Cookware for induction cookers: characteristics, types, brands and selection tips

The appearance of fundamentally new types of technology not only expands the capabilities of people, but also makes them understand how to handle it. This also applies to cookers using the induction effect. It is important to know what utensils can and should be placed on foci such as suitable materials.

Induction cookers are surrounded by a huge number of myths. You can often hear that they have such negative points:

• consume a huge amount of current;
• emit a strong hum and crack;
• prepare food too slowly compared to traditional options.

But in fact, all this is far from the case. Induction kitchen appliances have a number of important practical advantages, and the majority of misunderstandings are associated with operational errors. One of them is just the wrong selection of kitchen equipment. The principle of heating on this type of foci implies the transfer of heat to the dishes using induced electric vortex pulses.

The difference between the individual inductive plates is associated with such factors:

• type of control board;
• features of the electric power part;
• other design features;
• size;
• the format of embedding in furniture;
• set of heating elements.

Engineers diligently take care that only the dishes that are suitable for them are placed on the stove. Necessarily provided for automation, which recognizes suitable and inappropriate containers.As soon as the dishes are removed from the surface of the hob, the heating stops immediately. But the cookware itself for induction cookers differs from the usual one in that it has more stringent requirements.

In the technical descriptions, it is noted that for an inductive source, products made of certain materials can be used:

• cast iron;
• made of stainless steel grades;
• made of ferrous metal with an enamel layer and a flat bottom.

It is important to note that the magnetic field does no harm to enameled coatings. But it should be borne in mind that special dishes are considered safer than the enameled variety. If the same pan moves with respect to the middle of the heating surface or is smaller in diameter than the burner, then the special cookware creates a dangerous electromagnetic field in a radius of 0.12 m, and an enameled one in a radius of 0.2 m. It is noted that this induced field is potentially may harm the central nervous system.

As a result of long-term studies, specialists found that modern induction hobs are safer than previously thought. Within the limits of dangerous radii, the radiation level (if good-quality devices are used) has become many times less than the limits allowed by medical standards. So you only need to avoid buying very old models of induction cookers - and then you can safely choose the containers at your discretion.

In addition, you need to pay attention to 3 important components when choosing kitchen utensils for an induction surface:

• lack of obvious deformations;
• completely flat base;
• exact covering of the current part of the burner (with placement in the middle of it).

The inscription Induction should be present on the bottom of the dishes, and in its documentation. But if there are no special designations, you can still sometimes use containers. You need to check them with a magnet. Those products to which the magnet is attracted precisely differ in ferromagnetic characteristics. It is absolutely impossible to apply the following types:

• glass;
• ceramic;
• aluminum;
• made of brass;
• made from copper vessels.

Often, frying pans are placed on induction cookers. They are distinguished among themselves by such parameters:

• material used;
• total diameter;
• the depth of the bowl;
• geometry;
• handle designs;
• the presence or absence of non-stick coating.

Most pans are round in shape. The cover for them can be made of transparent or impervious to light materials. The non-stick coating is predominantly made of polytetrafluoroethylene (better known as Teflon). In addition to pans, pans are often used.

The width of the pan affects how convenient it is to mix its contents and how quickly liquid will evaporate from the surface. Modest servings are prepared using pots with a capacity of 1-3 liters. Products from 3 to 5 liters are used to cook soups and cereals, pasta and dumplings. The largest copies (with a capacity of over 5 l) help to boil stewed fruit, pickle cucumbers or tomatoes, and make jam.

In some cases, ladles and milk jugs are used. These vessels allow you to quickly heat or even boil a small amount of water, milk and other liquids. Of course, one cannot but mention kitchen kettles - they work quite well on an induction stove. Stewpan (a kind of hybrid pan and tall skillet) is used when you need to stew food.It is also convenient to cook thickened soups in it.

The double-bottom pan is for making cereals. The gap separating the two bottoms from each other is filled with water. This solution eliminates the burning of products. As a result, the taste of food becomes tender, pleasant, as if using a Russian stove. Steamers and pressure vessels are also used quite often; they are divided into a lower container filled with water, and into grates or food baskets.

The difference between pressure vessels and double boiler is the arrangement of tiers and in different steam supply systems. Special pasta pans are equipped with a special container in which there are openings. Before cooking, the inner container is placed in the outer, pour water. As soon as the readiness arrives, the inside is lifted by pouring the liquid.

