What we think of our induction stove

(an honest review, and other news)

The very busy FTT kitchen

Back when Richard and I bought our house, in 2006, it had a cute but tiny galley kitchen and the kind of stove we’d almost always had in NYC and LA apartments—a white enamel gas stove and oven, “Hotpoint” brand. It was fine, unobjectionable, and when we added on to our house in 2014, I didn’t see the point in replacing it. I liked cooking on a gas stove, which had always felt more adjustable than an electric stove. We moved it over to our new kitchen and used it for six more years.

In the pandemic, we were baking and cooking a lot (do I have a mouse in my pocket?), and we decided to replace the Hotpoint with a fancier gas stove, a stainless steel model with a power burner, a simmer burner, and heavy iron grates you could slide your pots and pans across, chef-style. Not too long after we made the switch, we started reading stories about gas stoves and how harmful they are for indoor air quality. Richard has asthma, and asthma runs on both sides of our family, so we were concerned—especially when we saw one study showing that more than 12% of childhood asthma in the U.S. could be attributed to gas stoves. But we’d just spent almost a whole pandemic check on our gas stove! Plus, everyone I knew who loved to cook and bake used gas stoves. Couldn’t we open the windows? And turn on the exhaust fan we’d installed?

We tried this for a while, but when the company that made our stove recalled an important part, we saw an opportunity. Richard wrote to the company, asking them to switch out our recalled-part gas stove for an induction model they were selling. (He’s a lawyer, so it was a little more persuasive than that.) After some back and forth, they agreed, and about a year ago we were the new owners of an all-electric, induction model.

Now, I’d love to have a plug-in electric car and a totally solar-powered house and well. But that’s not something we can make happen right now, and sometimes it makes sense—environmentally and financially—to drive your old Prius until the wheels fall off. We got lucky with an opportunity to replace our gas stove, plus we happen to have an in-house lawyer to make it happen. But! In case you’re thinking of getting a new stove sometime soon, we thought it might be helpful to share some of our experience transitioning from gas-powered to induction.

How does an induction stove work?

Unlike older models of electric stoves, induction stoves work with electromagnetic energy. The cooktop is made of a heatproof, glass-ceramic surface—it looks like an ordinary modern electric stove. When you turn on a burner, a copper coil beneath the surface conducts energy, which is transferred to your cookware.

Do you have to use special pots and pans?

Yes and no. The pots and pans you use on an induction stove have to be ferromagnetic. (If you’re not sure, you can do an easy test by sticking a refrigerator magnet to the bottom—if it sticks, you’re good.) Luckily my favorite pots and pans, enameled Le Creuset and cast iron, work fine. I replaced a stockpot and two nonstick pans—when shopping, just look for “induction compatible.”

What are the benefits?

Aside from keeping our air cleaner, reducing emissions, saving energy, and no longer having to order propane, the induction stove has many pluses, especially when cooking with kids.

The cooktop does not stay hot or emit as much heat as a gas or traditional electric stove. Basically, once you turn it off, it’s off, and the glass gets cool almost immediately. This makes it easier to feel confident pulling a stool or chair up to the stove and letting a young kid use the range. Here’s Harriet, making crepes yesterday:

With the gas stove, our wooden spoons would sometimes get charred if you left them on top of a pot (one way to keep pasta water from boiling over). But this never happens with the induction stove. Yet, it’s very powerful! A full pot of pasta water, or a tea kettle, boils so fast. Consumer Reports estimates that induction stoves boil water 20-40% faster than conventional electric or gas stoves.

It’s also very adjustable, and easy to keep stews and soups at a simmer.

The oven has convection and regular settings, and seems to work the same as our previous oven.

Our colorful Le Creuset pots and kettles are easier to keep clean, and the stove itself is easier to clean.

What about the drawbacks?

Induction stoves are more expensive than regular electric stoves. But, thanks to President Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act, you may be eligible for a tax credit for replacing an old stove—or, depending where you live, a rebate of up to $840.

Depending on the power situation in your kitchen, you might have to have a new outlet installed—we hired an electrician for this, which the company helped pay for but was also an expense.

Induction stoves can make a slight buzzing noise on the low-power setting (true of ours). It’s kind of annoying at first.

There’s a slight learning curve—each burner is a little different, and you’ll need to experiment to get the best results. I haven’t cracked the code for making perfect popcorn on this new stove, but some people say it’s the best, so I’ll keep trying!

If you want to try out induction cooking, or reduce the use of your gas range, you can also get a hotplate-style induction burner for less than $100.

Overall, we’re very happy with our new stove, and I’m super grateful to Richard for working out the swap. I think that even if we hadn’t been able to do that, it would have been worth it to spend the money to eliminate harmful fumes in the house. This is the kind we got. (This is not a sponsored post but we are open to sponsorships with electric cars and pasta brands.)

In other news…

We are planting a community garden with our neighbor Daniel! Harriet and I helped him transplant tomato seedlings on Friday and if things go well we’re gonna have a lot of tomato sandwiches and salsa and pasta sauce this summer…

Yesterday the girls and I saw the Wolfpack Women beat the Chattanooga Hawks at Reynolds Stadium! It was our first ever March Madness game and we loved it. I was a little nervous when I looked up Monday’s opponent (the Tennessee Volunteers), because they beat Green Bay by 29 points! In a lower-scoring game (45-64), we won by 19. But in the last quarter Coach Wes played a lot of our walk-on players, which was totally admirable and totally Wes. Later that night, the Wolfpack men won at their game in Philadelphia—and it was funny to realize that we hadn’t seen Mr. Wuf at the women’s game, because he was in PA while Mrs. Wuf stayed with the women in NC. Go Pack!

And the best news of all, earlier this month the Chatham County School Board voted UNANIMOUSLY to increase teacher supplements by $2700, across the board, for all Chatham County Public School teachers, along with $500 increases for classified staff. This increase would make Chatham County the highest-supplement county in the state, and would help our district recruit and retain teachers in all Chatham County schools. We currently have an 8% vacancy rate, so my friends and I believe that this raise, for our most essential workers, should be our fast-growing county’s top priority. I’m really proud of the work everyone has done to advocate for our schools (including Bea, who wrote comments for the school board when she was sick with strep).

But we’re not done yet! The school budget goes next to the county commissioners, who will consider and vote on the request. Our 100% Democratic county commissioners have a strong track record of fully funding our school budget requests, so we are hopeful that they’ll see this critical need, presented to them by Dr. Anthony Jackson, our excellent school superintendent. Hopeful—but not complacent. Our next steps will be speaking at the commissioner meetings. Stay tuned for more about how and why we have advocated for better pay for teachers, and what that means for students and the community in our county.

How are you spending your Sunday, Frog Troublers? We are making Richard his favorite birthday cake, since it’s his birthday tomorrow and he and I will be out and about with friends. Feel free to leave questions or comments about induction stoves below, and we’ll respond!