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The article gets weird a few paragraphs in: people like cooking with gas because it's primal and sensual? Really? Is that the best you can come up with, in an N

The article gets weird a few paragraphs in: people like cooking with gas because it's primal and sensual? Really? Is that the best you can come up with, in an NYT article?

galangalalgol 5y ago
I like cooking with gas because when my power goes out I can use a match to boil water when the boil water orders go into effect because mains keep bursting. Also I can make smores when I don't feel like getting a fire going. I do have an induction plug in hot plate and for actually cooking its really quite good. It boils water faster than all but my 21k btu burner on just 110v, dumps no heat into the room, cools down when I lower the temp as fast as gas, and did I mention it dumps no heat into the room? As far as air quality taking anything above boiling temperatures inside is super bad for your lungs no matter how you do it. The NO isn't nearly as bad as the particulates created by searing or frying.
- axiolite 5y ago
  > when my power goes out I can use a match to boil water A generator is a small investment to fix this and many other problems, without causing indoor air pollution.
  - mmcgaha 5y ago
    Maybe we have a different opinion on what small is but to run a stove, you will need a whole house generator and the starting point is about $10k and most folks will end up spending twice that.
- worik 5y ago
  When I put a log burner in my house I choose one with a flat top for this reason. I get your point. But many things that cause electricity to go out (floods, earthquakes... Russian invasion) will put out the gas too
  - mattmaroon 5y ago
    I’m 41. I’ve had countless power outages in my life. 0 gas outages. I know it does happen but because the lines are buried it’s at least 2 orders of magnitude less likely.
  - cubix 5y ago
    > will put out the gas too Gas is obviously far more resilient, though not immune to more extreme problems. I’ve literally never experienced a gas outage, yet power outages are routine almost everywhere I’ve lived.
  - kwhitefoot 5y ago
    I don't have mains gas. My gas hob uses propane.
  - DebtDeflation 5y ago
    >many things that cause electricity to go out ... will put out the gas too IME, this is objectively false. I've lived in the Northeast my entire life (40+ years). We have on average 2-3 power failures lasting more than a few seconds per year. I have never in my life experienced a natural gas system failure. The pumps that pressurize the gas are themselves powered by gas, and the delivery is not in any way dependent on the power grid; also, as someone else stated, gas lines are buried well underground.
- cgriswald 5y ago
  I have a gas line to my grill outside. Induction inside.
comex 5y ago
> people like cooking with gas because it's primal and sensual? Really? Yes, really. I personally love the aesthetics of flames on the stove, and this might lead me to choose a gas stove over the alternatives despite minor downsides like being slower to bring water to a boil. On the other hand, the air quality issue seems like a much more significant downside, though I haven’t researched it much. (I haven’t personally ever had the opportunity to choose the type of stove for a place I’ll be living, so it hasn’t come up. Someday.)
- ghostpepper 5y ago
  Gas is also universally considered better to cook with than electric (not induction) which is presumably why every restaurant kitchen uses it. My guess is ‘sensuality’ is not even in the top five considerations when equipping a kitchen.
  - AussieWog93 5y ago
    When my wife and I were choosing rentals, the only thing I refused to compromise was a gas stove. At least in my case, it's entirely a sensual thing. There's a real joy in lighting the fire, feeling its warmth, making the flame larger and smaller with the knob, and the way it heats up the pan. I know a lot of older Greeks/Italians are the same way with their gas ovens. There's just something magical about it that turns your time in the kitchen from a chore into something you look forward to.
    - nwienert 5y ago
      Sensuals doing some work here though - that flame is sensual, but also gives immediate feedback over temperature/spread. You can lift your pan up and down to control heat over a gradient that radiates above over a larger distance. That lifting and moving of the pan alongside adjusting the flame and seeing it change immediately combines to give you a lot of control. So sensual, yes. A lot more intuitive and powerful, too. Metal slats are also nicer to hit your a pan against than flat glass for a variety of useful/sensual reasons.
  - 5y ago
neuralRiot 5y ago
I like gas ranges because i hate having to “fix the tool”. A gas appliance is almost ethernal because is simple, just a valve. No circuit boards, no microcontrollers, no sensors, no firmware updates. Turn the knob->cook.

