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The link didn't seem to work on the above post i did re a free trial induction hob [link]

The threads finished but if you are thinking of a commercial induction hob we made use of a free trial from Control Induction [link]" rel="external">[link] They lent us the Induction Hob to test so we new it worked well before we got it. One thing we've found is that the guys in the kitchen tend to use it more than the other methods of heating/cooking because it doesn't pump out as much heat as the gas burners and also seems to heat the pans quicker than the gas. I didn't believe it was so fast but it is!

Hi there to you all - I just thought I would put you up to date as to what has happened since I got my new induction hobb!! Well it was put in at then of september and it has been the best bit of equipment I have ever had! Then one day a bird flew in the window got into a panic and landed on the shelf which I have above a rayburn - well there was a pan lid on here and in his fluttering of his wings and landing on the lid he knocked it off and down it crashed into my beautiful induction hobb!!To begin with it only looked like a small scratch but then this grew! - and there was cracked glass right to the front of the hobb, Well i was absolutly devastated and I phoned my insurance company who very kindly said they would pay for a new glass under the accidental damage on our buildings insurance! So about 10 days later i have my new glass installed and I have also got a beautiful pine cover to protect it.
So all is well ! So please be aware of things that may drop as it is very easily shattered! I do love it though and it is half the price to use - I love the way you can put a timer on each hobb so that if you had peas in one pan and potatoes in another and carrots in another you can just put the timer on and it will switch the individual hobb off - so no over cooking of veg!! merry christmas

I have recently aquired a portable induction hob and am just getting used to it but I am confused by the different power and temperature levels. Can anyone give me some guidance on these please

My ideal is a multi-burner (burner within burner) gas hob with a hotplate in the centre and a pair of triple gas burners each side of it.

It's not so much the cost of the hob, its more that I would have to have the rest of kitchen rebuilt around it

I have a portable induction hob which is very good for simmering and it works very well with cast iron pans, including my cast iron wok, but, it won't preheat to anything more that just hot - not like the good old gas burner which you can leave a cast iron pan, wok or griddle, on to get really hot. Which is a downside issue with induction technology, however, the upside is that if anything boils dry on an induction hob it automatically cuts out - pity there's no override though!

I have my eye on a triple ring wok burner that runs on bottled gas, but I know it might just end up in the garage.

Wow! That was a lot of reading! I have always used good old electric solid plates, and absolutely love them! I just cannot get on with gas at all, I either burn things or the flame goes out when I turn it low.
So it's good old solid plates for me, I can control them, I suppose it's from years of practice, there is always plenty of residual heat.
If I had some spare money to spend on my kitchen, I would buy the following, if I didn't have them (which I do).
Electric griddle
Electric frying pan
Electric citrus juicer
Ice cream maker
Slow cooker.
I use all of these small appliances regularly, and would not be without them.

Very interesting - I have wondered about this for a while now.

Increasingly pan manufactures are attaching a magnetic layer to the bottom of their pans - I was looking at an aluminium wok made by Beka only the other day and it had a magnetic base that had been attached by a method involving perforation of a metal disc which was then integrated with a studded profile on the base of the main body of the pan.

What I was pondering as I gazed upon this innovative piece of engineering was whether such a pan works as well as a pan that is fully magnetic throughout its entire body?

The principle behind induction hobs is that there is not the usual interface between pan and element, i.e. the material that the pan is made of becomes heated as part of a magnetic field generated by the induction technology, hence the enhanced heat distribution throughout the body of the pan and the greater speed at which the pan heats up. If you remove a pan that has been used for boiling water in from an induction hob, you find the base is nowhere near as hot as a pan taken from a conventional hob.

Bearing the above in mind, I would have thought placing a magnetic disc on an induction hob would be to convert it to the more conventional element:pan interface, and I wonder whether the benefits that usually follow from using an induction hob are lost or reduced.

