Induction cooktops heat your pan directly with an alternating magnetic current. How does that work? Is it better than gas or electric? Let's find out.
**SOURCES IN ORDER OF APPEARANCE**
Industry Research report showing China's induction cookware market dominance (free summary, full report not free): www.industryresearch.biz/glob...
Dr. Shannon Yee, engineering professor at Georgia Tech: www.me.gatech.edu/faculty/yee
Illustration of eddy currents: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eddy_cu...
Michel Roux Jr showing his updated kitchen at Le Gavroche: • Michel Roux Jr shows u...
Consumer Reports article testing the performance of gas vs. electric stoves (free sample, full report not free): www.consumerreports.org/range...
My video about whether it's safe to cook with a ring on: • Is it Safe to Cook wit...
Survey by iResearch in which most Chinese respondents said they own a small induction hob (not free): www.statista.com/statistics/1...
Allied Market Research report that linked the popularity of induction cooking to health-consciousness (free summary, full report not free): www.alliedmarketresearch.com/...
Report presented to the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy on the energy efficiency of induction cooktops, which found they're more efficient than electric when heating small pots but not large pots: aceee.org/files/proceedings/2...
Article questioning the energy efficiency of induction (I don't really know who this is, but it's very well-cited and seems well-researched): www.centurylife.org/is-induct...
Q: Do you realize that induction is also really popular in Europe? A: Yes. I mentioned that it's pretty rare here in the U.S., but popular lots of other places, and mentioned China by name because it's the biggest example. Q: Do you realize that map of China you showed includes Taiwan? A: I do now! Didn't before! Whoops! Sorry to those who were offended. And if you were made happy by that, then, great, I guess? Q: What do you mean induction might not be more efficient than resistance coil? A: See sources cited in the description. There's research indicating that induction is more efficient with small pans, but less efficient with large pans. But people dispute those findings, for reasons that go over my head. Very technical stuff. Q: Why do some people hear the whine from induction stoves while some people don't? A: I imagine it's pretty complicated, but one reason might be that upper-frequency sensitivity varies a lot from person to person. Generally speaking, the older a person is, the less upper-frequency sensitivity they have. I routinely play tones around 16k for my students that make them wince, yet I can't hear them at all. I don't have any particular hearing damage, I'm just 15 years older than them. Q: Do all induction stoves make that much noise? A: No, I think you can find ones that are quieter, and it's only a really big issue when you're using high power. Q: Did you know there are induction stoves made to fit woks? A: No! Neat! Q: Is aluminum really cheaper than steel? A: Not by weight, but weight isn't the relevant metric here. Nobody makes aluminum pans that are just as heavy as their steel counterparts - to do that would require making an absurdly thick aluminum pan. Aluminum pans are lighter, and are generally cheaper than stainless steel, though there are always exceptions. Q: Why is induction so rare in the U.S. when it's been common in Asia and Europe for years? A: I tried to find market research on that question and didn't find anything. I have a theory, which I will offer for your consideration. Maybe it's an indication of how the U.S. is (or was) more technologically advanced, not less. In the U.S., resistance coil stoves became popular many decades ago, probably ahead of the rest of the world. In places like India and China, they basically skipped resistance coil - their economies didn't reach levels of development comparable to the U.S. until induction was already on the market, so they basically went straight from gas (or charcoal) to induction. They skipped coil. Thoughts?
Hi Adam! My mother won't use the induction burner (and pans!) I bought her last Christmas because she says it will interfere with her pacemaker and kill her. And yes, I did google it but the results were debatable. There seemed to be *something* in her theory but...What do you and your scientist friends think? Happy Christmas. I tell you what...this year she's getting a voucher for the beauty salon and liking it. 🎁
After that tweet of yours about induction in Chinese homes, I really did have to squint and go "what the heck is induction vs electric", so, thanks for the clarification.
Aluminum is cheaper by volume, the relevant variable in pots
Do a video on energy efficiency
@@kathrynhamblin6479 Better be safe than sorry! I think the best presents are doing something together with her :P Happy Christmas in advance!
Just so you know, your habit of explaining what people in the UK call american things has made American cooking videos MUCH more informative for me as someone from the UK.
That’s definitely my favourite thing about him
Agreed. I never knew what the fuck a broiler was til he mentioned it. It was a nice light bulb moment.
@@Hersi310 how do you call the broiler?
@@cubrakadabra It's a grill
Long live the empire
"why I heat my pan not my burner"
Liam Tahaney whats the joke here ,but yea i get the why i ___ my___ and not my ___ jokes
@@jmsso3631 There is another one of Adam's videos in which he shows why he seasons his cutting board instead of the steak, and it became a meme.
Why i beat my lotion not my meat
@@narutouchiha6905 why I hate random crappy dick jokes that don’t make sense
@kelseyngrant To be fair, it’s mostly because Adam is making cooking videos, and the electromagnetic interference is a bother for his equipment.
The lack of waste heat is a godsend and I can't express that enough. During the summers, since I don't have central air, my induction cooktop sits on top of my gas stove and I use it for every day things and it takes the load off the window units so nicely. I also have restaurateur friends who swear by high power Induction. Makes kitchen work so much more tolerable.
Fair point, I think induction is clearly the way to go if you live somewhere warm. I live in the UK though, and the waste heat just ends up reducing the amount I need from my central heating.
I need to get a portable induction cooker like this one soon because I live in a studio apartment in Texas with a rather underpowered AC. Whenever I use my gas stove it heats up the whole entire apartment like crazy and it's already 95 degrees (Fahrenheit) here in May
What about the EMF your body is absorbing.
Lol the EMF from an induction cooker is much lesser than microwaves or phones.
@@MrRinre what studies say that?
Important factor to consider before buying an induction stove (or individual burner): burner size. It matters--A LOT. On most lower-end induction stoves the largest burner you'll get is 6". Since induction burners only heat the area of the pan making direct contact with the cooktop surface, 6" burners spell trouble for bigger pans, for example 12" skillets, which typically have a 9" bottom diameter: the central area of the pan will heat nicely, but the periphery will not. If you want to get a stove with 9" burners, count on spending big bucks, like $5,000 and up. Also, note that you can't judge the actual burner size--the diameter of the magnetic coil beneath the cooktop--just by looking at the cooktop markings; the two don't necessarily line up. Serious research is called for before purchase.
