How To Choose a Cooking Plate

Cooking plates are primarily a mobile home appliance that takes up little space. Of course, this will also affect the number of hotplates/ hobs it has. You are most likely to encounter cookers with one or two hotplates or burners. But there are also models with three burners.

For those who only cook a simple meal once in a while, one hot plate is enough. If you are preparing more complex meals or cooking for a small family, choose a two-burner stove, or a three-burner stove, but there are only a few of these currently on the market.

Choose the diameter of the hob or hotplates according to where you will cook (at home in the kitchen, while camping, in a holiday home) and according to the dishes you have available.

A small cooker with a hob diameter of only 10 cm is available. This is only really suitable for camping. For occasional and easy cooking in a smaller pot, a cooker with a hob with a diameter of 15-16 cm will probably suffice. However, if you want to use your cooker/ cooking plate for normal cooking for 2 or more people, choose one that has hotplates with a diameter of at leas 18 cm so they can accommodate a large pot.

Note: The plates on a two-plate or three-plate cooker are usually different sizes.

If cooking speed is a priority for you, an induction cooker should be a clear choice. It cooks the fastest and with the least energy loss. That's why investing in it pays off.

If you do not have suitable utensils for induction and you do not plan to buy, then a glass-ceramic or gas cooker will be suitable for you. Both have about the same efficiency, so it depends on whether you are a fan of cooking using gas or electricity. The least efficient is the cast iron cooker, which is cheaper, but you pay more for energy, because it cooks the slowest of all the listed cookers.

Power consumption is an important parameter for electric cookers. This value expresses how much electricity the cooker consumes. The higher the power consumption, the higher the electricity consumption. However, on the other hand, with a higher power input, the heating speed of the hob also increases.

There are two types of controls for cookers.

Gas and cast iron cookers are controlled mechanically by means of rotary knobs. For gas cookers, we often find an automatic starter with a spark to ignite the flame. Glass-ceramic cookers are regulated by thermostats or some have very user-friendly touch control. In most cases, induction cookers have a built-in touch control.

Be sure to check how far your sockets are from where you plan to place the cooker. If it is not in the immediate vicinity, make sure that the length of the cooker cord reaches the socket. Most cookers are equipped with a cable up to one meter. If this is not enough for you, choose a longer cable.

When you buy a cooking plate for your kitchen or holiday home, remember that you will see it every day. So it should be in keeping with the style of your kitchen. There are a lot to choose from. You will find cookers in a soft white color or in a practical black, or timeless stainless steel versions.

Cooking plates are not designed for large-scale cooking, so their limited number of functions must be taken into account. Common equipment includes basic safety features, such as an operation light and an overheat protection device. With gas cookers, automatic shut-off, prevents gas leakage, and an integrated lighter are a matter of course. You can expect other above-standard functions in induction cookers or submersible cookers.

Induction cookers can be equipped with functions such as detection of suitable dishes, LED displays, timers, audible alarms and automatic shut-off.

Some cookers are equipped to be used for sous-vide cooking. Thus, they not only bring the water to a boil, but also allow the setting of the exact temperature to which they should heat the water and can keep this temperature constant throughout the cooking process.

You save the most electricity with an induction cooker, glass ceramic cookers are a close second and cast iron cookers are the least economical option.

• Induction cookers

Induction cookers work on the principle of electromagnetic induction. It uses electromagnetic waves to heat only the bottom of the pot, so heat is not generated on the hob, but directly in the pot. There is no heat loss and cooking is efficient and economical. In addition, it is the safest cooking option, so you don't have to worry about getting burned by a hot plate. The maintenance of the induction cooker is easy thanks to the smooth surface. However, this technology requires special pots and pans with magnetic bottoms to work properly.

TIP: If you like the features of the induction cooker but don't want to invest in a set of dishes with a magnetic bottom, an induction adapter could be an easy solution.

• Glass ceramic cookers

Glass ceramic cookers use a heating spiral to heat the hob. The heated hob then transfers heat to the bottom of the pan. The heating rate is relatively high, but not as much as an induction cooker and more heat loss occurs. However, you can use any type of pan on the ceramic hob. The smooth surface of the hob makes maintenance very easy.

The dishes that will work on the induction cooker have a special ferromagnetic bottom and are marked with a spiral symbol or the word Induction.

A cast iron or glass-ceramic cooker is best for your holiday home. Choose a two-burner rather than a one-burner model. The price difference won’t be too big and you will have wider options when cooking. Pay attention to the energy source. If you do not have electricity choose a gas cooker. However, if you want an electric cooker, check the length of the power cord. In holiday homes, wiring is often simpler and the sockets are located far apart. A short power cord might not reach to where you want to cook.

TIP: If you are trying to kit out your holiday home without breaking the bank, consider our second hand cookers which may have been used briefly, but are completely in order and come with a guarantee. Also consider our , where you will find models ideal for your holiday home.

Yes. The induction cooker works on a completely different principle than other cookers, which radiate heat around and are still hot for a few minutes after the pot has been stopped. The heat source of induction cookers is the container itself, which heats the food. Neither the hob nor the air around it heats up, so induction cooking is safe and efficient at the same time.

None. It is the same function, which each manufacturer names differently.

Sous-vide is a modern method of cooking in which food is first wrapped in a vacuum seal and then prepared in a water bath with a precisely set temperature. Foods prepared in this way (meat, fish, vegetables and fruits) are most often poached at a temperature of 55-60 ° C. The result is a perfectly cooked dish, preserving the juice, texture, color and taste, and above all preserving important nutrients and vitamins.