Monday Menu: Gadget Post

My city is committed to climate change solutions..and actively helping everyone move from natural gas to electricity for most of their home appliances. We also own our electric utilities here, so we have better rates than surrounding communities, making it more cost-effective than gas in many cases.

This past week, I found out they have an induction cooktop lending program. For three weeks, you can test out a Duxtop Induction Cooktop, along with pans that work with induction. **

After a week of trying out many dishes with it, here are my thoughts.

Pros –

• it heats and cools like gas – responds immediately to lowering and raising the temps.
• boils water in about 4 minutes (keep in mind I’m at high altitude, and water boils quicker and at a lower temp here)
• has a timer, which is an excellent feature – it means I can heat my soup, walk away, and know that if I get distracted, the cooktop will shut off before I have either boiled the mess over or burnt to a crisp.
• automatically knows if your pans are usable with the magnets and gives you an EO code if they are not. No guessing. **
• wide range of temps – which is great once you memorize them, LOL – but very, very adjustable – more than an electric or gas stove
• it seems very well constructed. Heavy duty and sturdy.

Cons –

• cold spots on my large cast iron skillet because it is slightly larger than the actual burner – which surprised me because cast iron usually heats evenly regardless of the cooktop – but we’re dealing with magnets, not heat, so I guess that would explain it
• takes up space, which is an issue in my kitchen. And since it’s a cook plate, it’s a little high up for me once I put it on a heatproof cutting board on top of the stove.
• and here is the real kicker – it has a fan that runs constantly while cooking. Not as loud as a vent fan, but louder than I was comfortable with.

I made what I thought would be a real test – pasta sauce – being Italian, family recipes MUST be simmered all day. And it’s always tricky because it can scorch so easily. I find gas stoves impossible to properly simmer on, electric is better, but not perfect. I was really hoping with the various temp choices, the induction would be the solution.

And honestly, temp-wise it was damn near perfect. But the FAN! I could not ignore it, I was hoping it would just become background noise, but it was a touch too loud to do that. I would have had a migraine by the end of the day.

So, regrettably, I moved the sauce back to the electric stove to simmer for the remainder of the day.

All-in-all, I think the Duxtop is a good little device and seems sturdy.

Induction cooking is really the bomb, combining the best of electric and gas, with energy savings, to boot. I love the responsiveness and the ability to stay at a very low, even temp.

Another induction plus as we head into the summer months – no radiant heat, so the kitchen stays cooler, even while cooking.

My goal for this was to test out induction, because the plan has been when my current range ever gives out, I’ll replace it with an induction range.

Researching the full-size version, there is still a fan, but it doesn’t need to be as strong and is only on during high temps. It makes sense that the small cooktop would need constant cooling. But I will want to demo a full-sized range before making that type of purchase.

** For pans, they have to have a magnet stick to them to work with induction. Cast Iron works, enameled cast iron works, but unfortunately, my expensive double-clad stainless and some old (very expensive and hated) Scanpans are not compatible. Most non-stick do not work, either. Something to think about when making the switch.

Fun side note, while talking to the woman who heads the program, found out there are rebates if I need to upgrade my wiring/electrical panel to accommodate a car charger or electric hot water heater. So if I eventually want to upgrade my EV charger, there are incentives.