I had a full-size induction cooktop in my old house Now, I have a gas cooktop and I hate it. So slow and inefficient. I'm going to replace the with induction in a few months. I'll have to have a dedicated, 40 amp electric line installed, and the gas line capped, but it's worth it.
It's actuall more o a problem that induction has a min pan size as well, so not all small pots will work.
Ooooor, you could just stop buying cheap pans...
As a Chinese, here’s another reason: hotpot! Portable gas stoves are also on the market, but induction cooktops don’t require fuel refill and we like that part.
sixteenfu definitely induction is best for hot pot
J C Adam literally mentioned that induction cooktops are popular in China and I was just proving it. What else do you wanna know??
It’s used for Chinese hotpot a lot, other Hot Pot styles such as Korean BBQ or Thai Mookata prefer to use a gas burner as they usually have a grill plate in their hot pot which doesn’t work well with an induction hob, A Chinese style hotpot works perfectly even when they are the Ying Yang / Mandarin Duck style or a traditional hotpot...
@@sixteenfu dont know why he was so mean to you, china was mentioned in the video so it made sense
@@weiren1252 Who is your angry little voice directed at?
why i season my electricity rather than my steak
lmao
really scraping the bottom of the barrel now huh
Well I lol’d SuperCookieGaming, so don’t listen to the idiots who clearly put their vinegar legs on the left.
@Daniel Kintigh he said in a recent q&a that he likes the memes and sometimes does it to make more memes. sorta like him yelling NO! multiple times in a recent video.
You gave me a good laugh right there
I work as a kitchen designer in a big furniture store in Germany. Our clients mostly want to have an induction powered stove, mostly 80 cm wide, many with an intergrated downdraft. All of this good traits you mentioned are a great sellpoint. Allso, sometimes it's not the stovetop that's noisy, but the bottom of the pot. The material in the bottom can have small pockets of air in it, that vibrate and create high pitched sound. Cooking is fast, the temperature is better regulated, the whole thing cools down very quickly and you forgot to mention another safety feature: that the heating up feature shuts off as soon as the pot is moved away and after a few minutes it shuts off completly. There are other great features....
I think the future for kitchen designs in smaller units where space is at a real premium will do away with fitted hot plates (burners) all together. Just utilizing plug in induction hobs. You only need 2 to be able to do a rounded meal so why have an inset hob which takes up space and can only be used for one thing - cooking. You prep your food and then bring out the hob, plug in and cook. So worktop space is freed up for dual use.
I loved my induction cooker but honestly the feature where is turns off if you take the pan away for too long is annoying. It makes stirring the food awkward and tossing and flipping things frustrating. Its not a big deal but I wish there was an option to let me control it myself.
I totally agree with @ghostemblem - the feature where it turns off the burner when you take the pan off is super annoying. Doing it after 30 secs would be fine, but the induction hobs that I've used do this very quickly. So lifting the pan off of the burner to give the pan a shake or toss the contents will turn it off. I've used a hob where turning it actually locked the burner - which requires a different set of actions to turn it back on. In addition, it is likely to reset the power level which requires that the cook not only turn it on but also adjust the power level afterwards. These are minor interface problems that could be easily addressed. There also doesn't seem to be consistency across brands or models.
The noise level also depends on the pan you put on the induction top. Some pans aren't completely solid inside the base and the vibrations inside the base of the pan itself is what is causing the noise. I bought a cast iron pan about a year ago and the noise completely disappeared, and when I asked my friend who is a white goods technician about this he explained this to me.
Thanks so much for this! I was wondering why some pans were so noisy, and others were so silent I didn't even know if the cooktop was working or not until I tried sipping the soup I was re-heating. I don't mind the sound--unless I am up above 6 it really isn't noticeable, and most thing I have been cooking/frying are down at 2-3. But I will keep this in mind for if it does start to annoy me. I am scared of cast iron (I broke the glass of our last glasstop electric by accidentally dropping my Le Creuset dutch oven onto it), but as I get more comfortable I will try those again.
“White goods”?
@@andreirachko it's a term for the household appliance category in the uk
@@andreirachko as progan said, household appliances. Of the bigger kind though, like stoves/ovens, fridges, freezers, laundry machines, etc. Name probably comes from them traditionally being white. It's the same in Sweden.
It seems to be worse on those aluminum pans with stainless steel inserts
I remember when all tutorials I've watched said you need to turn your shit up to max for searing steak. The thing is they didn't have an induction top, but I did, so the steak smoked the whole house and left nice unwashable imprint on the pan, all in just under 2 minutes.
yeah, this is one of my big complaints about the celebrity chef phenomenon. Professional chefs often give bad advice to home cooks, because professional chefs experience a different reality from the one many home cooks live in. Most of the pros have gas, so they all tell you to pre-heat your pan on high before searing a steak. Bad idea if you have a good resistance coil or induction stove.
My first indiction Cooktop required 50A/240v wiring and breaker. The amount of energy a good induction stovetop can pour into your cookware is something to behold. I love showing people how fast you can boil water :)
Damon Dziewiontkowski induction cooktops in the Us 20 years ago cost over $2,000 and individual burners cost $500 and were hopelessly complicated!
@@damondziewiontkowski5623 i am so jealous, being stuck with a 1800watt 120volt 15amp cook top. i still manage to burn off the coating on my cast iron pan though, after leaving it on high to preheat.
when i cook steak on my induction, i set it below or 2 clicks below high because it heats up the pan alot. in fact, the only time i used high on it is when boiling water for pasta
Another safety thing: if there's nothing magnetic on the stovetop, you can accidentally turn my induction burners "on," and they'll just... Do... Nothing. They even turn themselves back off after 30 seconds. 🤙🤙
Oh man. I've got an old electric plate stovetop. It has no visual indicator so it's real easy to leave on. Get home from work and go in the kitchen "hmm it's a bit warm in here OH SHIT"
@@idlemessiah I had a buddy in college who's apartment burned down because of a neighbor doing exactly that! Something I didn't realize would be important... Until I had a three year old! 😬
Mine beeps if there's no pan on the burner. Its annoying
Are cats magnetic?