A universal rule: utensils of a smaller diameter than a burner can be used. But containers of larger diameter can not be used categorically. With the right selection of dimensions, it is possible to provide additional savings of up to 10-20%. It should be borne in mind that the larger the volume of heated dishes, the lower the specific cost of electricity. Therefore, you must carefully select the volume of the dishes so as not to heat either too much or too little.

Connoisseurs are therefore advised not to select individual instances, but entire sets. They allow you to confidently solve a variety of problems. Selection should be based on family composition and culinary preferences.

Special attention deserves such a topic as the size of pans. Normally, they are measured not on the bottom, but on the upper edge. Such information is always given in the description in stores. Therefore, acquiring a pan with a diameter of 25 cm, there is no doubt that the lid will have exactly the same size. As for the bottom, its size is classified as follows:

• pans with a bottom diameter of 14.5 cm are considered small;
• in the middle group fall products with a width of 18 cm;
• large are recognized as dishes with a width of 22.5 cm (these are the dimensions of the hobs).

However, in real life, everything is somewhat more complicated. Plates of a modern sample can have oval and rectangular rings. For them, you will have to select specific dishes. Spherical woks having a small flat bottom, due to the large size of the walls, seem to displace other dishes, and limit their use.

As already mentioned, in cookware for an induction cooker, the bottom must be made strictly of ferromagnetic materials. The most common options are:

• steel;
• cast iron;
• combination of steel and aluminum.

Copper cookware for cooking on an induction cooker is not suitable. Clean aluminum cookware cannot be used for induction cookers. But if the bottom is made of ferromagnetic material, and non-ferrous metal is used only for the walls and cover, then the situation changes. True, this somewhat slows down the heating of the vessel as a whole. The advantage of aluminum is that it is durable and lightweight. An oxide film formed upon contact with air prevents the penetration of toxic metal into the prepared products.

In the presence of a ferromagnetic bottom, even glassware can be used. It allows you to continuously monitor the cooking process. The chemical neutrality of glass eliminates the harmful effects on products. Stylish glass teapots with a ferromagnetic base are quite widespread. Many firms make such products.

But the more familiar solution is still cast iron dishes. The magnetic properties of cast iron are quite sufficient to solve the main culinary problems.The main thing is that the bottom is perfectly flat and does not have the slightest mechanical defects. Without a full docking of pans or pots with hobs, nothing can be achieved. Problems can be brought only by a serious mass of cast-iron tanks, which can be difficult to keep.

Enameled products are also quite widely used. But for them to work perfectly on the induction surface, you will have to choose the right layer of metal on the walls and bottom. Exactly the same requirement is put forward in relation to stainless steel vessels. They differ in the following characteristics:

• well cleared of the remaining food;
• quite light;
• are very expensive.

When getting acquainted with cookware for induction cookers, one should pay attention not only to the best practical characteristics. Of particular importance is the specific brand under which this product is made. The optimal product rating includes products Rondell brand. This company uses cast iron and stainless steel. Rondell cookware is characterized by perfect heating of food and is not subject to oxidation. Rondell offers a long warranty on its products.

Rondell's proprietary approach involves coating cast iron inside and out with special enamel. According to the developers, these products are suitable for any kind of stove. They were originally designed with a dishwasher in mind. The package includes detailed instructions and a recipe book. There is only one drawback - a solid price.

Among the dishes popular Tefal brands suitable for induction cookers Ingenio Expertise Series. All kitchen utensils included in this series are equipped with removable handles. The manufacturer declares that such products can be easily put in the oven, on the desktop, in the refrigerator, in the kitchen cabinet.

Tefal Ingenio is positioned as an excellent option for improving culinary skills. The patented Titanium Excellence coating is applied from the inside to prevent food burning. The titanium layer helps to eliminate harmful effects when touched with a metal cutlery. It also reduces the risk of mechanical deformations of a different kind.

Compared to previous versions, lifetime Tefal ingenio declared much more - from 10 to 12 years. A special device provides an accurate indication of temperature. The series includes three sets. They come in different configurations:

• pans with a diameter of 22 and 26 cm;
• stewpan 24 cm in the context;
• bucket with a diameter of 16 cm;
• wok and bucket.

Judging by the estimates of consumers, good dishes also give good results. Kukmara brands. This company produces braziers and pans, stewpan and pots, ducklings and gooseberries. Brand policy involves the use of granite coatings that provide excellent non-stick properties. The production of dishes was launched at the Kukmorsky factory in Tatarstan, in honor of the enterprise and the trademark was named.

