wtf is 'induction' cooking?

Summary

The video script explores the world of induction cooking, a technology that heats pots directly with magnetic fields, making it faster and safer than traditional electric stoves. It delves into the science behind induction, its advantages in responsiveness and energy efficiency, and its limitations with certain cookware. The script also touches on the popularity of induction in China, its impact on professional kitchens, and the considerations for energy sources and costs.

Takeaways

• 🔊 Induction cooktops produce electromagnetic interference that can cause buzzing sounds, but this is not heard during cooking and is due to the camera's audio circuitry interference.
• 🔥 Induction burners heat faster than electric burners, even if the induction burner is less powerful, due to direct heating of the pan through magnetic fields.
• 🌡 Induction cooking heats the pan directly, minimizing heat transfer to the surrounding environment, which can be safer and more energy-efficient.
• 💧 The responsiveness of induction cooking is superior to electric, with faster cooling times when the heat is turned off, making it ideal for precise temperature control.
• 🍳 Induction cooktops are only compatible with magnetic, ferrous metal pans such as cast iron or steel, which can be tested with a magnet.
• 🔥 Induction cooking is less effective for wok cooking due to the need for the pan to be in direct contact with the burner and the inability to heat the sloping sides of a wok.
• 🌡 Induction cooking is cooler than electric and significantly cooler than gas, which is beneficial for professional kitchens where heat can be a significant issue.
• 👨‍🍳 Professional chefs like Michel Roux Jr. have adopted induction cooking for its benefits, including a cooler working environment and precise temperature control.
• 🏙️ The popularity of induction cooktops in China is linked to increased health awareness and a preference for cooking with less oil, which may reduce the need for high-heat stir-frying.
• 🔊 Induction cooktops can be noisy due to cooling fans and other mechanical sounds, which may be a consideration for those concerned with kitchen noise levels.
• 💰 While induction cooktops are generally more expensive, their long-term cost-effectiveness and energy efficiency can vary greatly depending on factors such as local energy costs and climate.

Q & A

What is the primary source of interference captured in the video footage?

The interference captured in the video footage is electromagnetic, originating from the induction burner which cooks with magnetism.

Why are induction cooktops becoming more popular in China?

Induction cooktops are gaining popularity in China due to their efficiency and health awareness, accounting for about 60 percent of the global induction market share according to an Industry Research report.

How does the heating process differ between an electric stove and an induction burner?

An electric stove heats through a resistance coil and then transfers heat through the ceramic top to the pan. In contrast, an induction burner uses a magnetic field to create eddy currents in the pan, directly heating the pan without a separate heat source.

Why is the induction burner faster at heating water compared to an electric burner, even when underpowered?

The induction burner heats water faster because it directly heats the pan, minimizing thermal interfaces and thus reducing heat loss, unlike the electric burner which has to transfer heat through multiple layers.

What is the significance of the experiment where the thermometer is touched to the glass of the electric and induction burners?

This experiment demonstrates that the induction burner heats the pan directly and not the surface, as the glass surface of the induction burner remains much cooler compared to the electric burner's surface.

Why is the induction burner considered safer in a household with children?

The induction burner is safer because it does not heat the surrounding surfaces, minimizing the risk of burns or injuries, unlike an electric burner which can heat the surface to high temperatures.

How does the heat distribution around the pot differ between an induction burner and an electric or gas burner?

Induction burners heat up the kitchen less than electric burners and significantly less than gas burners, as they only heat the pan and not the surrounding air, reducing heat loss.

What are the advantages of induction cooktops in professional kitchens?

Induction cooktops offer a cooler working environment, faster heat response, and better control at low temperatures, making them suitable for professional kitchens where precise temperature control is crucial.

What type of pans are compatible with induction cooktops?

Induction cooktops work with ferrous metal pans, such as cast iron, enameled cast iron, or steel. A magnet test can be used to determine if a pan is suitable for induction cooking.

Why might induction cooktops not be ideal for stir-frying or using woks?

Induction cooktops may not provide optimal heat distribution for woks due to the need for the burner to be in direct contact with the bottom of the pan, and the heat not wrapping around the sloping edges of a wok as it would with a gas flame.