@@MoltenMouseMetal Only if you thoroughly rub their fur very fast.
Even if I had gas I would strongly suggest looking into induction, it's that good IMO. I was team gas before I tried induction.
I hear you but...FiRe
I was team induction until I read the electricity bill 😂 and, since I live in a house warmed by a traditional methane boiler, the total energy cost would have been insane in winter and so I had to change the induction with gas .Unfortunately I live in a country where energy is pretty expensive
same here. also induction has no burning products.
gas stovetops in private households are such a waste of resources and i really can‘t believe how it‘s still so popular in the US... it‘s like you‘re stuck in the 20th century lol
@@luca35821 *F I R E*
I just moved to a house with an induction burner and I have never experienced more enjoyable cooking. I have had gas, electric, and now induction and I can say without a shadow of a doubt that induction cooktops are the best thing I've ever had in a kitchen while my gas stoves have been comparative misery. Get an induction cooktop, they're really that good.
4:26 having the iPad in the proximity of the heat made me NERVOUS
Not that I care much for the iPad itself... But if you know the build quality on the inside of those... Keeping them away from heat and liquid is a MUST! Because, they are not that great...
as long as he does not put tech-items near the heat. that paperweight will still avoid paper from being blown away
that was extremely stupid.
at 1:03 also
@@CMDRSweeper yeah I don’t think any smartphone or tablet device likes being near fire or liquid
I'm glad he's giving us the lowdown on his deduction of this induction!
wow your channel looks kinda cool
@@penguinlover2k195 Hey thanks! I'm actually putting the final touches today's new video right now. I guess I should stop reading comments and go finish! 😉
@@Passionforfoodrecipes I think I watched some of your videos before and you know what I´m gonna subscribe
@Yeet Skideet lol, hey thanks!
Almost everything in the video could be seen in a commercial for them. What they don't show is how horribly uneven it heats the pan. Combine this with cast iron or carbon steel (also poor heat distributors) and you'll have pancakes that are part burnt / part underdone. -That's why this American doesn't have induction or cast iron or carbon steel. (Tri-Ply clad, and gas for me)
30 years ago during culinary school, we were presented with this new technology. One of the teachers put a 100 francs note between the induction stove and a pot of boiling water to demonstrate that the surface wasn't hot. Then we asked how sturdy it was and the teacher slammed the pot a few times on the stove, and the glass shattered.
It's glass what did you expect?
Yeah, that’s what usually happens to glass.
@@CT-vm4gf glass is diffent things, a drinking glass is one thing but there are shop windows that are very resiliant
After watching this video I've decided to purchase induction for new kitchen. It's a freking magic, you can boil water I SHIT YOU NOT under 2 min. Making spaghetti has never been so quick or doing anything, and responsiveness Adam is talking about here, it's amazing, literally one click and you can see reaction instantaneously. I highly recommend induction for everyone trust me you are not gonna regret it. Also now I can cook in summer as well, as kitchen don't get hot at all. Magic i'm telling you. Only bad thing is that we had to give away like 10% of some old pots and what not that was not suitable for induction, but tbh I would get rid of those anyway so it was not so bad thing for me personally, but just heads up.
What kind of pots did you buy for the induction stove?
@@iTakeCash get a defusser plate and (any) cookwrare can be used!!
@Tacoraptor if a magnet sticks to bottom. I mostly use cast iron skillets and 3 ply clad Stainless Calphalon. The older stainless doesn't work but new ones do.
@@aaronthenorm5400 If you have to get a plate for your induction stovetop, you might as well go electric at that point.
@@MinecraftMasterNo1 No; because; I'f you'd done some research you would know induction is around 70% less expensive to use!
Whether the pan will heat or not doesn't really depend on whether it's "magnetic", ferrous, or whether a magnet will stick to it. Eddy currents are generated in any conductive material, it's just that copper and aluminum are too good at conducting electricity so they don't dissipate all that much at the frequencies a typical induction top radiates. Iron dissipates more because it conducts electricity more poorly at those frequencies, a fact which is only sort of related to its ferromagnetism. If you go to even higher frequencies, aluminum and copper catch up and pans made of those metals will work too. Those products are called "all-metal" induction tops.
Interesting. Do these tops use more energy compared to the "not all-metal" ones, because of the higher frequencies?
Looked through the comments to find this. Glad to see it.
Yeah it actually works specifically because its *inefficient*, meaning the energy is lost as heat. In most engineering you dont want to lose mechanical or electrical energy as heat but in this case thats a good thing
This not correct. While higher resistance creates higher, for the same current, loses (heat) the eddy current strength is inversely proportional to resistance meaning the current are smaller creating a net zero power dissipation difference. The only way to increase eddy current losses (or heat) is increasing volume or the magnetic field (strength of the magnetic field or frequency) The reason iron is better is better at this is that it has hysteresis loses because it's ferro magnetic. It dissipates power as heat when shifting the magnetic poles in the iron back and forth which is an additional loss to eddy current loses.
@@sebastianclyne2355 " loses (heat) the eddy current strength is inversely proportional to resistance " The _resistance_ of iron is pretty small. It's still an excellent conductor, and so a large current will form in response to the changing magnetic field. What matters here is the _impedance,_ which is high for iron at the typical frequencies an induction top operates at (which is a consequence of the high magnetic permeability of iron). That's why a rock or a piece of rubber won't work: it needs to be a material that conducts very well at low frequencies but poorly at high frequencies. Iron is like that, while aluminum and copper are all around great conductors. Hysteresis losses occur as magnetic domains realign themselves. That takes time, so the loss per cycle goes down with frequency (you can see the hysteresis curve clearly "flatten out" as frequency is increased, and the loss in the cycle is proportional to the area inside the curve). In addition, even at very low frequencies (say, 1 or 2 Hz), hysteresis losses are typically modeled as growing only linearly with frequency whereas eddy current losses grow quadratically. So at typical induction cooktop frequencies, around 20 kHz and above, hysteresis losses will be very small, if not outright negligible.