The easiest way to find out would be to boil a litre of water in a fully magnetic pan on an induction hob and test out the speed, control, simmering levels, etc, as compared to an ordinary pan being used on one of those conversion plates.

Personally, if making the outlay for an induction hob I would be inclined to buy pans made from completely magnetic material so that all the benefits of induction technology are fully realised.

Golfboy, What a fantastic news. I was wondering if anything like that exists. I have got a few great stock pots and they are not suitable for induction hob. I didn't want to get rid of them so I still have them. Go and get that hob, it is the best thing I have done. Mine is about two years old now and I love it.

Perhaps I should have done some research before posting my question on this site about the induction adaptor, as I've managed to find one on Amazon. The item is "[link]
UTF8&s=kitchen&qid=1197216844&sr=8-7".
That's me sorted then, I'm getting an induction hob

I have some Tefal induction friendly pans, and wok and frying pan, all of which are excellent so would definitely recommend them. The none stick coating on the Wok and Frying pans is excellent, the best I've ever used.

If there are any of you that are in the same dilema that I was in choosing between Induction or halogen/ceramic then I would suggest you check out the AEG 67670KFN, as this has 2 induction rings and 2 HiLight, so will work with all of your non-induction pans but give you the efficiency and controllability when using your induction friendly pans.

I have been advised that in France there are some special mats that you can place on an induction hob ring to enable you to put ordinary pans on top of them, and they generate the heat for your non-induction pans. Does anyone know of this or where you can get them from (apart from France of course!!).

Thanks

Forgot to mention Robert Dyas, who carry a good range of reasonably priced and suitable pans:-

[link]

I don't think they have any at the moment, but Lidl and ALDI sometimes get induction compatible pans in really cheap - Lidl had some sauté pans for £10 a few weeks back. TJ Hughes is worth a look too.

Or for a really cheap carbon steel non-stick pan, try Woolworths.

Have a look in TK Maxx, they usually have some really good induction compatible pots and pans - they have had James Martin - Stellar stainless laminate pans (£20 ish), and also MPW – Beka (German and very good quality) - stainless laminate and encapsulated bases, around £15 to £30.

TESCO also have some very nice laminated pans that are induction compatible - stainless exterior with a high-grade non-stick interior - between £30 to £40.

But for a bargain - try TK Maxx first.

Most pans are now marked on the base re their compatibility - the induction symbol is a zig-zag or loopy line.

Most cast iron pans will work, as will carbon steel woks, and carbon steel non-stick pans, which is probably the cheapest type of pan you will find.

I live in Spain so I can't recommend any make of cookware but the thing I did was to have a magnet in my purse (still carry it) and when I saw a saucepan I liked I put the magnet on the bottom. If it sticks then it will work on your hob. I had a lot of pans at home and luckily most of them were magnetic.
Can you please tell me the make of your hob and where did you ordered it from? I would like to get one for my daughter who lives in UK.
thanks
Kamila

I have just ordered a portable induction hob. Can anyone recommend a good make of cookware to use. Not too expensive and where to purchase same please

thank you all so much for your input all very interesting on induction hobbs. I had a very small win on the lottery so decided to get one or two things for my kitchen rather than it just disappearing with nothing to show for it! I was still unsure about which hob although i knew it could not be gas and the ceramic halagen hob that i have just has me absolutly demented! I have got an engineer comming to have a look at it next week but i still think it will carry on behaving badly!
So i went and bought a Kenwood induction hob which is portable as long as you have an electric connection- it takes up 15" x 12" on the work surface with extra air space around it when you are using it. Well, it is fantastic! and it only cost £50 something! - I can trust a pan of new potatoes to carry on cooking if I run up the garden for something and it is so quick and you can time what ever you cook - so if you are busy doing something else it wont be over cooked say for instance you are cooking pasta you can put the timer on and when the time is up it switchs off - it is the answer for me! I wondered if you got a full hob with all induction
areas you could have a timer on each one. I had to check all my pans with a fridge magnet to see which ones i could use and I found that I will in time have to buy some more different sized pans .
I also bought a Kuhn Rikon Pressure Cooker which i will also be able to use on the induction hobb. Little bit more apprehensive at using this - but I believe that it will also be a good investment as soon as i work out the best things to cook in it??
So I did chicken out in taking that small step towards the induction hobb instead of swapping it straight away. I shall wait to see what the engineer says about my ceramic hallogen hobb and then i think i shall be heading to swap it for an induction hobb. I know both AEG and Neff do good ones but that is all i know at the moment. So thank you everyone for letting me know what you all think about the induction hobbs and i am so pleased that i did buy this small kenwood hobb - its just gorgeous!!

