We Switched to Induction Cooking - Here's Why!
Our 30” Bertazzoni induction range replaced our dual fuel range a couple years ago.
The majority of homeowners I work with LOVE cooking on gas and when we remodel their kitchens, it doesn’t come as a surprise to me that they want gas - but after replacing our dual fuel range with an induction range a couple years ago, I am an induction fan through and through and would pick induction over gas any day… and here’s why:
Even, Consistent Cooking - Every Time!
Gas burner, flame radiating from the center of the burner outward.
When I started cooking on induction, I burned EVERYTHING… I had heard that induction cooked faster, but it turns out it doesn’t necessarily cook faster, it just cooks evenly which helps your food cook faster. Unlike a gas burner, where the heat radiates from the middle of the burner and heats the entire pot/pan outward from center, the entire induction burner heats the entire surface area of the pot/pan that’s made contact with the burner through an electromagnetic field.
This means on an induction cooktop, there are no ‘hot spots’, so your food cooks evenly (once you stop burning it) and I love that we can cook with a kitchen window open and a breeze won’t impact our cooking heat the way it could impact a gas cooktop flame.
2. Built In Safety Features
Thermador induction cooktop on display at KBIS (Kitchen & Bath Industry Show).
I know our son won’t be a little kiddo forever, but we were super excited that we wouldn’t have open flames in our kitchen with curious little hands… but I often recommend induction cooktops or ranges for folks who want to age in place as well because the induction burners won’t actually ‘turn on’ or cook anything unless you have a pot or pan sitting on the burner. That’s right, you can turn a burner on, but then let’s say you get distracted by a phone call or a knock at your door and you walk away… with induction, nothing will happen unless there’s a pot/pan on the burner, unlike gas, where you certainly wouldn’t want to walk away from a burner that’s been turned on.
Once you’re done cooking and you’ve removed your pot/pan the induction burner cools down quickly and is totally safe to touch, even if you forget to turn it off once you remove your pot/pan. Cleaning is also a breeze (added bonus!) - we literally wipe ours down with a sponge and that’s it!
3. Indoor Air Quality
Induction range in the island of E.L. Designs Bold in Blue Whole House Remodel
I have a sensitive nose and when I started smelling gas when our cooktop wasn’t in use, we learned that one of the burner valves was leaking (nothing dangerously harmful), so when we got it repaired, we learned that this leak would likely happen to the other burners over time and each valve would need to be replaced in time. With a little kiddo and the annoying (slight) smell of gas, we decided to swap out the range for our induction range. It wasn’t until I was completing continuing education for one of my certifications that I learned more about the impacts gas stoves or ranges have on the indoor air quality of our homes. Now, I’m not saying everyone should switch to induction and all gas ranges are bad - that’s not it at all - but I just think awareness around what’s in our homes is valuable! So here were some alarming statistics:
When cooking on gas, nitrogen dioxide emissions are released which are associated with an increased risk of asthma and wheeze in children, and a December 2022 paper estimated that 12.7% of all current childhood asthma cases in the United States are attributable to gas stove use (cited from the National Center for Biotechnology Information).
Recent research has established that gas stoves/cooktops also produce formaldehyde, which is a respiratory irritant and known human carcinogen (cited from the National Center for Biotechnology Information).
Burning gas creates nitrogen dioxide, carbon monoxide, formaldehyde, and methane pollution and has been increasingly linked to poor health outcomes at lower concentrations over the past 10 years (cited from American Public Health Association).
While cooking on a gas range isn’t going to kill you, and we (as humans) are exposed day in and day out to air pollutants (hello, cars!), so it goes without saying that just owning a beautiful gas range isn’t the culprit for any and all health conditions, but it is something to be aware of when thinking about comfort in your home. I wasn’t aware of this information (nor did I think about it) when we bought our dual fuel range, and I don’t judge anyone for wanting a gas range or cooktop, nor do I advise against it, so don’t let this scare you - I just wanted to share what I learned and reasons why I love owning an induction range.
If you do have or plan to have a gas range, you can minimize your exposure to combustion related chemicals by making sure you have proper ventilation (in California, our building codes require range or cooktop hoods to vent to the exterior, meaning they draw the fumes up or away from the cooktop and exhaust the fumes outside), and it’s just as important to use the hood vent! For a while, we never turned our hood on when we cooked, but there are chemicals released (and smells) when food is cooking regardless of whether you’re cooking on gas or induction, so it’s best to use your hood vent when cooking or if your kitchen has a window, let some fresh air in when cooking!
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