My parents have an induction stove, if you put it on max it literally takes 7 seconds to get it to boiling. It's nuts
@@ripper2665 wtf 😂😂😂
You gotta be kidding...Can you perhaps make a video? I'm a hardcore proponent of gas stoves but if induction means that I can just boil a big bucket of water in merely 10 seconds, I am ALL in, so sick of having to wait to cook my pasta while waiting for the water to boil first, you know?
Quite impressive indeed. Getting one liter/kilo of water to 100 C from let's say 20 degrees would take 334,88 kJ of energy which would mean that their parents' stove has a power output of 47 kW. Extraordinarily powerful, when the one Adam has on video is rated at 1,6 kW.
@@215Days I just boil water in an electric kettle in such scenarios and put it in the pot. I hate waiting for a big pot of water to boil. But if that's all you would switch over for then get a stand alone piece. They're cheap. I got one recently to get familiar with induction and mostly use it for tea and soup 😁
Ripper The PlasmicIndoRaptor what’s wrong with u
My partner got an induction stove when we still lived in Cape Town, South Africa. It makes cooking faster, and in some ways, more pleasurable. Plus it can make cooking certain dishes (which are sensitive to heat), a lot easier. The size is definitely also a factor, since its great for a small apartment. We've returned to the slow electric stoves here in the UK (sigh), although we'd love to get an induction stove but we have to first build up our finances and find the space for it LOL.
You can buy a single snappy chef induction plate online. (the single one is better than the two plate one, it's also a bigger pot area). It's about 44 cm x 40 cm so it's really easy to put in a cupboard when not in use
Boer
@@iLoveBoysandBerries Stupid
8:00 for anyone interested, this has mostly to with the orientation of the magnetic field. The induction stove works best when a flat surface is directed parralel to the stove. That way the magnetic field is oriented perpendicular to the surface of the pan and the eddie currents mentioned earlier are the strongest. Eddie currents are a name for currents that go in circles due to magnetic induction.
yess, coz area vector and magnetic field vector become parallel, and so the magnetic flux is maximum
Live in Germany and bought a new kitchen with an induction stove top about two years ago. It really didn’t take long to get used to it. What I really love is how fast water for pasta, tea or other meals gets to a boil. It saves lots of time in the long run. My stove even has an extra fast mode for boiling water.
Yeah it's funny how they have level 11 out of 10 lmao
@@daijoubu4529 Do you wear black?
That you boil water on the stovetop rather than in a kettle for tea tells me a lot.
@@hlynnkeith9334That you assume all tea needs a kettle tells me a lot.
@@pspublic13 I did not assume that all tea needs a kettle. That you assume I assumed tells me all I want to know about you.
I’ve had an induction cook top in my house since 2013 and it so amazing. Sometimes when I’m boiling a pot of something, I put a towel between the pot and the stove top Incase the pot boils over. It doesn’t damage the towel at all and it doesn’t interfere with the cooking.
your insane. got any other great tips?
😲 wow
I've had my induction cook top since 2005, and I don't want to miss it. The responsiveness of an induction top is incredible. In the same way that cooks take a pot literally off the fire you can also remove a pot or pan from the induction top to get an instant responsiveness. But as a massive pro vs any other heating system: you can pass your hand over the full-throttle powered induction top without risking major burns. Sure, if you've been heating your cast iron pan for ten minutes at the max power setting there will be quite some residual heat, but nowhere similar to a full throttle electrical or gas burner that you've left on at max setting. True, I have not found a solution to the wok problem, but I can live with that. No, I am not Asian, so I tend to worry about woks less. Second: flambéeing is very difficult to do on an induction burner. You have to light the alcohol on fire with an external fire source, similar to a standard electric stove top.
I've owned an induction cooker now for 9 years. It's great. Although I can't hear the noise from it as mentioned here, holding a pan handle I can detect a constant vibration. Be warned the induction places do get HOT. I really wouldn't place my hand too close them. In the time I've owned it, I've only called an engineer once to replace a warn switch/variable heat control.
The sound is from his cook wear not being as conductive as it should be, the lower magnetic metal content in your pots, the more you will hear that noise
I love that I never have to use a double boiler. Egg sauces that are temperature sensitive are a breeze. My induction burner, that I picked up at the free table at the dump, never over heats chocolate! If I had known how useful they are, I would have bought one years ago.
“This may be the sound of our culinary future.” “nyzozozozoozozz”
Best comment award
I've had one for the past 8 years and I love it. Con is that I had to buy new pots and pans that work on it and throw out the old non ferrous ones. Upside is no risk of burning down my tiny tiny apartment as there's no open flame. Here in the Philippines it's popular in tiny studio apartments, but I've never seen one in a full sized home.
That is a wrong misconception. Countless homes have been burnt down using induction hobs due to wrong wiring rating used. These little guys peak at 2kW or more and using an underrated cable WILL catch fire.
@@impactodelsurenterprise2440 that makes sense, but I'd hope that the likelihood of that is less than consumer mistake of forgetting to turn it off; you only need to get the right wiring once per cooker, but you gotta turn it off every time.
There is a workaround for older, non-ferrous pots and pans, you can basically turn your induction hobs into a standard electric hob by placing a ferrous piece of metal on your hob which will react with the induction, heat up and pass on that heat to your pot. Of course, if you have the means to get new pots and pans, that's a lot easier, but if you have one legacy pot you can't replace or don't want to get rid of, that's a workaround.
That time lapse of your hand holding the knife by the induction burner had me freaking out for a second , because I didn't realize it was time lapse. It looked like your hand was shaking in agony. "Just let go of the knife! You need your hands!"
I love my Siemens induction stove. In Boost mode I can boil a pot of water in less than a minute. 👍 By the way, high quality induction stoves make very little sound, unlike that cheap single burner you used, so it's not a fair comparison against your high-end electric stove. I think you can easily use it in videos as many KZhead chefs do.
