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Grex > Kitchen > #180: Gas vs. electric: The great stove debate | |
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scott
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Gas vs. electric: The great stove debate
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Aug 28 00:07 UTC 2001 |
I recently removed my mostly-new (4 years old?) Maytag gas stove for a 1960's
electric beast. Why would I give up gas? Well, the stove is a really cool
high-end stove which fits the space better.
But anyway, to which heat source do people swear allegiance? I'm not
completely happy to be going back to electric burners, but on the other hand
I was never very happy with the way a gas oven behaves, so the electric ovens
(yes, there are two in this monster) are an improvement. With gas ovens
there's more air movement due to the combustion, and it typically results in
more burning of food on the bottom of a deep pan.
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| 60 responses total. |
mary
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response 1 of 60:
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Aug 28 00:31 UTC 2001 |
I have never redone a kitchen so I tend to get what comes with the house.
The last two homes have come with Jenn-Airs, which I tend to like for the
downdraft venting. And the ceramic cooktop with radiant burners heats
within seconds and the cleanup is an ultra-easy wipe.
I have had experience with gas, and prior to this latest experience I would
have elected to go the gas route. But I'm not so sure anymore.
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keesan
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response 2 of 60:
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Aug 28 01:32 UTC 2001 |
Gas pollutes, and the last gas stove I used at a friend's house would not let
me turn it down enough to simmer with the pot cover on. Electric is much more
easily adjusted, and gets hotter.
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glenda
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response 3 of 60:
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Aug 28 02:52 UTC 2001 |
We are in the process of modernizing a WWII era kitchen (at least it looks
like the last time it was touched was WWII). We are using a cheap electric
stove right now, which will be moved to the basement (being turned into combo
teen hangout, media center, ham shack, craft center, dark room, etc.) when
we get fully remodeled. The ultimate range would be gas burners and
electric/convection over. The model we will order is a Dynasty 60" double
oven (gas/convection) with 4 burners, a griddle, a charbroil grill, and a
dedicated wok burner. Professional quality. Along with top of the line
dishwasher, frige and garbage disposal I'll be living in heaven.
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eeyore
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response 4 of 60:
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Aug 28 04:49 UTC 2001 |
From what I understand, you get more control with gas. I hate the stupid
things...give me electric any day!!!
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scott
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response 5 of 60:
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Aug 28 16:29 UTC 2001 |
My gas stove had a couple of "power boost" burners which got hotter than most
electric stoves. There's no real limit on how hot you can get either electric
or gas burners; it's just a matter of design.
Gas burners are nice because there's very little time lag in the control.
Potatoes boiling over? Just turn down the gas and the water settles down.
On an electric you'd have to lift it off the burner for a bit while the burner
cools down.
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cmcgee
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response 6 of 60:
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Aug 28 16:52 UTC 2001 |
I like gas for the quick response to emergencies, like spaghetti boiling
over, or something starting to burn. I also find it easier to adjust,
because I can see how big the flame is, how high it is going, and how
much of the bottom of the pan is being heated. It takes much longer to
discover the cooking rate of an electric element, and longer to adjust
appropriately.
For cooking that requires heat control like omlets, or stir fry, gas is
much better. If the lag time for heating and cooling dont matter
(simmering a stew for example), and you can capture that pre-heating fuel
use by starting the dish cold and slowly warming it, and can let the pan
sit on the cooling burner to capture the heat after it is turned off,
then electric is fine. It takes longer to get it set to "simmer", but it
does sit there for several hours.
For most stovetop cooking, gas wastes less fuel. It is burned directly,
and does not require large powerplants to convert the fuel to
electricity, and then the electricity to heat.
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keesan
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response 7 of 60:
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Aug 28 17:54 UTC 2001 |
I figure I use $1-2 a month worth of electricity for cooking, so why pollute
my indoor air with gas?
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