Cohousing-L Mailing List: Re: Electric smooth top stove in common house?

[PatZy (pzboom]

We here at Mountain View Coho chose to go with gas, largely I think because it 
was the best cooking method we were familiar with.  We have a 6-burner gas 
range in the common house and most homes went with gas.  A very few of us chose 
induction as an upgrade option - which I now wish we’d chosen for all.  It is 
AMAZINGLY powerful and responsive, as good or better than gas - and I cooked in 
restaurant kitchens for a number of years so I know cooktops.  It also doesn’t 
have the drawbacks of gas which include extra cost to bring in gas lines (if 
not using gas elsewhere), indoor air quality, and also a significant safety 
factor.  Induction will never kill us, be it via fumes or fire - and as we all 
grow older (and more forgetful) this could become more important as time goes 
on.  Two drawbacks I can think of:  you need magnetic pans (a one-time expense) 
and it probably isn’t wise to shake a saute pan directly on the glass surface - 
I’ve had to train myself to lift it and shake it, then set it back down 
(learning curve).  I highly recommend that you at least see a good demo of 
induction.  It is the wave of the future and is more sustainable than gas.  
This is why it is used so much in Europe - the US is just starting to catch on. 
 

I would never do standard electric for the common house.  Doesn’t have the 
power or the responsiveness.  

Patzy


> Message: 4
> Date: Wed, 12 Oct 2016 21:27:55 +0000
> From: Beverly Jones Redekop <beverly.jones.redekop [at] gmail.com>
> To: "cohousing-l [at] cohousing.org" <cohousing-l [at] cohousing.org>
> Subject: Re: [C-L]_ Electric smooth top stove in common house?
> Message-ID:
>       <CAEAcb0Htx31bwMRbzsmhaUG9OFfxvuqwrMLoCQR9qxpOYC-kyg [at] 
> mail.gmail.com>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=UTF-8
> 
> If you do go with gas, be mindful of the contradiction of our common house
> kitchens: we want commercial capacity (feeding large crowds) with a homey
> feel. Our kitchen is really pretty, with maple cabinets and white Corian
> countertops, but our excellent gas stove makes black marks on our huge
> pots...which streak all over our pretty counters.
> 
> DO go high capacity with your stove (induction or gas) and DO go attractive
> residential with your kitchen (stainless steel restaurant counters would be
> awful)...but go for TOUGH attractive residential.  We've broken a small
> corner of the counter by the sink too, as we use massive soup pots to feed
> our happy crowds.
> 
> 50/50 hindsight :-)
> 
> 
> ------------------------------
> 
> Message: 5
> Date: Wed, 12 Oct 2016 20:31:12 -0400
> From: Virgil Huston <virgil.huston1955 [at] gmail.com>
> To: cohousing-l [at] cohousing.org
> Subject: Re: [C-L]_ Electric smooth top stove in common house?
> Message-ID:
>       <CAJuVgBiNrahQeEaZHpxYrgmzjtckuH3pYynpaxcfPn=T13hv2w [at] 
> mail.gmail.com>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=UTF-8
> 
> I drool over commercial kitchens with gas stoves and all that nice
> stainless steel that is easy to clean. A common house needs
> cleanliness over anything else. Stainless steel is the only way to
> really get that. Just remember there is a reason commercial
> restaurants use gas, they want control over their precision cooking
> and to make the best food.
> Virgil
>