Cooktops: How to Choose the One for You

Do you prefer gas, electric, or induction cooktops?  Do you like to finish a one-pan meal in the oven?  As you start to decide on various pieces for your kitchen collection, it is important to keep these things in mind.  Failure to do so can lead to frustration due to underperforming, unusable, or even destroyed equipment.

Some recipes require the use of both a range and an oven, and kitchens rarely have a cooktop with one fuel and an oven with another.  For these reasons, it is unwise to ignore the baking aspect; however, for this discussion, I will be focusing more on the range (cooktop portion of your stove).  Here are some indoor cooking surfaces and things to consider for each when choosing a cooktop.

Gas Cooktops

Gas Stoves are a great choice for any kitchen!  I grew up using gas, so I feel comfortable with it.  When I was a kid, our early 1900’s home had a vintage, Chambers stove.  It was very cool, but (before my dad added a starter to it) we had to use a match to get it started.  Now, gas stoves come with starters as well as many other features in standard models. 

They are great for heat control.  If you change the burners from high to low it is right away, as you can see the flames instantly reduce in size.  The cookware is receiving the heat directly from the flames, so there is no need to wait for the stove surface to change in temperature.  It is easy to get familiar with the flame size to gauge the level of heat.  This may seem silly to some, but since I am familiar with using flame size, I can use any gas stove and feel confident in my cooking.  This is unique to gas; not all appliances are created equally, and there is no regulated standard for high, medium, and low heat settings on cooktops.  Also, gas heat distribution does not require the pan to be perfectly flat to work well.  Sometimes pans can warp, and electric and induction cooktops can fall short because they require direct contact for the heat to be evenly distributed. 

Gas will also work even if the electricity is down.  This means you can turn a boring, frustrating period of no electricity into an excellent excuse to whip out the cookbook and try something new or bake cookies!  There is one glaring downside to gas stoves:  you need to take them apart to clean them.  Because the burners must be exposed to the cookware, there are burner grates and plates that need to be removed and cleaned on top of cleaning the regular cooking surface.  In my opinion, the benefits outweigh the drawbacks for gas stoves, but there are still 2 more choices to consider!

Electric Cooktops

Generally, there are 2 types of electric cooktops: coil element and smooth-top.  Both variants look exactly as described.  Both ranges use direct heat from heating coils; however, the smooth-top features a glass-ceramic blend surface over the top.  Each version has pluses, minuses, and similarities.

Coil element

Coil element ranges have a pressure plate in the center of each coil element that lets the range know there is a piece of cookware on top of it, so you do not need a certain type of pan to use this range (exceptions mentioned below).  This is one of several basic safety measures added to coil ranges over the years.  In fact, in 2018, temperature limiting coils (also called sensi-temp) became a requirement in all coil-top stoves.  Before this, if coils were left unattended, they could reach temperatures over 900 degrees F.    Some do not like these units because they stop heating if they sense the cookware is too hot. For the feature to work as designed, pans must be perfectly flat and clean. Some customers of these models claimed the burners still did not work well after replacing cookware completely. If you already have one of these and have run into this problem, please check out this helpful guide, How To Disable Sensi-Temp Burners On Newer Stoves! Cleaning a coil element range is much like cleaning a gas range, as you must remove the coils (like a sideways plug-in) to easily clean the coils, under the coils (where food tends to get trapped), and the cooktop.

Smooth-Top

Unlike coil element and gas cooktops, users of smooth top enjoy easy cleanup.  As previously mentioned, electric cooktops feature a smooth, glass-ceramic blend surface over the heat elements. Rogue food and sauce splashes can’t get under the elements! You can simply spray some cooktop cleaner and wipe it clean after you are finished! You can even scrape and scrub cooked-on food from the flat surface with the proper tools! (I recommend having the Weiman Cooktop Cleaner Kit handy.) It is important to note that these surfaces are durable, they are not scratch-proof. If you like to jostle a pan to loosen up food as you cook, you will want to make sure to lift the pan. You will also want to make sure to use non-abrasive products when cleaning.

Another nice thing about the smooth-top is it allows for more technology. One example is the option on some units that lets you pick the pan size. This is when a burner is set up as a large and a small pan burner which you choose when you turn it on.

Another difference between coil and smooth is the smooth top does not have the heat limit requirement.  They also have a higher average and maximum wattage output for each coil.  Let me re-visit the task of boiling water.  When it comes to electric ranges, the heat potential is directly proportionate to wattage output.  The higher the wattage output, the faster and hotter a burner can get.  Appliance marketing and innovation recognized this and took advantage!  Many smooth top burners feature quick boil or power boil elements.  These offer between 3000- and 3600-watt heating power.  Compared to the high range of 2400- to 2600-watts for coil top.  Between the wattage, restrictions, and ease of cleaning, it is no wonder many choose to go with smooth-top over coil cooktops. Just be careful not to use this burner on full blast for a Teflon or hybrid, non-stick pan! These are not able to take the heat, so, over time, the non-stick surface may shrivel or peel from the pan. For more information on kitchenware, please check out my other kitchen articles!

Induction Cooktops

What?	How Does It Heat?	Pros	Cons
Gas	Gas-fueled flames	◾ Easy to see actual heat output based on flame size and color ◾ Immediate control of heat ◾ Works with any cookware and even with warped or curved-base cookware ◾ Only one that works with no power	◾ Thorough cleaning requires some disassembly ◾ Users should be aware of gas dangers ◾ Some Older Models had metal surfaces which could get VERY hot
Coil-Top Electric	Coil heat element	◾ Can have cheaper options ◾ Works with any type of cookware	◾ Thorough cleaning requires some disassembly ◾ The efficiency of heating is dependent on how flat the cookware is–needs direct contact for heat transfer ◾ Sensi-Temp Technology can be an issue
Smooth-Top Electric	Glass-ceramic blend surface over electric coils	◾ You can wipe it clean with no disassembly ◾ Works with any type of cookware ◾ No restriction requirements like coil-top	◾ Can Scratch Up the Surface ◾ The efficiency of heating is dependent on how flat the cookware is–needs direct contact for heat transfer
Induction Cooktop	Electromagnetic Friction	◾ Immediate control of heat ◾ Accurate and Specific control of heat ◾ Can be very expensive	◾ Can Scratch Up ◾ Must use cookware that is both magnetic and can conduct electricity ◾ Cookware needs to be flat (not warped or curved)

But That’s Another Blog (Post)

There is a substantial group of people who prefer to fix up old appliances!  One day I hope to add a restored stove to my kitchen.  If retro is your thing, you might want to consider this for your home—but I think that might be a topic for jiffytalking another day!