4 ms·

> Not modern electric ones. I cook a lot, and I moved from a kitchen with a modern electric range, to a gas one... and it was a definite downgrade. My only con

> Not modern electric ones. I cook a lot, and I moved from a kitchen with a modern electric range, to a gas one... and it was a definite downgrade. My only concern is how well a wok will heat up on induction. Gas has the benefit of wrapping around the wok, I worry that induction won't do that. :/ I hate the smooth glass electric stoves, if a pan is even slightly warped it won't work. I've waited 20+ minutes for a pot of water to boil on an electric glass top because the pot had a slight bow to it so only a tiny fraction sat on the actual stove. Also the last glass top I had got messed up the first time a sugary liquid over boiled and spilled on it. Never could get it looking brand new again (and most glass tops I've seen have stains, even after being vigorously cleaned by professionals!)

crazygringo 6y ago
Yes, if you cook seriously with a wok, then gas is an absolute must. But then even a normal gas range won't work -- you need one that will output the insane-sized heat that is required for a true stir-fry. Of course, not many people go to those lengths... :) As for warped pans, I never had that problem -- all my stuff is thick stainless steel-clad pots and pans. That's interesting though, it makes sense -- it would need full contact for effective heat transfer.
- com2kid 6y ago
  > As for warped pans, I never had that problem -- all my stuff is thick stainless steel-clad pots and pans. College, I had thin aluminium because I was broke. Everything was warped. Thinner non-stick pans also warp really easily. Thicker pots and pans take longer to heat up, sometimes a lot longer. e.g. My 1.5q pot can take over 10 minutes to boil water. Making hard boiled eggs is annoying, to say the least. (I'm using gas, and one of my back burners is too weak to even boil water in my thick 3 layer pots...)
  - crazygringo 6y ago
    Huh! I never thought of that, about boiling time. I wouldn't think it would make a huge difference, since the weight of the pot is a relatively small proportion of the weight of the water. Turns out someone tested it: https://www.centurylife.org/what-kind-of-pot-boils-water-fastest-all-clad-disc-base-copper/ https://www.centurylife.org/what-kind-of-pot-boils-water-fas... And the aluminum wins over steel-clad by 30 seconds, when heating two liters of water. If you're seeing much larger differences, perhaps it's more to do with the pot diameter or something? Or if you're heating very small amounts of water?
    - com2kid 6y ago
      > If you're seeing much larger differences, perhaps it's more to do with the pot diameter or something? Small diameter pot, large gas flame. The flame doesn't hit the bottom of the pot at all. I can heat up 2x the water in my pot that has 2x the diameter in less time. Sucks. The old fashion type of electric burner in that article is my 2nd favorite, great contact with almost any type of pot or pan put down on it. The best pot I ever had for heating water was of the dollar store variety. It was pretty much the minimal vessel needed to just hold the water. Wider diameter pots of course work best, assuming a lid is put on. More bottom surface area to transfer heat to the water.
ClumsyPilot 6y ago
> "I hate the smooth glass electric stoves, if a pan is even slightly warped it won't work." I had this issue and ended up replacing my set of cheap and cheerfull, thin-ish and slightly warped pans with heavy, thick stainless steel ones that hopefully don't have a tendency to warp. So far so good.
- com2kid 6y ago
  > I had this issue and ended up replacing my set of cheap and cheerfull, thin-ish and slightly warped pans with heavy, thick stainless steel ones that hopefully don't have a tendency to warp. So far so good. Gah, same, but now my triple clad stainless steel -> copper -> stainless steel pot takes forever to heat up because of how thick it is. I bought an electric kettle for tea but that doesn't help keep noodles from taking 16 minutes to make, the first 10 of which is boiling the water. Now I am using gas, so my next purchase is going to be another cheap thin pot that heats up before the rest of dinner is done.

crazygringo 6y ago

Yes, if you cook seriously with a wok, then gas is an absolute must. But then even a normal gas range won't work -- you need one that will output the insane-sized heat that is required for a true stir-fry. Of course, not many people go to those lengths... :) As for warped pans, I never had that problem -- all my stuff is thick stainless steel-clad pots and pans. That's interesting though, it makes sense -- it would need full contact for effective heat transfer.

com2kid 6y ago
> As for warped pans, I never had that problem -- all my stuff is thick stainless steel-clad pots and pans. College, I had thin aluminium because I was broke. Everything was warped. Thinner non-stick pans also warp really easily. Thicker pots and pans take longer to heat up, sometimes a lot longer. e.g. My 1.5q pot can take over 10 minutes to boil water. Making hard boiled eggs is annoying, to say the least. (I'm using gas, and one of my back burners is too weak to even boil water in my thick 3 layer pots...)
- crazygringo 6y ago
  Huh! I never thought of that, about boiling time. I wouldn't think it would make a huge difference, since the weight of the pot is a relatively small proportion of the weight of the water. Turns out someone tested it: https://www.centurylife.org/what-kind-of-pot-boils-water-fastest-all-clad-disc-base-copper/ https://www.centurylife.org/what-kind-of-pot-boils-water-fas... And the aluminum wins over steel-clad by 30 seconds, when heating two liters of water. If you're seeing much larger differences, perhaps it's more to do with the pot diameter or something? Or if you're heating very small amounts of water?
  - com2kid 6y ago
    > If you're seeing much larger differences, perhaps it's more to do with the pot diameter or something? Small diameter pot, large gas flame. The flame doesn't hit the bottom of the pot at all. I can heat up 2x the water in my pot that has 2x the diameter in less time. Sucks. The old fashion type of electric burner in that article is my 2nd favorite, great contact with almost any type of pot or pan put down on it. The best pot I ever had for heating water was of the dollar store variety. It was pretty much the minimal vessel needed to just hold the water. Wider diameter pots of course work best, assuming a lid is put on. More bottom surface area to transfer heat to the water.

ClumsyPilot 6y ago

> "I hate the smooth glass electric stoves, if a pan is even slightly warped it won't work." I had this issue and ended up replacing my set of cheap and cheerfull, thin-ish and slightly warped pans with heavy, thick stainless steel ones that hopefully don't have a tendency to warp. So far so good.

com2kid 6y ago
> I had this issue and ended up replacing my set of cheap and cheerfull, thin-ish and slightly warped pans with heavy, thick stainless steel ones that hopefully don't have a tendency to warp. So far so good. Gah, same, but now my triple clad stainless steel -> copper -> stainless steel pot takes forever to heat up because of how thick it is. I bought an electric kettle for tea but that doesn't help keep noodles from taking 16 minutes to make, the first 10 of which is boiling the water. Now I am using gas, so my next purchase is going to be another cheap thin pot that heats up before the rest of dinner is done.