I can barely hear my faberware cooker!
why are you asking me I don't know what induction cooking is
Third base!
@@loweffortgaming2593 Naturally!
I've cooked on induction wearing an iron ring for years and it doesn't heat up at all. The range of the magnetic field is very small. You can measure it by lifting the pan slowly off of the induction. As soon as it goes out of range, the induction will turn off. (It only turns on if there is some metal to heat on the top, as a safety measure I guess.) Another advantage of Induction over gas, (don't know whether this stands for your american 'hobs' or not) is that it comes with various timers and auto cooking programs. I frequently used the programs for cooking rice and heating milk. Just turn it on and it cooks and turns off all on its own. You can also set a timer to start the cooking after a given period. So you can set it up and go to work and it will start cooking your food (most probably soup) while you're on your way home so you get a hot meal as soon as you get home. (Don't get stuck in traffic though)
This was great info thank you
Your videos really helped me figure out what kind of stove I wanted for our new kitchen. Thank you so much for what you do!
Fun (?) fact: this video is how I discovered your channel, Adam. We were looking into changing our cooktop and oven and wanted to understand how induction compares to other options. We ended up with induction and you ended up with a subscriber.
You don't necessarily need a ferrous material to use on an induction top, but it helps alot! The reason is to do with the skin depth. Induction tops work by generating alternating magnetic fields, which in turn generate eddy currents in the pan. The eddy currents flow in small current loops, so the result is they cancel each other out in the bulk of the material, only existing within a small depth near the surface - this is the skin depth. This is important since a small skin depth results in a large surface resistance. Heating occurs through Joule heating, which is proportional to the surface resistance. Thus a good material to use an an induction top would have a small skin depth. Since the square of the skin depth is inversely proportional to the material permeability, ferrous materials (which have a large permeability) are particularly good for induction tops. The square of the skin depth is proportional to the material resistivity, thus you'd expect a good conductor, such as copper, to also be suitable. This isn't the case however since copper is nonmagnetic, so it has a small permeability, and whilst the resistivity varies between different materials, the permeability varies alot more. In other words the skin depth of weakly magnetic stainless steel is significantly smaller than that of copper at typical operating frequencies, which is what makes stainless steel suitable and copper not. You can however use copper and aluminium at higher frequencies since the square of the skin depth is also inversely proportional to the operating frequency! These are called all-metal induction tops.
After two years using our induction stove, we are not looking back! Hands down, Induction cooking is the best choice for us in an all electric house. Its a joy to spread newspapers on the cooking space; fry bacon in an open pan, and clean up by putting the grease spattered newspaper in the bin. Clean up can be very easy this way. :)
What, are you kidding? this is my Dream! Newspaper under pots for roll up clean up? I'm asking for this for Christmas.
We've spent the last 2 years with a 1900 Euro Siemens induction hob. It's ok if you want to boil water, but you're a foodie, it's rubbish. Noisy, and doesn't heat evenly. You get burned bands on pancakes and omelettes. You can't toss your pan because the heat is immediately zero when the pan is lifted. Gas is a thousand times better for somebody who likes to cook. My recommendation is a couple of induction hobs for the simple stuff, like boiling, slow-cooked stews, and soups. For the more comlicated things, a few gas rings.
@@dandare1001 I have been cooking with a WMF induction hub for a month and this exactly is my experience too. I can't understand why people love them so much. Pan heats so unevenly middle of it will have burned fond while edges are still uncooked. When I try to boil water I can clearly see small (may be 10cm) ring generating all the bubles while rest of the pan is completely still. I thought that was a problem with my particular hob but if even your fancy hob is the same I will go gas as soon as I can.
@@salihsen8346 I think people love them so much because they have been told that they are good, and those people don't really cook anything that requires skill. Our hob has a field either side that is supposed to adjust to the size of the pan. You can see straight lines of heat going across the pans. The centre one is round and is also supposed to adjust for the size of the pan, but as you say, it leaves parts of the food uncooked. I'm afraid that I wasted a lot of money after getting useless advice from so many people. The next will be gas.
You looked up the dangers of induction and still chose it?
Having a concave induction plate for woks was my favorite part of working at the restaurant I was in. It made making pasta fun.
I use a four element induction range at home and I have a standalone unit such as you demonstrate in my caravan. A neighbor of mine has a specialized wok induction element which has a recessed concave instead of a flat surface - works great. Also, you can get a separate plate which sits on the induction element and allows you to use older non induction pots and pans.
The portable induction stoves are ideal for asian hotpot, where you need to maintain a low simmer outside of the kitchen. Traditionally it's been a butane camper stove or wood burning steamboat but a portable induction hob is the undisputed winner there. For range cooking there's much more variation.
Great review... I learned everything about induction with this guy I have a studio apartment and I just picked up one of these induction plates and it works absolutely perfect.....and on top of that it stays at the temperature you set it so it doesn't accidentally overheat anything which is an absolute Plus for me cuz I usually burn everything I'm cooking..
Yet another top video. I recently bought an induction hob to take some of the heavy lifting from the Rayburn stove. It’s been a godsend, particularly from the point of view of saving energy, not to mention convenience. Loving the love for Michel Roux Jr too.
You have to realise that in some places in Asia people have an indoor and outdoor kitchen. Outdoor kitchen is gas while indoor could be anything
In Finland almost all of our stoves are induction
its the same in Denmark ♥️
Same in Norway. Works fine, pretty quick stuff. Not gas quick perhaps.
In soviet russia Nah im not even gonna do it...
Citation needed
I thought induction was the standard everywhere now.
I remember I was on a cruise a few years ago, and open flames are avoided in general for safety reasons. One of the things I noticed was they had an outdoor kitchen area to serve chinese foods and they had round woks on round induction cookers. Was pretty neat.
I watched this video a year ago and suggested to my parents to get an induction cooktop oven. They love it, and I'm 90% sure they've never even noticed the very slight noise of the fan, though you can hear it turn on and off occasionally when it's cycling
You're giving me anxiety leaving that tablet so close to the stove top.