Rosey, I'm an induction hob convert. They're brilliant - especially as you're used to Halogen. You'll find them alot quicker and alot more controlable. I was introduced to them at Le Manoir cookery school (Raymond Blanc's school near Oxford) and since then I have been a fan. Go for the best you can afford (you get what you pay for in these). It's the same difference as why a £1,000 hi-fi sounds better than a £100 one!.

I have induction hob and it works fine but I would prefer my gas one back. I just felt like I was more "in control" with the gas hob.

But I have to agree about gas burning...no matter how low the flame, no matter how heavy the pot [Le Creuset], even with a diffuser there would be scorching of thicker stews and sauces.

Gastro's suggestion of putting such dishes in the oven, while not ideal, is really the only workable solution when you have gas, IMHO.

Halogen? I don't know why they still make those. Dreadful.

Well mine is 3 years old now,it has 4 heat zones and a centre hotplate. The 2 front plates have a power boost,which means if you want something quick it heast faster.The centre plate i use for keeping warm sauces,whatever.I confidently use my hob all the time.The other thing it does is link a timer to the plate you are using,so when its reached the time you want it switches the heat source of for you, useful if you get caught on the phone or bathroom

Having read your comments gastrosurf, with which I agree, I would only add that I have been using Neff for years and have found the mix of electric ovens and gas hobs very effective, they are in use every day and work well. I have an induction hob which is great for fast heating and/or low and slow. It is a great asset in a busy kitchen, I only wish I had gone for the portable type.

David

I think the portable induction hobs have a lot going for them, not least that they work off a 13-amp plug and are 100% safe in transit - unlike bottled gas.

Having read your comments I may try another one. The problem I had with the one I tested was that it wouldn't simmer. It may have been faulty, so I will try another one.

But if I was doing a re-fit in my kitchen, I would go for a commercial gas hob with a griddle and hotplate incorporated. The zones of heat on a hotplate are ideal for sauces because you can leave the pan on the edge of the plate where it is cooler, then slide it across to increase the heat.

I read somewhere that the techs are hoping to produce an induction hob that will work with any type of pan - which I find puzzling because I don't see how they will create the magnetic field, but still, who knows what the wonders of science will bring in the future?

oh well its a matter of personnel choice,isn,t it ? what works for you, and for what ever needs you require. Rick Stein came to the Highlands a couple of years ago and he bought with him a induction hob to work on and though his assistant didn,t like them too much,he said he did. so some people like working with them

Well I'm quite happy with gas and I haven't experienced the problems mentioned here - if I turn my burners down to low they don't go out. I suspect the hob that was doing that needed attention from a service engineer. Lets bear in mind that the very great majority of the catering trade use gas top burners, and most chefs seem to be able to make a sauce without burning it!

As most people will do, if the lowest setting is a little too high for simmering, then it's easy enough to take the pan to the side of the burner rather than having it fully over it - cast iron, or pans with good heat transfer properties, will cope with that without a problem.

There is also always the option of a heat diffuser or a simmering mat:-

[link]

Or, if an extra cooking plate is needed, then there is also the option of a portable induction hob which could be used for simmering or as required.

BTW I don't live on stir-fry sesley - "wok burner" is just a name for a more powerful burner that can be used for any cooking where rapid or high heat is required.