What factors should be considered when evaluating the energy efficiency and cost-effectiveness of induction cooktops?

Factors to consider include the proximity and type of power plant, transmission line efficiency, local climate, and the price of electricity and gas, as these can all affect the overall energy efficiency and cost.

Why might the noise from an induction cooktop be a concern for some users?

The noise from an induction cooktop, which includes fan cooling and mechanical sounds, could be a concern for users who require a quiet environment, such as those recording cooking videos with sound.

Outlines

00:00

🔥 Induction Cooking: The Future of Kitchens?

The script introduces induction cooking, a technology that uses magnetic fields to heat pots and pans directly, resulting in faster and more efficient cooking compared to traditional electric stoves. It highlights the growing popularity of induction burners, especially in China, which accounts for 60% of the global market. The narrator conducts an experiment comparing the time taken to boil water on an electric stove and an induction hot plate, with the latter being faster despite being less powerful. The segment also includes an interview with Dr. Shannon Yee, who explains the science behind induction heating and its direct heating method, which minimizes heat loss and potential burns, making it safer and more efficient.

05:00

🍳 The Advantages of Induction Cooking

This paragraph delves into the benefits of induction cooking, such as its superior responsiveness compared to electric stoves, allowing for quicker temperature adjustments and better control over cooking. It also addresses the energy efficiency of induction, noting that it generates less heat in the surrounding environment, thus reducing the risk of burns and making the kitchen cooler. The script mentions the professional chef Michel Roux Jr., who appreciates the cooler working environment provided by induction cooktops. Additionally, it touches on the limitations of induction, such as compatibility with only magnetic cookware and the challenges it presents for certain cooking techniques like stir-frying with woks.

10:03

🔧 The Limitations and Practicality of Induction Cooktops

The final paragraph discusses the practical considerations of using induction cooktops, including their higher initial cost compared to other cooking methods and the requirement for ferrous cookware. It also points out that induction burners may not be suitable for all types of cooking, such as wok cooking, due to the way heat is distributed. The script concludes with a personal reflection from the narrator, who, despite recognizing the benefits of induction, is hesitant to adopt it for his cooking videos due to the noise generated by the cooling fan and other components of the induction system, which could interfere with audio quality.

Keywords

💡Induction Burner

An induction burner is a type of cooking appliance that uses electromagnetic fields to heat cookware directly, rather than heating an element that then transfers heat to the pot or pan. In the video, the induction burner is highlighted as a faster and more efficient way to heat water compared to an electric stovetop, showcasing its capability to heat directly the cooking vessel, which is central to the video's theme of comparing cooking technologies.

💡Electromagnetic Interference

Electromagnetic interference, often abbreviated as EMI, occurs when an electromagnetic field affects an electrical circuit, causing an undesired response in the circuit. In the context of the video, the buzzing sound heard is due to EMI from the induction burner affecting the camera's audio circuitry, illustrating a side effect of using induction cooktops.

💡Thermal Interface

A thermal interface in the video refers to the materials or barriers between the heat source and the cooking vessel that affect heat transfer efficiency. The script explains that electric stoves have more thermal interfaces, such as the resistance coil and ceramic top, compared to induction burners that heat the pan directly, making them more efficient.

💡Eddy Currents

Eddy currents are loops of electrical current induced within conductors by a changing magnetic field, which generate heat through resistance. The video explains that induction heating works by creating eddy currents in the base of the cookware, demonstrating the principle behind the induction cooking technology.

💡Ferromagnetic Material

Ferromagnetic materials, such as cast iron and stainless steel, are materials that can be magnetized and are attracted to a magnet. The video mentions that induction cooktops only work with ferromagnetic cookware, as these materials are necessary to generate the eddy currents for heating.

💡Responsiveness

Responsiveness in the context of the video refers to the ability of a cooking appliance to quickly and accurately react to changes in temperature settings. The script contrasts the responsiveness of gas stoves with that of induction burners, with the latter being noted for its faster heating and cooling, which is important for precise cooking control.

💡Energy Efficiency

Energy efficiency is a measure of how well a device converts energy input into useful output. The video discusses the energy efficiency of induction cooktops, suggesting that they may be more efficient than electric stoves, though it also acknowledges that the overall efficiency can be influenced by various factors such as the source of electricity and local climate.

