Cooking... gas vs. electric

[Rickrock]

I think I would prefer gas but don't have much experience with electric. The new electric stove tops do look pretty cool. I would no doubt get used to whatever I happened to have.

 

[me203]

Cold comfort.

Since this is about stoves, shouldn't it be hot comfort.

And did learning to use an electric stove make you boiling mad?

 

[NotHardUp1]

LOL.

I was a devoted gas stove fan when I was forced to use electric. Like so many things about Huntsville's failure to appropriately develop infrastructure commensurate with their growth, it was an annoyance.

However, in the interest of fairness, when I lived in Danbury, CT, they had failed to keep up with their infrastructure as well, mostly in the tiny roads that now are overburdened. The difference would be the attitude about addressing the lags. In Danbury, they are racing to catch up. In Alabama, they are in denial about need, and merely keep returning to areas where federal dollars pay, like on interstate roads, while ignoring the local needs and obligations to expand basic access to sewer, gas, etc.

 

[NotHardUp1]

I think I would prefer gas but don't have much experience with electric. The new electric stove tops do look pretty cool. I would no doubt get used to whatever I happened to have.

In my experience, the eye quickly sees a flame level and understands exactly how to adjust it to the desired speed of heating. In electric, there is no visible clue, plus the cyclig on and off of the element makes the cook have to learn the behavior pattern of the element. It takes a while to get a familiarity with the appliance, much more like learning a standard shift vehicle vs. an automatic transmission. Every standard I have ever driven was different from others and required leanring the individual vehicle.

 

[me203]

Well, with an electric stove, you do have a clue--the control knob position. Problem is, of course, "Low" on one stove might not be the same on another...

I've noticed this on the induction hotplate I've been playing with--I'm pretty sure the "settings" are only of use in relation to itself. (And I've wondered, although haven't experimented, since I lack much cookware that's compatible, if the pan might not make a difference. The first pan I tried seemed to boil water at lower settings than the pan I'm actually using, although maybe my observation was flawed.)

At one time, it was apparently possible to get a stove that had a thermostatic controlled burner. This seems like something that could be useful thing--once you knew the quirks of the system on that stove. I like using electric skillets for the thermostatic control they have.

As for manual transmissions, I've noticed the same variability. Even with the same vehicle before/after new clutch. And I'm not alone--I remember someone working for a repair shop commenting about the problem he had adapting to some cars, even though he drove a lot of different cars. The one he had trouble with was Honda for some reason.

 

[EJMichaels]

I'm not sure about this, but I think gas ovens with pilot lights might also need electricity, depending (of course) on the design of the oven.

The person who bought our old gas oven told me the new ones can't be lit with a match. She wanted an older one. Ours was from a friend who remodeled and I had been keeping it in storage because we wanted to replace the electric one that came with the house. We never had time do deal with the propane conversion and other work to hook it up. I do much more stovetop cooking than baking, so I wish we had installed it. We also planned to do some canning, but the big pressure canner supposedly won't work well on the electric stove. We bought a converter for the element that could help if we get around to installing it.

 

[MusicMan321]

I have a gas stove myself

 

[nycguydowntown]

Gas for cooking -it’s impossible to lower electric fast enough when you need to. Electric for baking

 

[rareboy]

Sadly, we also live in an area where we don't have natural gas....although a new main line will run about a kilometer from our farm.

We were always going to replace this range we have now with a gas burners and electric oven combo but the glass top range we bought has lasted an amazingly long time and I have to admit, we've become spoiled with how easy it is to keep clean.

 

[pigface]

There are several types of electric hotplates, some are better than others. Over the years I have replaced the hotplates themselves, and chosen the types I prefer. I now have a mix of solid 2kW plates (6 power settings) and thermostatically controlled (continuously variable power) The thermal inertia on these is very low.
The spiral types i do not like, and less than 2kW isn't enough for proper frying.
Gas has never given me enough heat for fast enough frying, and the lowest setting is still too high for really slow cooking.

 

[Kahaih]

The person who bought our old gas oven told me the new ones can't be lit with a match. She wanted an older one.

The old ones can't be lit with a match, either. Not the main burner, anyway. Yes, a flame pilot light has to be lit with a match or lighter, but if the main burner can come on without the pilot light already lit, there is a very dangerous malfunction.

All ovens, gas and electric, have to cycle on and off during a baking session to regulate the oven temperature. On a properly functioning gas oven, the thermocouple has to detect a lit pilot light or the gas valve to the main burner will not come on.

