Burn the Inner Beauty!

One of the most important appliances to purchase for a new home? The hob! We put on our aprons and our chef hats and took the Rinnai RB-2CGN inner burner hob, their new generation gas cooker, for a test run in our kitchen. Here's our review:

A long, long wait for our new home

After waiting for five years (no thanks to Covid-19), OUR HOUSE IS FINALLY READY! We were amongst the very lucky ones to actually get a unit at the Bidadari's first launch back in November 2015. As we all know, the Bidadari projects were over-subscribed at the time. True enough, our queue number was in the 1500s when there were only 1200+ units available to ballot. We were very lucky and elated when we got our unit, but no one would have expected that the Coronavirus would spread immensely fast across the world, affecting our move-in date that was supposed to happen earlier this year. Although we collected the keys in March 2020, we could only kickstart the renovation in September 2020 due to the circuit breaker measures and eventually shortage of manpower in the renovation industry.

Shopping spree!

Like many others, we overcame all of that and came to the most exciting portion—shopping for household appliances. My husband and I could easily agree on what to purchase for most of the items, except for one—the hob. There were so many considerations to think of! Do we get an induction or the conventional gas stove? And how many burners? The husband prefers induction as it looks sleek and easy to clean, but I preferred gas because it is more versatile in terms of the type of pots/pans that can be used. While looking around, we were first introduced to Rinnai’s inner burner technology when we visited a friend’s place. Unanimously, my husband and I decided on it because it has everything that both of us wanted! :D

The beauty

A beautiful black beauty.

We really liked how the Rinnai RB2-CGN looked, with its all-black Schott Ceran ceramic glass surface and its two matte-black panels at the sides. As our countertop is a light matte-grey finish, the hob really stands out as a whole. Our friend got the previous generation hob, which came with large, silver-rimmed turn dials and two matte-silver panels by the sides. We didn't like that very much, so when Rinnai revamped the look for their hob, we knew that the new Rinnai RB2-CGN was the one for us.

The previous generation of the Rinnai RB2-CGN. Not as pretty, eh.

We were also considering between two or three burners, but eventually decided on two burners in the end, because we prefer to have more countertop space. Having two burners also allows us to use bigger pots on each individual burner.

Plenty of space with a two-burner!

Ease of cleaning and durability

Many hobs in the market consist of several different components like the brass burner head, brass burner cap, drip pan, etc, which makes cleaning of the hob after cooking a hassle. Not the Rinnai RB-2CGN. The hob only consists of 2 components: drip pan, so cleaning after cooking is really fuss-free. The smooth ceramic glass on the Rinnai RB-2CGN also makes it easier to clean up any spillage on the surface during cooking compared to a hob with a conventional stainless steel surface. All you need to do is lift up the cast iron pan supports and wipe off any stains using a damp dish cloth dipped in some detergent.

There are only two components to each burner: the cast iron support and the drip pan.

The underside of the cast-iron support.

So easy to take everything out and put everything back.

Safety is, of course, a priority for us. It's a good thing then that the Schott Ceran ceramic glass can withstand abrupt temperature shocks of up to 700°C and is extremely durable. The cast iron supports feel really solid because it is quite heavy for its small size. Not forgetting to mention that it is very easy to fit them back onto the surface because of the two markings that fit in nicely like a jigsaw puzzle.

Quick heating and precise controls

One of the most unique and cool features of the Rinnai RB-2CGN is its inner flame technology, which isolates the flame from any surrounding wind. It also enables our cookware to heat up quicker due to the more focused heat. This is especially useful for homes that are particularly windy or for kitchens where the stove is right next to the window. By concentrating the fire to the centre of the cookware, it ensures the best distribution of heat and hence heats up faster and more efficiently, saving the amount of gas you will need when compared to a conventional gas hob.

The Rinnai hob with the fire on.

Close-up of the inner flame technology.

It's on fire!

We did a little experiment to see if boiling an electric kettle of water or boiling a pot of water on the Rinnai stove would be faster. To be fair, we used the same volume of water (1.7L). The result? It took the Rinnai hob four and half minutes to reach boiling point, while the electric kettle took more than five minutes to do so. There are also various markings on the side of the turn dials (see image below), which allowed for very, very precise flame control. With the help of the indicators, we can turn it down all the way to simmer Cantonese soups for hours on end. Or we can turn up the heat to cook dishes that need that extra wok hei.

Precise controls = excellent cooking!

Cooking experience

As my kitchen does not have a ceiling fan installed, I rely on my portable desk fan whenever I cook to dispel the fumes and the heat. To test Rinnai's inner flame technology, I directed my portable fan at the flame and was pleased to see that the flame only wavered a little but was still very much focused on heating up my cookware. While cooking my favourite stir fry, my pan heated up so quickly that the minced garlic I dropped in splattered everywhere immediately. Thankfully, I didn't have to sweat about the clean-up since all it needed was a simple wipe-down.

Such a quick heat-up!

Other accessories

The Rinnai hob also came with an additional holder which can be used for smaller cookware, very useful for smaller households where you don't often use bigger pots and pans.

An additional holder for smaller pots and pans.

For the purchase, we were also given a wok pan as a free gift. Great if you usually do Chinese cuisine. I personally found it a tad too heavy, but it’s good for the husband to do some muscle training when it’s his turn to cook. Heh.

Overall

We have been using the hob for a while now and so far, we are very satisfied with the Rinnai RB2-CGN gas hob. My husband also doesn't mind doing the clean-up after our meals now! Strongly recommend this model to anyone who’s looking for a sleek looking gas hob that’s easy to clean and maintain. Most importantly, thanks to the inner flame technology, you will never have to worry about your flame going out while cooking your wok hei-infused fried rice. Keen to get your hands on one of your own? Find out more about this sleek gas hob here.