Cooker Hobs Explained: Gas, Induction & Ceramic
Cooking used to be such a simple affair. All you need is an open fire and you’re good to go. Today, however, is a whole different story. There are so many types of hobs out there that one can easily get confused as to what type of hob to get for your kitchen. To make things easier for you, here are 3 popular types of cooker hobs and their main features.
| Gas | Induction | Ceramic |
|---|---|---|
Uses natural gas, propane or other types of flammable gas | Uses electromagnetic fields | Is electric and has a heating element under the toughened glass |
Any metal pot is suitable | Requires enamelled steel pans, stainless steel pans with a magnetic base, cast iron pans or cookware that allows a magnet to stick to its bottom | Uses the same type of cookware as the induction hob, you’re recommended to use pans that are of the same diameter as the cooking zone |
Gives off a lot of heat, which makes the kitchen hot | Gives off little heat so the kitchen stays cool | Gives off lesser heat than the gas cooker hob |
Common in Asian kitchens where dishes are usually prepared via stir-frying or other methods involving cooking oil, so clean-ups may be a little troublesome | Easy to clean and energy efficient | Easy to clean, but need to be careful of scratches or allow food spills (especially those with high sugar content) to dry on the surface as it might cause uneven surfaces and reduce the cooker hob’s efficiency |
Easy to control the flame and heat | Easy to use and heats up quickly | Easy to use and heats up quickly |
Great for traditionalists | Trendy looking | Trendy looking |
Suitable for families with no children or have older children who know not to endanger themselves in the kitchen | Suitable for people with young families | Suitable for people with young families |
So what makes a suitable cooker hob for you? Your choice ultimately depends on your lifestyle. If you enjoy cooking that involves lots of stir-frying and deep frying, then the gas hob is suitable for you. But if you have a family with young children, then the induction may be the better choice. At the end of the day, pick one that is most aligned with your lifestyle so that cooking times won’t be such a drag.
