If you’ve any interest in cooking, whether that’s in a professional or domestic sense, the rise in popularity of the induction hob won’t have escaped your notice. Here at Prestige, we’ve seen a huge spike in interest in induction hobs recently. We’re installing them a lot more and, while not everyone goes ahead and buys one, almost all our customers ask us about them.
How does an Induction Hob Work?
Rather than flame induction like gas cookers, induction hobs use electrical induction to produce heat. The unit has a smooth surface with a generator beneath. When you place a pan (you need to use specific pans) on the hob, it creates a magnetic field which heats up the pan and the food inside.
Why Should I get one?
There are numerous benefits to induction hobs – hence they’re so popular. We’ve listed the main benefits below:
- Energy Saving : Because of the technology behind induction hobs, you’ll save money on your energy bills. Pans heat up rapidly and so no energy is wasted, unlike with gas cooking. It’s estimated that the energy efficiency when cooking with induction hobs is 90%, compared to 40% with gas cooking. It’s worth noting that the cost of the induction units and compatible pans is more than a gas cooker and traditional pans, however, you’re likely to make this money back in terms of future savings. (Plus the pans also last longer than traditional ones.)
- Heats Up Very Quickly : In a commercial kitchen, speed is vital and anything that saves on valuable time will be a winner! The hob heating up rapidly means food can be cooked quicker, resulting in happy chefs, customers and business owners.
- Improved Safety : In busy professional kitchens, people are often moving around quickly and sometimes with less care than usual. Of course, in this kind of environment, an open flame poses a risk of burns. With induction hobs there is no naked flame and so this risk is greatly reduced. As the hobs generate heat within the pan, the surface itself stays cool so you won’t get burned from touching the hob either.
- More Control : Heat settings are very accurate with induction hobs. Many recipes require precise temperatures for specific results and induction hobs give chefs the control they need for this kind of cooking.
- Easy to Clean : There’s nothing fiddly to remove before you can clean your induction hob. They’re entirely flat and smooth and so they’re easy to wipe clean. Because the surface doesn’t get hot, spills don’t get burned on either.
- Cooler Kitchens : No more stuffy kitchens! There’s far, far less heat emissions than with gas cookers, so your kitchen will remain cooler. This makes the working environment much more pleasant for staff members.
What’s Available?
We offer three main sizes of induction hobs: table top, medium duty and heavy duty. Table top induction units are smaller, comprising one or two hobs. These are ideal for times when chefs need something heating up quickly, in dessert areas to warm sauces, for example. Two of our favourite table top models are by Lincat, the IH3 and IH21.
We also supply medium duty models which are slightly larger and tend to have four hobs. Usually, they are used in combination with a combi oven. Most often we supply the Lincat Silverlink 600 SLI42 and the Lincat IH42.
Finally, if you’re looking to use induction hobs exclusively, or simply need a larger amount of cooking space, we can also supply heavy duty range models. The most popular of this kind of size are the Falcon Dominator Plus Induction Oven Range E3914i and the Falcon F900 Induction Range i91105c.
If you’re interested in installing an induction unit in your kitchen, give us a call on 01604 756395 and we’ll help you find the right model for your needs.