But imagine if his ring started to heat up tho Edit: oh damn wait, panic averted
i love how you look at so many different perspectives in these videos
Hey Adam, A large induction stove operating on a 240v two-pole circuit will be a lot less noisy for a few reasons, but none more important than the build quality. Just like in the case of your cheap camera's audio equipment, the cheaper construction without shielding on the small countertop unit is responsible for the high emf being thrown around. Also, there's an additional potential benefit of them in cooking at high altitudes. Love the videos man!
I believe the sound it's from the tiny spaces between the pan and the glass. That's why a powerline makes sounds, the wires are made from multiple wires and the air is doing the sound, learned in school but don't recall the explanation. Transformers in old equipment the same.
I have been binge watching your videos about as often as I feel hungry and/or I feel hungry because I click on another video... Cooking is Experimental Therapy with a Tasty Reward.... I noticed you use a phrase pretty often, almost to the point of an "Axiom", that being: "You Do You". I just wanted to say that I like it simply because it distills the essence all of our personal culinary journeys and development.
Imagine how much sweat from the Chefs forehead ends up dripping onto your dinner in a gas kitchen
Free seasoning!
no need to add salt....
What's more unusual is entering a commercial kitchen that uses induction and it *isn't* like a sauna
Anger the staff in a restaurant and the sweat is the least of your worries. I always cringe when a Karen tells of a waitress.
r/TechnicallyCannibalism
When I've been to Japan, I saw induction for the first time. All new stoves there are basically induction. While it was kinda frustrasting that you need special frying pans at first, i found it really useful. Here in Germany, I mostly see normal electric stroves
Greetings from Sweden! You Sir just got yourself a new subscriber! Awesome channel!
Great introduction to induction Adam. Thank you. Well done! You just earned my subscription.
I’m in the USA, when we remodeled our kitchen we went with induction cooktop 30” 4 burner and could not be happier. Granted it’s more expensive upfront cost, but the advantages are nice. The ability to be precise in heat application and speed of boiling water is awesome.cooking in the summertime does not add that much extra heat compared to old resistance cooktop.
In regards to the noise: That might just be your standalone device 'acting up'. I have an inbuilt induction stovetop, and it's *completely* silent. No clicking, no fan noises, no noise whatsoever.
You dont hear it whining
@@queeny5613 Isn't that my point?
@@samplebriefmint4204 oh sorry I misinterpreted it
Yeah I have one from over a decade ago and while there's some slight fan noise if I'm using it on high, medium and below is basically silent. Also any decent audio recording/editing software will have EASY tools to remove that kind of background noise. Even audacity would be able to filter out background fan noise.
It really does depend on the quality of it. I have seen cheapo induction tops that do make some sounds every now and again (oddly only on steel pans) but this was a standalone plate top so naturally there's going to be more sound than an inbuilt one that would essentially soundproof any fan noise or whine.
Your channel has a lot of interesting things on it!
I had a small induction stove at my last place, and was really surprised how good it was. I still sometimes miss it while using gas, mainly for the ease of cleaning, but also the phenomenal power output. It did fine with my wok, which is admittedly a bit thicker and more gradually curved than most - gas might be better for that but that's only noticeable when you're picking it up to toss. And I'd guess the energy was mostly nuclear what with the plant just across the river from me, so that's much better on carbon emissions.
Unmentioned induction advantages. The timer. The low settings. Getting rid of your slow cooker. Getting rid of your electric kettle. Getting rid of special cleaners for the glass. Gaining counter space by using portable inductions that you store when you dont need them. Cleaner bottoms of pans. Fun fact, there are induction hobs with a concave hollow for woks, Pricey, but available.
They're super good at the whole range of heat and it's consistent. If you want something warm but not burning at the bottom, induction can do it. Even gas isn't as good as induction as that.
Why on earth would you get rid of a kettle? The video just showed to took 3.5 minutes to get what 500ml of water to boil. That's glacial. Just boil it in the kettle and pour it in the pan and you'll be at boiling in half that time. Americans not using kettles is so weird. Hell even calling them 'electric kettles' as if there are other types of kettle people use that aren't utterly archaic is weird.
@@mytimetravellingdog 2 minutes and 20 seconds to boil 500ml of water, just checked. :) Sorry I can't comment on weird Americans not using kettles, electric or otherwise. I can say that every Australian that I know of uses an electric kettle. I chose to ditch the standard 1500 ml electric kettle for a smaller kettle for the one or two cups of boiling water required on a regular basis in this household. makes far more sense energy wise to just boil the amount needed.
@@mytimetravellingdog "Hell even calling them 'electric kettles' as if there are other types of kettle people use that aren't utterly archaic is weird." I have a stove. Why would I need another electric unitasker appliance when a simple metal bucket does the job just fine?
isodoublet because it’s quicker, and boiling water is a requirement for tea and most home style coffee non-American’s drink.
I can vouch for induction. Moved into a new appartment not too long ago and was pretty anxious about it, but so far it's been better than traditional gas stoves. It heats up much faster and is far easier to control and clean.
I got one of those portable induction stoves from some sort of a giveaway, and I absolutely enjoy the sheer speed it takes to heat up.
Fascinating. I wondered about this. Thanks for breaking it down.
Science and food. Two of my most beloved things. Thanks for all the content!
I learned about induction cooking in a physics textbook about 15 years ago. I finally bought a 1800w induction topper a few years ago, and now cooking on a radiant heat stove feels stone age. The built-in timer and numerical temperature control on the induction topper are great. Too bad induction stoves are still so rare and expensive in the US.
That's what the internet is for. Finding the low prices and having them sent to you.
fantastic overview, thanks! The only downside I really see is the lack of heating on vertical surfaces such as a wok. In terms of reduced excess heat in the kitchen, lower risk of fire (accidentally bumping an element on with objects on the element), rapid response to changes of heat setting, no risk of natural gas leak, and higher heat output than electric, induction is looking pretty decent in 2021
Getting an induction cooktop has been the best kitchen upgrade. Mine has a "speed boost" button and heats insanely fast, it's easy to keep clean as food doesn't burn to the cooktop, and if you have kids and pets there's way less of a burn risk
Even with shielding, the high-pitched sound at the end was absurdly painful.
he have a cheap unit, high end one are almost silent, you just hear a little of fan that's all
You're bound to make noise when you're cooking, so it's not that annoying.