💡Safety

Safety in the video is addressed in terms of the reduced risk of burns and fires when using induction cooktops. The script points out that the surface of an induction burner remains relatively cool to the touch, unlike traditional electric or gas burners, making it a safer option, especially in households with children.

💡Professional Kitchen

A professional kitchen refers to a kitchen in a commercial setting, such as a restaurant, where cooking is done on a large scale. The video mentions that professional chefs are increasingly adopting induction cooktops due to their efficiency, safety, and the cooler working environment they provide, contrasting with the traditional preference for gas stoves.

💡Heat Retention

Heat retention is the ability of a material or system to maintain heat over time. The video script discusses how induction burners maintain a more consistent low heat better than electric burners, which is crucial for cooking techniques that require a gentle simmer, such as making stock.

💡Cultural Cooking Habits

Cultural cooking habits refer to the traditional methods and preferences in food preparation that vary among different cultures. The video highlights the paradox of China's love for wok cooking and induction cooktops, suggesting that health awareness and the practicality of induction in small living spaces may be influencing this trend.

Highlights

Induction burners cook with magnetism, creating a faster and more efficient heating method compared to traditional electric stoves.

Induction cooking is gaining popularity, especially in China, which accounts for 60 percent of the global induction market share.

Induction works by using a magnetic field to create eddy currents in the pan, directly heating it without thermal interfaces.

Experiments show that induction can heat water to a boil faster than electric stoves, even with a smaller, less powerful unit.

Induction burners are safer as they heat the pan directly and not the surface, minimizing the risk of burns.

Induction cooking reduces heat loss to the surrounding environment, keeping the kitchen cooler than electric or gas stoves.

Professional chefs like Michel Roux Jr. have adopted induction cooking for its control and cooler kitchen environment.

Induction burners are more responsive than electric, with faster cooling times when heat is turned off.

Induction cooktops are generally more expensive, but their prices are decreasing as the technology becomes more mainstream.

Only certain types of pans made of magnetic metals like cast iron or steel work with induction cooktops.

Induction cooking is not ideal for wok cooking due to the heat distribution not wrapping around the sloping edges.

Induction burners are energy efficient within the kitchen but may not be more efficient when considering the energy source and transmission.

Induction cooking may be noisier than other methods due to the cooling fan and other operational sounds.

Induction cooktops are safer for households with children due to their lower surface temperatures.

The responsiveness and control of induction cooking make it suitable for precise cooking tasks like making sauces.

Induction cooking's popularity in China is linked to increased health awareness and a preference for less oil in cooking.

Induction cooktops are space-efficient and suitable for small kitchens, providing a practical solution for urban living.

Transcripts

This may be the sound of our culinary future.

[buzzing sound]

Technically that's not a sound. Or, at least, it wasn't a sound until your speakers or your

headphones converted it into a sound. It was not in the air in the room when I shot that

footage. It is, instead, electromagnetic interference messing with my camera — interference coming

from this induction burner, which cooks with magnetism.

These are still pretty rare here in the United States, but they're getting more popular,

most notably in China, which accounts for about 60 percent of the global induction market

share, according to this Industry Research report.

We're gonna learn the science of how induction works, why it only works with certain pots

and pans, and why you might prefer it to gas or electric. Or not. I dunno. You do you.

Let's start with a little experiment.

Here's two cups of cold tap water in a saucepan on my electric stovetop. Brits would call

it hob — any stovetop, not just an electric one, they call it a hob. Anyway, the burner

has an inner ring and an outer ring. I'm turning them both on, so this is the maximum BTUs

I can get out of this thing. My thermometer is on Celsius, and as you can see, this took

about 4-and-a-half minutes to reach a full boil. 100 degrees.

Now, same experiment on this little induction hot plate that I've got. On full power, it

takes about 3-and-a-half minutes to reach a full boil. It got there a minute faster,

despite the fact that this is an underpowered little mobile "hob" that I've got here, compared

to my state-of-the-art electric stove, which is an absolute beast, and will instantaneously

burn a steak if I've heated my pan on high for more than a couple minutes.