For the manufacture of kitchen utensils cast aluminum is used there. It is very thick - the walls can reach 0.6 cm. This property allows you to achieve long-term operation of kitchen equipment. The coating applied on the inside is supplied by a leading German manufacturer - Weilburger Coatings GmbH. The composition is applied in 5 layers.

Marble components are complemented by particles of mineral ceramics. Thanks to the choice of spraying, the highest reliability and durability are ensured. The applied non-stick coating meets not only the Russian quality standard, but also the standards adopted in the EU and the USA.

Continuing the review of brands of utensils for inductive cookers is appropriate on the example of products firms Woll. According to the manufacturer himself, his products are optimally suited for both amateur culinary enthusiasts and respectable chefs. Solid German products created using the latest technology. Production is 100% concentrated on only one enterprise where very strict quality control is carried out. However, the very process of manual production itself (without any automated stamping) inspires confidence. Woll developers have proposed a unique composition of aluminum alloy, covered with a reliable non-stick coating.

Thanks to this layer, absolutely any dish can be cooked deliciously. At the same time, the consumption of fats and oils is reduced to the limit. Because the food is much healthier than using other designs. The Woll range includes:

• buckets;
• pans
• stewpan and many other varieties of dishes.

Of the Russian brands is attractive "Gourmet"present on the market since 1991. This brand is the intellectual property of the enterprise. "VSMPO-Utensils". The use of high-grade stainless steel made it possible to create no less high-quality dishes than the one promoted by the legendary Zepter.

It is also worth paying attention to the following parameters:

• thick enough bottom;
• upscale assembly;
• the ability to cook without water (if you have enough juice of your own);
• suitability of utensils for ovens (due to the lack of plastic);
• wide selection (the assortment of a Russian company includes pots up to 8 l).

But no matter how eminent the brand of the set of utensils is, the choice of the set does not end there. Other considerations play a very important role. Naturally, the desire to check the ferromagnetic properties of the dishes. In order to test fewer objects with a magnet or less often look for markings of a special sample, you can first evaluate the appearance. A ferromagnetic pan, for example, looks more massive than a regular sample. You can determine the truth at the price - quality utensils for induction cookers are not cheaply sold. Connoisseurs are also advised to think about the size of kitchen utensils. They must be suitable for at least one of the burners. But to find out the material used to create the walls is not too important. In practice, the presence of magnetic properties at the bottom is quite enough.

Induction cookers can even be used to make coffee in cezve. However, in this case you will have to use an adapter (sometimes it is called, depending on the source, an overlay or adapter). Without special adapters, you can only use dishes with a bottom of not more than 0.12 m. Even dishes with a width of 0.09 m are allowed to be placed on separate induction cookers.

However, final instructions on this subject can be found only in the technical documentation. Invalid:

• use dishes with chipped edges and with mechanical damage;
• place excessively heavy containers on the induction stove;
• allow careless handling of cast iron accessories.

The basic recommendations for the care of dishes for induction centers are very simple. It is imperative that all funds be assessed for sanitary and environmental safety. It is best to wash the dishes with your hands, and do not trust this manipulation of the dishwasher. Powdered formulations should be used with caution.

Connoisseurs advise:

• use only hot water for washing;
• pre-soak the dishes in water to soften the top layer of dirt;
• fight fat with a vinegar supplement;
• first wash less soiled dishes, and then more clogged;
• Do not pour cold water into hot dishes (and vice versa);
• minimize the use of steel brushes or hard washcloths, as well as metal scrapers.

Thanks to the flat disk installed between the stove and the cookware, even the most ordinary cookware can be used on the induction cooker. Including pots, coffee makers, pans. The inductance disk in thickness reaches 3-6 mm. It is always a multilayer product. Such an accessory replaces the ferromagnetic bottom.

When choosing adapters, they think about the total thickness, layer structure, outer color, diameter (with the expectation of capturing 80% of the surface of the bottom of the dishes), the presence of a removable handle (provides additional convenience).

Consumers give very good ratings to Rondell dishes. With most induction hobs, it works perfectly. Even the high price is fully justified. Good reviews are also coming to Thomas products. As an alternative, it is usually advised to consider Woll or the Czech brand Tescoma.

But Tefal products are priced somewhat less enthusiastically. Zepter products are quality, but sometimes unreasonably expensive. Also, brands such as BAF, Hackman, Lodge are invariably included in consumer demand ratings.

See how to choose the right cookware for induction cookers in the video below.