A favourite with homeowners for their streamlined appearance and easy-clean surfaces, induction hobs sit flush against the worktop and feature either touchscreen or dial controls. Some models even include a bridging zone to allow for two smaller zones to be joined together for larger pans.
A handy pause function reduces power to cooking zones so you can step away from the hob for a moment without worrying about your meal burning. Plus, a timer alerts you when your food is ready to serve.
Power management system
The power management system of a rapid heating hob is an important feature that can help reduce your energy consumption by allowing you to select your desired cooking zone and turning it off when you’ve finished. This can save a lot of money and is also environmentally friendly.
Many electric hob models feature built in residual heat indicators and safety features like ‘overflow protection’ that help minimise accidents and the risk of a mess on your hob. Induction hobs are more advanced and use electromagnetic induction to generate heat, ensuring that the pan itself is the source of the heating. This makes them the most safe style of hob to cook with and they’re usually easy to clean too.
Ceramic hobs are another option and these work by having a heating element underneath each cooking zone which is covered by a shatterproof ceramic glass surface. They’re typically the easiest to keep clean and they can be heated quickly but they don’t have as good a heat distribution around the base of your pans as gas or induction. They’re also less durable than some other styles of hob but are still a popular choice for many kitchens. Some models come with a ‘boost burner’ that produces high-powered intense heat to give you an extra boost of power for tasks such as stir-frying and boiling water fast.
Low maintenance hob
Unlike gas hobs electric plate hobs don’t require an external burner ring and are therefore easier to keep clean. They also heat up quicker than gas models and offer flexible controls to suit different cooking styles, such as simmering or boiling. They are a good choice for smaller kitchens where space is limited as they are usually more compact than other types of hob.
The heating systems on ceramic hobs are hidden underneath the tough glass surface, which transfers heat to your pans as you use them. This allows you to cook quickly and safely, with no open flames or hot surfaces. Some hobs have an extra power boost feature to provide a rapid burst of heat for a short period of time, ideal for quick boils and stir frying. Others have residual heat indicators that alert you to zones that are still hot after the power is switched off, making it easy to avoid burns.
Other features on offer include lock touch controls to prevent children from switching hobs on or altering settings and an auto-off function that switches off the hob if it has been left on for a set amount of time. Many of the newest models offer LED lighting that glows in the style of a traditional gas flame to indicate how much heat is being used, for easier, more intuitive cooking.
Intuitive controls
A good hob will give you a range of useful functions and features that make cooking easier. Some of these include ‘overflow protection’, which can detect when a pan is about to boil over and adjusts the power level accordingly. This helps to minimise accidents and mess and it’s also a great feature for those with young children or who are worried about overheating the hob. Another handy feature is a ‘pause function’, which reduces the heat level of each cooking zone so that you can move away from the cooker without risking burning your hand or wasting energy.
A number of induction hobs have ‘automatic heat-up’, which automatically raises the power of the selected cooking zone to its maximum when it is activated. Once the required temperature bep dien tu munchen has been reached, the hob will then return to its normal power level. This can be activated by momentarily turning the control knob in a counterclockwise direction until the symbol [A] is displayed on the hob’s control panel.
Another feature on some induction hobs is the ‘auto-vent’ function, which allows you to connect the appliance with your cooker hood and automatically regulates extraction speed based on the temperatures and power levels selected on the hob. This is particularly useful if you use a variety of cooking methods or have children in the house.