How is it possible that the puny induction burner heats faster than the beefy electric

burner?

Let's go ask Dr. Shannon Yee, an expert on energy and heat transfer at Georgia Tech.

"When you add more interfaces, or more material in-between, you still have to push that heat

through, and so you're getting different temperature drops along the way. With induction heating,

you're heating the pan directly."

Now what are the "thermal interfaces" on the electric stove? Well, there's the resistance

coil — that's the metal coil under the glass. Electricity heats that up. Then the heat passes

through the ceramic top (that's another interface), and only then does it reach the pan.

"You're passing electrons around and that's creating inelastic scattering, generating

heat. In the case of an induction heater, you're using a magnetic field, causing electrons

to move around and create eddy currents. Those eddy currents are causing scattering and heating

up that way. And so you're directly heating the pan, rather than heating a coil and then

relying on heat transfer to the pan."

Here's a way to see that difference in action. If I take the boiling pot off my electric

burner and then touch my thermometer to the glass, it really quickly reaches 200 degrees

Celsius, almost 400 Fahrenheit before my hand gets so hot I can't hold it there anymore.

"Ow."

I do the exact same thing on the induction burner, and the thermometer reads just 40

degrees Celsius. There was just a boiling pan of water on here, and and even though

this thing says "CAUTION, do not touch," and that's good advice, I can nonetheless gingerly

touch this glass surface. That's because the burner wasn't heating the glass. It was emitting

an alternating magnetic current that heated the pan, and then the pan conducted some of

that heat back down to the glass.

And that's good?

"Yep, you won't heat the other things around it. It minimizes burns or other injuries.

I worry about getting burned in the kitchen."

I'm sure that my lawyer and the manufacturer of this induction burner would like me to

emphasize once again that you really shouldn't just slap your hand right down onto the thing

after it's just been heating a screaming-hot pan. However, if you were to do such a thing,

the burn would probably be way less severe than if you put your hand onto a screaming-hot

electric burner, and for me, a guy who has little kids running around the house, reaching

up on things, that's a big bonus for induction.

There's also less heat going out into the air around the pot. Here, I'm holding the

tip of the thermometer in thin air, right in the crook between the pan and the burner,

and it's reading like 95 Celsius. Compare that to 40 degrees Celsius over on the induction

burner. Induction heats up your kitchen way less than electric, and WAY less than gas.

Look, I went over to my friend Seth's house. He's got a beautiful old gas stove. I tried

to do the same water boiling experiment there, and when it got it around 50 degrees Celsius,

the thermometer just stopped working.

"Hey, wake up. &$^%. Whoa, oh my god."

"Did you melt it?"

"I melted it."

"Nice!"

Yeah, that's how much heat escapes out the side of a gas burner. It's a lot of heat,

which I think probably has particular significance in the professional kitchen.

One of my favorite celebrity chefs is a big fan of induction, despite being an adorably

analog man in a digital world. That's my man Michel Roux Jr., right there. He cooked with

induction at home for a long time, and then in 2014, he brought into his kitchen at Le

Gavroche in London.

"All the sauces getting ready for lunch. And what's great about the induction is there's

no heat. It's lovely. It's a great environment to be working in."

For most of the history of professional cookery, kitchens have been miserably hot places to

work, hence the expression, "If you can't stand the heat, GTFO the kitchen." It's kinda

profound to think that now, all of a sudden, it doesn't have to be that way.

But one reason why professional chefs have traditionally liked gas is that it is "responsive."

When you fiddle with the knob, there's less of a lag time between changes that you make

here, and food actually getting cooler or hotter.

To a great extent, I think the responsiveness of gas stoves is really overstated when compared

to modern, high-quality electric ranges. This Consumer Reports article that I'm showing

you about that is linked in the description.

But regardless, induction is more way more responsive than electric. We already established

that it heats up the food faster. Now watch what happens when we turn the heat off. It

takes the boiling water over the electric burner nearly four minutes to cool down by

just 10 degrees C. On the induction burner, the same trip takes less than a minute.

