The best thing about this cooktop for me is that it keeps a steady temperature, this makes it much easier to cook some thing without worrying about burning. When searing steaks or making fried chicken the results come out better than using a conventional stove.
A ran a couple of experiments to help me see if the cooktop temperature is accurate and if it in fact holds the temperature at the point I set.
The temperature can be set in increments of 10, so to keep it just below boiling I set it to 200. I let it heat water for 12 minutes while measuring the water with a temperature probe (calibrated to be accurate within 2 degrees). The cooktop kept the temperature between 192 degrees and 183 degrees. This result was consistent on several tries. So even though there was a difference between the temperature the cooktop held and the specified goal temperature the there is difference between the two was consistent I can adjust for the difference (I use 10 degrees). I guess it is like learning a new oven they are all slightly different.
The second thing I measured is how it compares to my gas stove. I used the high powered gas burner and cooktop at its maximum setting (level of 10 and goal of 460 degrees). I used 1 cup of cold water and the same cast iron pan. The cooktop took 1 minute 50 seconds to bring it to boil. The gas stove took 2 minute 25 seconds before the water began boiling.
Another interesting difference was the distribution of heat. The cooktop began boiling in the center and then spread outwards (but still showed a hot spot in the center). On the gas stove the boiling began on the edges of the pan and then moved to the center of the pan.
The cooking surface is heated only when the pot is present. The control system shuts down the element if a pot is not present or not large enough. The cooktop itself does not get hot at all, so nothing gets burned and baked on it and it is very easy to clean by just wiping with a wet cloth.
Not every cookware works with the induction tops. This is because induction works by electromagnetic induction. This means to work on the induction top the pots must be made out of magnetic metal such as cast iron, stainless steel, and enamelled iron. In addition the bottom of the pan has to flat and make contact with the surface of the cook top and not too small (larger than 4.75" in diameter).
What cookware does not work? Heat-resistant glass, ceramic, copper, aluminium because none of them are magnetic.
I was able to cook pancakes at a constant and lower temperature and I thought they came out better this way. For steak I set the cooktop to the maximum temperature and the highest wattage. I was able to get the cast iron pan very hot which, of course, is the key to searing meat. For fried chicken, I set the temperature to 370 degrees (which translate to 380 degrees on the cooktop display) and cook it on both sides for 5 minutes, then finish it in the baking oven for 20 minutes at 375 degrees. The chicken comes out very crispy.
The cooktop is not as precise or as accurate as I hoped, but it is consistent so this is not a deal breaker just requires adjustment by the cook to know how their cooktop behaves. Everyone learns what to expect from their oven so this is similar.
You can find it on Amazon by following this link.
Ali Julia review ★★★★★
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