 

[pigface]

There are gas ovens from decades ago that have no pilot light or thermocouples. You just turn the gas on, and light it. Or not light it - hence the idiom 'go stick your head in the oven', i.e. die by asphyxiation, a means not uncommon for suicide in times gone by.

 

[Kahaih]

There are gas ovens from decades ago that have no pilot light or thermocouples. You just turn the gas on, and light it. Or not light it - hence the idiom 'go stick your head in the oven', i.e. die by asphyxiation, a means not uncommon for suicide in times gone by.

You might find one of those in an antique shop. But, even if it was still functional, and someone was crazy enough to want to try it out, local laws/building codes, insurance companies and gas companies would forbid using it.

 

[NotHardUp1]

The person who bought our old gas oven told me the new ones can't be lit with a match. She wanted an older one. Ours was from a friend who remodeled and I had been keeping it in storage because we wanted to replace the electric one that came with the house. We never had time do deal with the propane conversion and other work to hook it up. I do much more stovetop cooking than baking, so I wish we had installed it. We also planned to do some canning, but the big pressure canner supposedly won't work well on the electric stove. We bought a converter for the element that could help if we get around to installing it.

Unless you have an induction range, the pressure cooker works fine. I just canned 10 quarts of pumpkin butter last month in mine, and on a smooth cooktop. It is a huge aluminum cooker from about 30 to 50 years ago, almost unused, and fits just fine on the big burner. I've heard tell they are a risk, but I can tell no problem in using it, or the two smaller models I have and use.

Do you know why they are not recommended?

 

[NotHardUp1]

You might find one of those in an antique shop. But, even if it was still functional, and someone was crazy enough to want to try it out, local laws/building codes, insurance companies and gas companies would forbid using it.

I'm not so sure building codes forbid you using an older stove in your own home, but you can't sell the home with it or claim insurance if it causes a problem.

But, how many homes burn down from a cookstove's malfunciton? Not many. Usually fires on stoves are due to some idiot not attending the pan, or not knowing to covere a fire in a pan.

 

[Essex Boy]

We only ever had a gas oven when I was young, so I think it would be hard to adjust to electric now. I don't know how they compare in terms of running cost.

And then there's the Aga. Do they have those outside Northern Europe? My cousin has one, but they also use a gas or electric cooker (I forget which) so they can cook "normal" stuff. Agas are really only suitable for farmhouse stodge type dishes. It's a crude looking device. I don't think you can control the heat very well, in fact I'm not sure you can even turn it off. It's basically a fire in an oil drum.

 

[me203]

Suicide by gas oven reminds me of an old Charles Addams cartoon. A man is about to stick his head in the oven, and his landlady is standing behind him, saying: "You know you don't have kitchen privileges."

 

[me203]

I'm not sure about the question if it's permissible to use an old stove... Not any expert. But I have to think a lot would hinge on where one lives and how rigid the codes and laws are. It's pretty clear that some places want people to go all electric. So far, most of the changes I hear, are with new construction. But I wouldn't be surprised if natural gas is totally banned some places in a few years.

As for selling a house, one quirk does hit me--if that stove is original to the hosue, it might well be grandfathered in. Although, again, this probably depends on the area.

 

[Kahaih]

I'm not sure about the question if it's permissible to use an old stove... Not any expert. But I have to think a lot would hinge on where one lives and how rigid the codes and laws are. It's pretty clear that some places want people to go all electric. So far, most of the changes I hear, are with new construction. But I wouldn't be surprised if natural gas is totally banned some places in a few years.

As for selling a house, one quirk does hit me--if that stove is original to the hosue, it might well be grandfathered in. Although, again, this probably depends on the area.

Mortgage companies can be real pricks, too. I suppose they have a right to protect their interest, though.

 

[rareboy]

We only ever had a gas oven when I was young, so I think it would be hard to adjust to electric now. I don't know how they compare in terms of running cost.

And then there's the Aga. Do they have those outside Northern Europe? My cousin has one, but they also use a gas or electric cooker (I forget which) so they can cook "normal" stuff. Agas are really only suitable for farmhouse stodge type dishes. It's a crude looking device. I don't think you can control the heat very well, in fact I'm not sure you can even turn it off. It's basically a fire in an oil drum.

Our neighbours in Bumfuckistan, Ontario had an Aga, but they were ridiculous snobs. I think they finally removed it from their kitchen about a decade ago.