this post was submitted on 28 Jul 2023
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Realistically, how likely is it that this whole gas system we've been using will look batshit crazy in the future.
We build a city wide network of pipes carrying flamable gas ... so we can all have a nicer cooking experience despite alternatives being basically mainstream? What?!
Plenty of comments in here about induction being better or as good with different strengths/weaknesses. IME, I agree completely, I much prefer induction now.
But just recently I had to downgrade to the "crappy" electric stove tops. And you know what ... it's fine. Seriously, you get used to it and cook decently enough. There's probably a lot of "preciousness" around cooking and kitchens TBH.
The thing about gas stoves is that they release pollutants in your house. It spikes CO, CO2 and a bunch of other combustion residue.
How different stoves work for you partly depends on what types of things you cook, but there are also a lot of variations in how crappy standard electric stoves are.
I've used old coil stoves that were not that bad, but my mother's new glass topped thing was so awful I learnt not to even try cooking some dishes. If you needed to brown anything you had to put the pan on for a 10-15 minute preheat to get anywhere near hot enough, then if you needed to reduce the heat to simmer it was best to just move to another burner if you could because it would take 5+ minutes to cool down. The top heat was just enough to brown something if you left it a long time and did not crowd the pan, but doing something like searing a steak or making a stir-fry just wasn't possible.
But then I've also used gas stoves that are hard to work with and don't have much control over the temperature - even my current stove I tend to switch burners to accommodate different heat levels better. So I guess a lot comes down to having the right specific stove to meet your requirements, more than being just a gas vs. electric issue. Having previously believed I'd never want anything other than gas I have been pretty impressed by the portable induction cooker I've been trying out, and I'm sure a better quality model would suit me for pretty much everything.
I would contend that electric cooktops have only started being decent relatively recently (specifically induction).
The coils ones are crummy, the "hot plate" ones are frustratingly slow and as you mentioned the glass ones aren't any better (unless induction).