A Guide to Induction Hobs

• A Guide to Induction Hobs
• Making the Choice
• Saucepans

Fast, clean, safe and loved by culinary professionals, induction cooking is rapidly gaining in popularity and accessibility. Although induction hobs appeared more than 20 years ago, and have since been embraced by top chefs, because they offer fast, flame-free cooking, manufacturers have only recently developed easy-to-use, competitively priced models. A basic four-zone touch control hob now costs about half what it would have done five years ago.

How they work

An induction element (what on a gas stove would be called a burner) is a powerful, high-frequency electromagnet, the magnetic qualities of which are generated by electronics under the unit's ceramic surface. When a pan made from a magnetic material is placed in the magnetic field, the field transfers, or induces, energy into that metal. That transferred energy causes the pan to heat up – and the heat can be raised or lowered instantly by adjusting the strength of the magnetic field, so a rapidly boiling pan can be reduced to a simmer in about two seconds. Once the pan is lifted away, the heating zone switches off. All induction hobs include a power-boost button that will boil a pan of water in around 90 seconds.

Why buy induction?

If you can only have an electric hob, induction is a more efficient choice than ceramic, halogen or solid plate electric, because of its instantaneous heating and cooling – which gives it slightly lower running costs, too. Induction hobs are an ideal replacement for an old electric hob, as there's no need for special wiring (though you are legally required to use a qualified electrician to install the hob).
Other benefits include the fact that induction hobs are easier to clean than either gas or ceramic, controllable heat means pans very rarely boil over anyway, and an absence of a naked flame means there is a reduced risk of fire.

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