That's really important when you're trying to keep something from burning. Likewise,

induction burners are probably better than electric at maintaining low constant heat,

like the bare simmer needed for making stock.

Electric burners have to constantly cycle on and off to maintain a temperature, and

at the hottest point of that cycle, they might burn your sauce. A heavy pan helps to mitigate

that, but it's still a risk. Induction burners generally only have to cycle when you get

them on full blast — they'll cycle on and off to avoid meltdown.

I should say that induction cooktops are generally more expensive, though the price is coming

down. They also only work with certain kinds of pans. The pan has to be made of a magnetic

metal — a ferrous metal, i.e. cast iron, or enameled cast iron, or steel, which of

course is mostly iron. If you're not sure what you've got, put a magnet on it — extra

points if it's shaped like a horsey. If the magnet sticks, it's gonna work. If it doesn't,

it's not gonna work. I mean, it's not gonna hurt anything. The pan just isn't gonna get

hot. I can't, for example, use my aluminum stock pot on induction. Big stock pots like

this are often made out of aluminum because aluminum is light, it's cheap. Copper pans

won't work. Pans that are clad, where you've got some copper or some aluminum sandwiched

between some steel, those will generally work. The magnet trick will tell.

Another drawback is that induction burners aren't very good for cooking with woks — forgive

me, this is the closest thing that I have to a wok. The heat doesn't really kinda wrap

up around these sloping edges the way it does with a gas flame, for sure.

With induction, the burner has to be actually touching the bottom of the pan, or at least

be very, very close to it.

That's the same reason, by the way, why it's probably perfectly safe to cook with induction

while wearing a ring. People asked me about this when I did my video about cooking in

rings. I couldn't really test this directly because my wedding ring is made out of gold,

which is not particularly magnetic. But I suppose if you had a steel ring, or maybe

a nickel ring, yeah, there's sort of a risk that the induction burner could heat up the

ring around your finger and burn you. But I just don't think that's very realistic.

Here's how we can test that. Here's my pairing knife. It's made of steel. It's ferrous. I'll

grip it tightly and then hold it right next to the induction burner on full blast, and

... I feel absolutely nothing heating up.

So yeah, the sloped sides of the wok are not gonna get very much heat on an induction burner,

nor will any of the wok if you are pulling it up off the burner to toss the food, as

traditional stir-fry technique demands, which leads us back to the interesting case of China.

They love their woks in China, and yet, oddly, they also love their induction cooktops. One

study by the research firm iResearch found that 82 percent of Chinese survey respondents

say they own one of these — a standalone, dedicated induction burner, which is great

at many things, but not at working a wok.

This report by Allied Market Research links the popularity of induction with increased

health awareness. People want to cook with less oil, which might mean less stir-frying

in woks.

A Chinese viewer of mine told me via Twitter that one of these is very handy in cramped

Chinese apartments. I imagine it's also safer there — a lot less likely to start a fire.

Then there's the issue of energy efficiency. Induction probably is a little more efficient

than electric, though the true degree of that difference is a matter of some debate. There's

some links about that in the description.

Induction certainly is more energy efficient than gas if you look within the closed system

that is your kitchen. But you gotta think about where the energy comes from. How close

do you live to your power plant? What kind of power plant is it? What kind of transmission

lines connect you to your power plant? Do you live in a hot climate or a cold climate?

All of these things can affect energy efficiency in the broader sense. And the energy cost?

Man, I couldn't tell you anything about that. The price of electricity and gas depends so

much on where you live. I have no idea what is the better buy for you in the long term.

I can tell you which burner is the noisiest though, which is where I will leave you — right

back where we started.

[buzzing sound]

No, you're not actually going to hear this sound while you're cooking with induction.

That is the electromagnetic interference acting upon the incredibly cheap audio circuitry

that is inside my camera. If I switch over to some high-quality audio gear — gear that's

actually designed to be shielded from interference, you can hear what this thing actually sounds

like in the room.

[whirring and lesser buzzing]

Yep, that's kinda noisy. There's a fan that cools it down, there's all these weird clicking

and creaking sounds, especially at maximum power. It's kinda noisy. And that is why induction

may be a great option for you, but for me, a guy who makes cooking videos with sound?

Nah, not yet.