Induction heaters and cooktops adopt a unique way to heat or cook food. Unlike electric heaters and gas fired burners that generate heat on their own, an induction heating device makes the pot or pan that is placed on it do the job. So do you need any special type of pots for an induction cooktop, the answer is ‘yes’.
The base of the pan or pot used on an induction heater, needs to be magnetic. There is a coil just below the top surface of an induction heating device, this is capable of generating an oscillating magnetic field. The interesting thing is that, the coil itself does not heat up during the cooking process. As mentioned earlier, the base of the pot that comes into contact with the top surface of the induction cooktop, has to be magnetic. The magnetic field that is generated within the induction heater, causes the electrons in the magnetic material of the pot to move. The electric current that is generated during this process causes, the base of the pot to heat up.
Should you buy new pots and pans to be used on your induction heater. If you have any existing utensils or pots that have a magnetic base, you might be able to use them for induction cooking. We say might because, there are a few other features that you might need to evaluate. But if you cannot find any pans with magnetic bases in your kitchen, then be prepared to budget for their purchase. Some pots with magnetic bases might work more efficiently than others, let us get into that discussion here.
The efficiency of induction cooking will be optimized when, the pots used are absolutely flat at the bottom. The base of the pots or pans being in absolute contact with the surface of the induction cooktop, is ideal for this type of cooking. This obviously means that a curved bottom will be less than ideal. Pots, pans and utensils that are made for use on an induction cooking device, will always have a perfectly flat base.
Is there any specific pot size that is ideal for an induction heater or cooktop. Let us first talk about the diameter of the base of the pot. If you observe the top of an induction device, you should see two markers, these are generally marked as circles. The inner marking defines the minimum diameter of the (pot) base, the outer marking is the maximum diameter. These markings define dimensions that will directly, influence the efficiency of your induction cooking. It is therefore a good idea to go for pots that adhere to these size limits.
Another dimension that should be considered is the height of the pot. Since induction heaters cause heat to be generated in the base of the pot, a high pot could experience cold spots on the top. So if you put a lot of food to be cooked in a high pot, you might find that the upper portion of the cook gets partially cooked. If you are using the induction cooktop or heater to merely heat the food, stirring the food as it gets heated might offer a solution. So the height of the pot and more importantly, the amount of food put into the pot are important considerations.
While buying new pots and pans for your induction cooktop will cost money, using the less than ideal pot will always result in lower cooking efficiency. You can pace out your purchases and avoid a major budget expense.