The article gets weird a few paragraphs in: people like cooking with gas because it's primal and sensual? Really? Is that the best you can come up with, in an NYT article?

galangalalgol 5y ago

I like cooking with gas because when my power goes out I can use a match to boil water when the boil water orders go into effect because mains keep bursting. Also I can make smores when I don't feel like getting a fire going. I do have an induction plug in hot plate and for actually cooking its really quite good. It boils water faster than all but my 21k btu burner on just 110v, dumps no heat into the room, cools down when I lower the temp as fast as gas, and did I mention it dumps no heat into the room? As far as air quality taking anything above boiling temperatures inside is super bad for your lungs no matter how you do it. The NO isn't nearly as bad as the particulates created by searing or frying.

axiolite 5y ago
> when my power goes out I can use a match to boil water A generator is a small investment to fix this and many other problems, without causing indoor air pollution.
- mmcgaha 5y ago
  Maybe we have a different opinion on what small is but to run a stove, you will need a whole house generator and the starting point is about $10k and most folks will end up spending twice that.
worik 5y ago
When I put a log burner in my house I choose one with a flat top for this reason. I get your point. But many things that cause electricity to go out (floods, earthquakes... Russian invasion) will put out the gas too
- mattmaroon 5y ago
  I’m 41. I’ve had countless power outages in my life. 0 gas outages. I know it does happen but because the lines are buried it’s at least 2 orders of magnitude less likely.
- cubix 5y ago
  > will put out the gas too Gas is obviously far more resilient, though not immune to more extreme problems. I’ve literally never experienced a gas outage, yet power outages are routine almost everywhere I’ve lived.
- kwhitefoot 5y ago
  I don't have mains gas. My gas hob uses propane.
- DebtDeflation 5y ago
  >many things that cause electricity to go out ... will put out the gas too IME, this is objectively false. I've lived in the Northeast my entire life (40+ years). We have on average 2-3 power failures lasting more than a few seconds per year. I have never in my life experienced a natural gas system failure. The pumps that pressurize the gas are themselves powered by gas, and the delivery is not in any way dependent on the power grid; also, as someone else stated, gas lines are buried well underground.
cgriswald 5y ago
I have a gas line to my grill outside. Induction inside.

comex 5y ago

> people like cooking with gas because it's primal and sensual? Really? Yes, really. I personally love the aesthetics of flames on the stove, and this might lead me to choose a gas stove over the alternatives despite minor downsides like being slower to bring water to a boil. On the other hand, the air quality issue seems like a much more significant downside, though I haven’t researched it much. (I haven’t personally ever had the opportunity to choose the type of stove for a place I’ll be living, so it hasn’t come up. Someday.)

ghostpepper 5y ago
Gas is also universally considered better to cook with than electric (not induction) which is presumably why every restaurant kitchen uses it. My guess is ‘sensuality’ is not even in the top five considerations when equipping a kitchen.
- AussieWog93 5y ago
  When my wife and I were choosing rentals, the only thing I refused to compromise was a gas stove. At least in my case, it's entirely a sensual thing. There's a real joy in lighting the fire, feeling its warmth, making the flame larger and smaller with the knob, and the way it heats up the pan. I know a lot of older Greeks/Italians are the same way with their gas ovens. There's just something magical about it that turns your time in the kitchen from a chore into something you look forward to.
  - nwienert 5y ago
    Sensuals doing some work here though - that flame is sensual, but also gives immediate feedback over temperature/spread. You can lift your pan up and down to control heat over a gradient that radiates above over a larger distance. That lifting and moving of the pan alongside adjusting the flame and seeing it change immediately combines to give you a lot of control. So sensual, yes. A lot more intuitive and powerful, too. Metal slats are also nicer to hit your a pan against than flat glass for a variety of useful/sensual reasons.
- 5y ago

neuralRiot 5y ago

I like gas ranges because i hate having to “fix the tool”. A gas appliance is almost ethernal because is simple, just a valve. No circuit boards, no microcontrollers, no sensors, no firmware updates. Turn the knob->cook.