He used a dinky little 39 dollar unit, the larger ones are way quieter. negligible compared to the sound that a regular kitchen fan or sautéing vegetables make.
It was most likely the cookware. When they are ferrous metal clad in aluminum, the magnetic field causes high frequency interference between the three layers. I have a bunch of clad cookware that sounds awful, then throw my cast iron on and it is near silent.
My parents have an induction stove top, like a proper one, and it's almost impossible to hear it, especially over food being cooked or a fan running.
love love love love love when you bring academics on, you do a great job presenting ideas and making it interesting
Hi Adam, we recently got a kitchen aid induction stove/ convection oven up here at our house. I don't know if its because of your smaller single burner, but the only sound when we cook on the stovetop is a slight hum, very quiet and the pinging of the pans expanding.
I've recently got a 7kw induction hob (yes I'm from the UK). I really like it, only problem is I've had to replace most of my pans. I use a cast iron wok which works well with it. You can wire it into two circuits if you need to spread the load. One great thing is when I'm deep frying in my wok there's no source of ignition to start a fire.
I guess a long-necked barbecue butane lighter could be used for those times when you want that airborne oil droplet-laden stream to flare so as to singe the ingredients and add to the wok hei essence. Not having the convective & radiant cooking zones afforded by a wok over a high power gas burner would be a drawback to a induction wok setup regarding wok hei. I can see how induction wok cooking would be a good compromise for indoor home kitchen Asian cooking (save for inadequate ventilation), but I’m used to using my commercial grade outdoor propane wok burner and side backyard ‘pop up’ outdoor hawker/street vendor kitchen (except when it rains), with the low hissing roar of the blue flames, the rhythmic hiss of searing tossed noodles, the metallic ring of a glancing wok chuan (spatula) contact and the periodic ‘krup’ of auto ignition flares all a source of ASMR for me. Cheers!
About the Wok/Induction situation: There are special shaped induction wok stations.
But those are quite expensive and only for commercial kitchens as they require special electrical wiring.
They cost 3x more in initial captial and running costs, and are likelier to catch electrical fire.
@@melr.5259 Here they are regular 240v. And are 250 ish euro. But they dont fit every wok so ...
They’re not that expensive. Nuwave under 160$ uses 120v With accessories @ www.amazon.com/s?k=induction+wok+cooktop&gclid=Cj0KCQjw1qL6BRCmARIsADV9JtZOLHb4CZGvAOU87kOg3N8R0uZWLbqfDYNb0qGgTyNIKmsG_G_L-74aAldjEALw_wcB&hvadid=176939679110&hvdev=c&hvlocphy=9005550&hvnetw=g&hvqmt=e&hvrand=15835177490180276263&hvtargid=kwd-4722069343&hydadcr=20221_9566477&tag=googhydr-20&ref=pd_sl_88rwmse8qf_e
@@anthonybattaglia5069 We are talking about commercial wok induction tops that come in stainless steel, with running tap, drainage and properly sealed electricals. These start at 5kW. Go check the price and see. Even at 5kw it is not suitable for true stir fry. A typical home induction stove is less than 2kW. A professional burner stove outputs 150-200K BTU which is equivalent to 50kw!
I'm sure that cheap/small one you used is noisier than most proper full size induction cooktops. Here in Europe they're very common, and even the cheap IKEA one I have doesn't make a sound like you're describing, and the really nice cooktops from brands like Bosch or Miele are basically silent and WAAAAYYY faster than the one you showcased in the video - we're talking 3600 watts instead 2000 watts or so. Huge difference.
I was actually wondering about this, thanks! Thumbs up and subscribed!
I have an induction hob and it makes nearly no noise at all. The most you'd get is a slight hum on full blast like when getting a pot of water to boil, otherwise, completely silent. I think it's more of a by case situation when it comes to noise.
Should also say, the low setting of an induction hob smallest coil is low enough to melt chocolate without the need for a double boiler. The induction hob is just SO versatile!
And dangerous. Don’t forget the dangers.
@@experiment54 ? Why? My party piece is boiling 1 litre of water in about 2 minutes, with a piece of A4 paper under the pan. The paper suffers no damage. So, why dangerous? And any spills just wipe down, since the hob surface doesn't heat up, apart from conductive heat from the pan.
@@jo2lovid seems my reply has been deleted. You can research the dangers of induction cooktops. We were going to buy one but have been put off.
@@experiment54 I assume you are referring to EMF issues? Do you have a WiFi access point in your house? That device runs magnitudes of frequency higher than an induction cooktop. Do you have a microwave oven? Same frequency as your WiFi AP. Lower frequency EMF by itself isn't dangerous. Just stand outside in sunshine, and you are being bathed in EMF frequencies magnitudes x magnitude, higher again than your home electronics produce. But then, extremely high frequencies (UV, Gamma 10^19Hz, X-Ray) are a real risk. An induction coil running at 150Khz is not going to harm you, (unless you have a heart pacemaker installed). Your cardiologist would warn you of that danger though.
@@jo2lovid did you read the studies?
Very informative! I'm in the process of buying a stove, so this was perfect timing.
I love your detail! 🇳🇬 induction hubs are quite pricey here in Nigeria
Thanks for making this video! I'd never heard of induction burners before seeing this. I got one for my apartment, and it's been awesome!
Go jackets! As a physics major from Georgia Tech, I loved this video!! Super fun and accessible for everyone
Sadly, I have no horsey magnet. :(
Then the test won't work. Sorry.
@SolutionExpert I'm sorry, I don't understand your question. It's a burner - you'd use it for anything you use a burner for.
@@aragusea I guess he was asking what kitchen related activity will you use the induction stove for? Will you cook on it? Boil water on it?Put a magnetic metal into your salad and heat it?
@GrapeL That was satire.
Another advantage of induction burners is you can put a sheet of parchment between the burner and the pan for easy clean up, if something spills out of the pan.
