13 amp induction hobs - yes or no?

[Whoozit]

Gary C said:

Road2Ruin said:

Gary C said:

13A is far to low unless you are going to cook with no more than two pans.

Ours is a 30A NEFF and its ok but four pans means it has to switch between them until fully up to temperature whereas the gas could run all four at full power all the time.

We have an AEG 30amp jobbie and it throttles the power automatically, when my wife turns everything up to maximum.
To be honest though, in the five years we have had it, I have only missed gass once, while trying too cook noodles in a wok. To be fair though, it still turned out ok.

Oh, ours works fine, only noticeable with 4 pans at full whack, but I would expect a 13A model to be significantly restricted.

A 13A won't kick out as much power as a 30A will, of course. But in my experience it's sufficient for use cases below everything-on-9. And a fraction of the price.

[KingGary]

Geffg said:

Induction hob yes, 13a one then not sure.

I installed one and was skeptical but it’s brilliant. They work really well.

[gt40steve]

21TonyK said:

Simpo Two said:

gt40steve said:

Today most pans I see are suitable, whether branded or stores own brand.

Just avoid aluminium ones...!

Or really good old-school proper copper pans

'The pans just need to be steel or iron, or have a base of the same.'
Just two sentences before...

[bigdom]

DoubleSix said:

Induction is binary. An induction pan is either inside or outside of the reactive field. It doesn't "induct a bit less" as you gradually lift the pan to stop fried rice from catching or impart heat to a delicate sauce. Induction isn't some new innovation that many haven't yet tried and don't yet understand, my folks had an induction hob 24 years ago when I was an Uni!

Each to their own, and we've done this elsewhere on PH before, but beyond the world of TV chefs (who are trying to flog cookware) and a few high-profile acceptions; professional chefs and serious home cooks prefer gas.

If you really value cleaning convenience so highly that that steers your choice of cooker I don't think you are that into cooking.

For most people, induction is the better choice and it offers some practical benefits in the average home. I, however, will go out of my way to ensure I have a gas stove as that is very important to me and most serious cooks tend to agree.

If you think gas makes you a better cook, I'd suggest you might want look at your lack of skill in kitchen. You're clearly not as good as you think you are.

[DoubleSix]

Im just an enthusiast/home cook. But i appreciate gas for it’s versatility, especially in wok cookery, which i do a lot of.

Here’s a few dishes from last week or two to save you any more weird trawling. Just home cookery as I said… sadly my photography sucks.


Egg fried rice and chicken stirfry.



Huge! Pork chops in a white wine and cream sauce.






Roast Beef



Chicken and Cashew



mongolian Beef


Jungle Curry


Confit Duck

Edited by DoubleSix on Sunday 19th May 18:37

Edited by DoubleSix on Sunday 19th May 18:44

[Dashnine]

….and another thread degenerates into a squabble.

[Simpo Two]

I think 12 should get a job taking the photos for his local pub!

Masterchef uses induction hobs and I think they probably serve even better food than 12 does. It's not the tools, it's the user

[DoubleSix]

You mean they don’t want gas in a TV studio??!

Well I never, that’s case closed then!

[Glosphil]

SEDon said:

paralla said:

I find the touch controls that are usually fitted to induction hobs infuriating. Knobs work great. Give me a knob any day.

Agree with this. Induction with knobs would be my preference, ones that can be recessed into the hob when not in use if such a thing exists. If not the ease of clean and look of induction outweighs gas imo.

Recently changed my air fryer for one with knobs rather than messing about with touch controls and 20 different settings

We have a NEFF induction hob which has a knob in the form of a magnetic puck that can be lifted off the hob when not in use. Stops kids messing with it & makes cleaning easier.

[Gary C]

Dashnine said:

….and another thread degenerates into a squabble.

Oh no it doesn't !

[Simpo Two]

DoubleSix said:

You mean they don’t want gas in a TV studio??!

Well I never, that’s case closed then!

Looks like a warehouse to me, but I agree running gas pipes would be best avoided.

Still, I haven't heard any contestants presenting food the judges and saying 'Yeah sorry it's a bit st but there wasn't any gas'...

[NDA]

Turn7 said:

Our current gas hob is garbage and I’m led to believe induction is the way forward….

Never used one, but heard good things.

Would be looking at Neff as we want to swap the oven as well….

I have an induction hob (13amp) and use it in the summer when the Aga gets turned off. I've always been very impressed with it - heats up extremely quickly and can be 'fine tuned' with far greater accuracy than anything else I've used.

I am not a chef and have never photographed food.