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How electric stoves are poised to dethrone the mighty gas range
How electric stoves are poised to dethrone the mighty gas range
Link to tweet
How electric stoves are poised to dethrone the mighty gas range
Professional and home cooks are embracing induction cooktops as a more sustainable and healthy alternative to gas.
Professional and home cooks are embracing induction cooktops as a more sustainable and healthy alternative to gas.
Home & Garden
How electric stoves are poised to dethrone the mighty gas range
By Meg St-Esprit McKivigan
February 17, 2022 at 7:00 a.m. EST
Tanuj Deora works in the energy industry — specifically to decarbonize energy systems. That’s the technical term for efforts to reduce the reliance on fossil fuels. It’s a vast and complex problem, but Deora and his family try to do their part. At their home in Northwest Washington, they have solar panels, LED lightbulbs and a hybrid minivan. In the kitchen, though, the issue of fossil fuel usage was more personal. Their natural gas cooktop was making Deora sick. ... “I would get a headache whenever the gas was running,” he says, so he started looking into replacing their gas stove.
But first, he had to sell his wife, Amy, on the idea. The two of them love to cook and make meals from scratch most nights. Amy believed that gas cooking was superior in performance. When they remodeled their kitchen in 2021, though, she agreed to try an induction stove. Five months later, they have no regrets. “This cooktop isn’t just adequate for cooking — it’s better than the gas stove was,” Deora says.
Gas cooktops do have some advantages. With gas, you can control the flame, and it’s easy to get the temperature you need, which has made it a preferred choice for those who consider themselves to be serious cooks. An estimated 90 percent of professional chefs still use gas.
Is it really that much better, though? The fossil fuel industry wants you to think so. Since the 1930s, it has targeted consumers with well-placed ads. It embraced the term “natural gas” to increase consumer confidence in indoor combustion. It even created a catchy rap in the 1980s, all in an effort to increase gas usage. The industry also flooded the market with images of massive gas ranges as the keystone of aspirational kitchens. But as new data emerges about health concerns, and as more Americans rethink their use of fossil fuels, the mighty gas stove might be facing dethronement.
[Gas stoves in kitchens pose a risk to public health and the planet, research finds]
{snip}
Meg St-Esprit McKivigan is a freelance writer in Pittsburgh.
How electric stoves are poised to dethrone the mighty gas range
By Meg St-Esprit McKivigan
February 17, 2022 at 7:00 a.m. EST
Tanuj Deora works in the energy industry — specifically to decarbonize energy systems. That’s the technical term for efforts to reduce the reliance on fossil fuels. It’s a vast and complex problem, but Deora and his family try to do their part. At their home in Northwest Washington, they have solar panels, LED lightbulbs and a hybrid minivan. In the kitchen, though, the issue of fossil fuel usage was more personal. Their natural gas cooktop was making Deora sick. ... “I would get a headache whenever the gas was running,” he says, so he started looking into replacing their gas stove.
But first, he had to sell his wife, Amy, on the idea. The two of them love to cook and make meals from scratch most nights. Amy believed that gas cooking was superior in performance. When they remodeled their kitchen in 2021, though, she agreed to try an induction stove. Five months later, they have no regrets. “This cooktop isn’t just adequate for cooking — it’s better than the gas stove was,” Deora says.
Gas cooktops do have some advantages. With gas, you can control the flame, and it’s easy to get the temperature you need, which has made it a preferred choice for those who consider themselves to be serious cooks. An estimated 90 percent of professional chefs still use gas.
Is it really that much better, though? The fossil fuel industry wants you to think so. Since the 1930s, it has targeted consumers with well-placed ads. It embraced the term “natural gas” to increase consumer confidence in indoor combustion. It even created a catchy rap in the 1980s, all in an effort to increase gas usage. The industry also flooded the market with images of massive gas ranges as the keystone of aspirational kitchens. But as new data emerges about health concerns, and as more Americans rethink their use of fossil fuels, the mighty gas stove might be facing dethronement.
[Gas stoves in kitchens pose a risk to public health and the planet, research finds]
{snip}
Meg St-Esprit McKivigan is a freelance writer in Pittsburgh.
20 replies
= new reply since forum marked as read
= new reply since forum marked as read
And decided to go with induction for our cooktop and convection ovens. Precision control, excellent results, and better safety. (My husband occasionally forgets to shut off burners and if the pot is removed, the element turns off automatically in less than a minute.) The energy efficiency was a big plus in our decision. A big pot of water boils in less than two minutes. It was also a great excuse to buy all new pots and pans. 
Gas had its benefits but we're happy with the switch.
reason for me to detest my electric stove.(No gas available where I live.)
Try cooking Chinese dishes on an electric stove some time.
