So I'm walking around the flea market with a magnet, looking for cookware..

[Fumesucker]

I just ordered a new induction cooktop to replace my very old and pathetically inadequate two burner electric unit, of course all my old cookware is aluminum and not suitable for induction heating. It turns out that if a magnet will stick to a piece of cookware then it's good for an induction hob. My old resistance heating unit is so low powered that it takes approximately forever just to boil water which turns out to be very inefficient and heats up my tiny place too much in the summer. I really only use a single burner more than 90% of the time anyway and I found quite a good deal on a modern and much more powerful and efficient induction single hob.

Induction hobs don't get hot themselves, they heat the cooking utensil directly through electromagnetic induction, you can actually put a piece of paper between the cooktop and the utensil and fry bacon without burning the paper.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Induction_cooking



When I started looking at the price of specifically designed induction cookware I nearly passed out from sticker shock so it was off to one of my favorite places for bargains, the flea market.

My first magnetic cookware find at the flea market was a vintage enameled steel teakettle, I drink coffee when I'm out but I prefer hot tea at home so a teakettle is an essential for me. This kettle is unique, remarkably well made and I got it for only $3, I got a kick out of the design and I thought perhaps someone else would get a chuckle out of it too.



I also got a Nordicware Tender Cooker microwave pressure cooker in brand new shape for $5, now I can make those slow-cooker meals in a half hour instead of a half-day, saving both time and electricity..

Oh.. And Nordicware is made in the USA..

http://www.amazon.com/Nordic-Ware-Microwave-Tender-Cooker/dp/B0007LC55A

[intaglio]

1. It might pay you to get an interface disc

This is a ferro-magnetic material that you put under a stainless steel, copper bottomed or aluminium cooking vessel to convert current to heat. In this way the even spread of heat in these types of pots complements the economical and rapid induction heating.

[Fumesucker]

4. Thanks for the tip..

I actually had considered that but decided it would sort of defeat the purpose of the high efficiency cooking since you would have to heat the plate which would then heat the pot..

By the time my hob arrives I'll have sufficient utensils to get by and my eye is now peeled for bargains in that department.

[Starboard Tack]

2. Have you considered cooking with gas?

We use propane for cooking and quite a lot of our heating at a cost of about $100 a year.

[Fumesucker]

3. I have a propane stove now and haven't used it in close to a year..

After the second time my carbon monoxide alarm went off while using the stove/oven I decided it wasn't worth the risk, the thing is seriously old. I also have propane central heat I'm not using because the heat exchanger is cracked leading to high risk of CO poisoning. I came close to getting killed by CO once a long time ago and I have absolutely no desire to repeat the experience.

In my climate summer cooling is more of a problem than winter heating, I heat maybe three to four months and AC more like six or seven months, I've already had the AC on this year, it was over 80 here a couple of days ago and in the high 70's as I write this..

[RebelOne]

5. I have a 100-gallon propane tank.

I live in a mobile home, so I have propane. I only use it for cooking. But most of the time I use my microwave or toaster oven, since I live alone and only cook for myself. My gas furnace has been out for over 2 years, so I just use space heaters. My gas bill is about $150 for a year. I have had my A/C off and on now for the past month, the temperatures have been in the 50s, 60s, 70s and 80s. They were in the 40s and 50s occasionally in the mornings, for which I had to use the space heaters for a couple of hours. Right now, I have my A/C on as it is in the high 70s and going to the mid-80s later in the day. But my heating bill is usually higher than my A/C bill.

[Fumesucker]

6. Update on the induction cooking experience..

Succinct version: I love it!

Verbose mode: I particularly like the temperature control mode, it allows you to warm things without having a burnt-to-carbon layer on the bottom even if you become distracted and forget to stir for an hour or three too long.

I can actually have a couple of cups of water boiling away in the kettle and put my hand on the cooktop right next to it and it's barely warm. One cup of cold water in my room temperature moocow teakettle and ninety four seconds after I turn the power on I can pour boiling water, seriously efficient and powerful.

I found some more cookware, I have a small cast iron fry pan I got for $5 at a thrift store, that one is just about perfectly seasoned now, just wipe after cooking and it's clean. Also a large cast iron fry pan I haven't been able to season yet, it won't fit in my toaster oven so I'll have to do it somewhere else, $8 for that one. A small covered saucepan for $4.95 at Goodwill that's a bit on the thin side but the temperature control makes it more usable than it would be otherwise. I also found enameled steel cooking pots in medium and pretty big sizes with lids for a total of $2.25 along with some other stuff at a thrift store.

A large pot of water put on temperature control at 250 F makes a great way to warm and humidify my place at the same time, I keep a small fan going to circulate air so the warmth doesn't stagnate under the ceiling, I have dry skin on my hands and the humidity really helps.

Now that it's starting to warm up and I've had the AC on I can really tell the difference, cooking before would raise the temperature and make the AC noticeably work on a longer cycle, now I can't tell the difference when I'm cooking and not, the place stays much closer to the same temperature, my little microwave heats it up more.