If some form of electric appliance was the only option, then I would go for induction, but if gas is available, then I would choose that.

But if buying an induction hob (or anything else they make) I wouldn't buy Neff, because in my view their products are over rated and over priced - try talking to an independent service engineer about Neff!

Le Creuset cookware works well enough because it is cast iron, but any cast iron cookware will work just as well, and at a fraction of the cost. But then of course there isn't the same potential for name dropping.

I wouldn't recommend halogen hobs to anyone - I do have a halogen grill which is excellent - but then that's a different kettle of fish altogether.

A halogen hob that is: "slow to heat up" sounds strange to me - I wonder if that was faulty too - one of the problems with halogen hobs is that they can put out large amounts of heat which can cause instability because the pan or pot has to absorb and distribute the heat and so there is lag between turning up the heat and the transfer of heat to the food being cooked. If when the heat peaks within the food things are too hot, and the adjustment control is turned down, there is likely to be a lag in cooling, and so the temperature control goes up and down and the cook gets frustrated.

Using a cast iron pan with a non-reflective base and turning the heat to medium (rather than full on) to pre-heat the pan or pot should help to keep things stable. But I'm not making a case for halogen hobs, because I would go for gas every time.

I don't have an axe to grind about induction hobs, I just don't think they are any better than gas - they do cost more to purchase and the potential for things to go wrong is greater than with gas.

Manufactures like Neff make great play on 'carbon foot printing' when it suits their sales pitch - but perhaps they should provide a little data about the effect of a self-cleaning Neff ovens on the environment?

There is some consumer feedback about Neff ovens on this site, which is worth reading before parting with any money.

As for being safer for children to play with, I think that's a ridiculous angle anyway, because young children shouldn't be allowed anywhere near a hob that is being used, and a kitchen is not a safe place for young children to play in at any time.

As with most things, it comes down to weighing up the pros and cons, and handing over your money, and then discovering how good-a choice you have made. I always take into consideration the initial outlay, the actual and potential cost of maintenance, how well the item will do the job, and how long a piece of equipment is likely to last.

These days I’m happy to pay a little more if the after-sales service is good (such as Lakeland) and I always look for as long a warranty as is available.

If buying an induction hob, I would definitely look for a 5-year parts and labour on-site warranty with no charges tagged on for call-out, etc.

Apparently the latest idea is to have an induction plate that heats anywhere within the confines of the hob, rather than within zones, so perhaps that's worth looking out for if buying in the future.

Yes sesley, that is the exact reason why I will not go back to gas. I've always had gas and loved it. I had halogen hob in my house when we moved in a few years ago and couldn't stand it. It took too long to heat and to cool. Induction in instant heat and you can lower the temperature nice and low that the sauce will not burn. I also don't do too many stir fries so I don't miss the gas. I was lucky that most of my saucepans I had were magnetic so I didn't have to buy many. the only one I had to buy was my very large stock pot. Even though my one was stainless steel it wasn't magnetic.
I don't agree with you gastrosurf about the saucepan theory. I have tried cast iron, stainless steel with heavy bottoms, stainless steel with thin bottoms, alluminium, you name it I tried to cook in them on halogen hob. I also used the same saucepans on gas. And I would choose induction every time.

I also think it has to be to do with how you live and cook,My hob has touch controls at the front, I don,t do a lot of stir fry,so a wok burners isn,t something i need, however i did i can always get a Module kind built in next to my induction hob,if i find i want lots of stir fry,s. I have always used Electric hobs, and find them very safe and controllable, I had Gas once it came with the house,but i got frustrated at it, when to put it on a very low burner it went out, if i had it on its lowest setting it was still too high and burn,t my sauces, and so I had a ceramic belling and i found it better for me to work with, so when I changed my kitchen 3 years ago the induction suited my needs and it works well for me.

There is a Which test & report here - although you will need to sign up to get the final results.

[link]

But my advice is to try changing your cookware first, perhaps just one pan to see the difference, because I think you will find you can get the results you want that way.