I have been cooking on Induction tops at 2 different homes for almost 14 years now. When I moved I replaced the standard range with an induction one from Ikea for a grand!!! I agree with the flat wok but I still use mine. The sound is there, but less heat overall I'll put up with the humming of the magnets and their fans.
It's nice to see that "that comment" from last video inspired you to focus on those who *can* be educated. Where I come from, gas installation is crazy expensive and caloric value of it is terrible. So heating and cooking with electric is, surprisingly, cheaper and more efficient.
Why surprisingly?
Adam... finally somebody who explained this completely.
I had a 46” induction cooktop put in my kitchen 5 or 6 years ago. No regrets. Very safe, easy peasy to clean. Each element has a “power “ option.
Got a induction stove 2 years ago. I love it. It's like going from double boilers for reheating to using a microwave. Game changer.
I'd love to try this type of burner, have gas in my kitchen, my parents have induction, but never thought about how it works until your video. Thanks Adam! Now just have to replace all my food service style aluminum pans.
Or put skillets or adaptor plates under them, but then you might lose the responsivity.
I recently got a new kitchen with an induction cooktop integrated. I only new the mains power induction tops you had before and I have to say the integrated cooktop is something you might actually be interested in. The sound you showed is still existing when you cook with the powerboost function but it is waaaay more quiet (to the point where the shielded microphone probably wouldn't notice) and it only exists when cooking on the highest level. It also takes only 30 seconds to boil 1l of water which is amazingly fast. However what to me is a big problem with induction is that my bialetti does not work with it. Sure, there are bialettis designed to work with induction stoves, but aluminium ones tend to have much better heat transfer and make a better espresso :)
I have an induction bialetti, even tho I don’t have an induction stove. It is my favorite bialetti (I have aluminum too). It works just fine compared to the aluminum.
I also had to switch from an aluminium to an induction moka, but I’m still trying to find an induction cezve
I just bought a nice 2 burner induction that comes with a fitted removable griddle with a lid for doing pancakes or kabobs etc. I love the portability because I can set it up outside on the patio. Easily stored. It’s called a Greecho… about 200 $ on Amazon. I’m finding new uses for it all the time.
My induction hob is 15 years old. Getting a bit scratched now but still fully functional. It only makes a tiny noise with certain pans in certain conditions. The new ones are better - faster to heat faster to adjust, the waiting (all those milliseconds!) while the cursor moves along seems like years. Oh and more increments, although I have pretty much got used to what number I need for cooking what. Thanks for the vid.
Thanks Adam. This is very informative video. I was more interested in something about material specially the glass on top and it’s sturdiness or expected issues with. I witnessed indication cooktop used in some pantry and the glass top blasted and it was bad! Do you already have video about it or can write something here on this please.
I recently switched from electric coil to induction cooker. Similar to the one you showed. You're right on pretty much everything including the noise. Mine is much louder than yours from what I can tell. The only thing I have problems with is cooking with food that requires very low heat. Mine does not go under 60c so things like pancakes and French omelettes often get burnt and stick to the pan before I have the chance to flip them.
Simple fix is don't use the temperature mode, use the power level mode (Watts). I have been using induction for almost 3 years now and I have yet to see an induction cooker where the temperature mode actually does do anything close to what you would expect, so I just ignore it.
We’ve installed induction cooktops in our last two houses. Replaced gas b/c we don’t want all the combustion products in the air. Also the cooktop is cool- wont burn you if you forget. It only works w non-aluminum cook-wear so we had to get rid of some crappy pots and pans and get nice ones!
Aluminium pans also have some health risks, so good riddance.
Or "Why I heat my pan, and not my stove"
underrated
Missed opportunity! He must be kicking himself.
One of the neater advantages is that if there's any boil over or spills - you don't have a charred mess to clean off like a typical electric burner. Also you can touch it (reasonably) safely, before heating a pan, as long as you're not wearing rings or metal. Another advantage for commercial cooking is both the evenness of the heat over the entire pan or pot - plus the consistent power levels. You can recreate exact results for all menu items every time. The power levels can be as low (or lower in some models) as 100 degrees F for those who want to really slow cook items. Also at 10:15m ... is that a zoom H6? Very nice!
The boil over part has it drawbacks though. If you boil over water on a traditional electric stovetop it will evaporate away from the plate, and pool in the lower parts. Whereas on the induction one it will pool everywhere and get under the pot and making it "float" away.
My landlord just renovated my kitchen! I excitedly went to cook for the first time on my new stove this evening only to discover that I couldn't... Really informative video! I need some new pans and then my new stove can finally be christened
Thanks Adam, this was very informative. Although I a diehard gas man I've always wanted to try an induction cooktop. I can't say the same for electric stoves however as I've burned everything I've ever attempted to cook on them.🔥🍳
Idk Adam, I'm still not convinced. I mean David Hume did present a strong argument in which he articulated what is known as the Problem of Induction, and I can't see how you'll ever change my mind about tha... Oh sorry wrong topic.
No see with induction you can prove things about the natural numbers using a base case and assuming the inductive hypothesis... Oh sorry, wrong topic about the wrong topic
Hahahaha amazing lol
@@moshadj yall must feel so smart huh?
@@BoP i have no idea what they're talking about and am very confused.
@@TheShizzlemop idk about the original comment but the second one is about mathematical induction. Basically, you prove that a formula works for some first/base case, assume that it works for the k-th term and show that it works for the (k+1)-th term. Then every case that comes after your base case is proven to follow the formula. It's kind of like a set of dominoes. Show that you can knock over the first one, and that if you knock one over, the next one falls. Then if you knock over the first one, everything is going to topple over eventually.
Idk induction is pretty common in Europe. Ive got an Induction stove too, pretty nice thing actually
I think that it making a lot of noise is a bonus because I've forgotten to turn the stove of to many times and i think this would help someone like me
There are also induction furnaces the use powerful magnets to melt iron and steel really fast. Really neat tech.
My heart started racing when he moved that hand with a ring over the induction stove.
An induction plate can boil water in a pan lifted by sugar cubes, but that's about the max range: 2 cm above the coils.