think that was a privileged take.
Reliable electricity is going to be more difficult as electrical grid will strain and fail because of higher ambient temperature, thanks to climate change.
I’ve rarely needed to cook for my family of four in the event of an outage. I also have family nearby to head to in that case.
Or, y’know, just get a regular electric stove like we use in Europe?
Better for the enviroment as well as safer and healthier.
I’d rather spend $1000 on an induction than $500 for an inferior electric coil range. But either way, this has spurred me to save up money for an induction stove, so I can have a similar cooking experience to gas.
I believe gas stoves are included in the IRA rebates for replacing gas appliances with electric. That is, assuming you are in the US, meet the income requirements, and that they ever become available in your area.
If you are in Massachusetts, there’s a $500 mass save rebate for a new induction stove if you are replacing a gas stove. Take before and after pictures, and document everything because the process is a pain.
If you live in another state, there may be something specific to your state.
Alas, I live in the South where natty gas rebates roam wild.
Even the single burner ones? Some of the higher wattage ones seem like they really should cook pretty quickly