Yeah, I hear you, but mine is the house at which my siblings and niblings congregate (well they did until I tore up the kitchen). Before I decided against a gas rangetop I was so looking forward to having six burners.

Well that's getting together more than a handful of times. Do you think Viking makes its own cooktop? I'm kinda thinking they don't. Off to research.

Zalco, thanks advance for anything you can find.

wd, um, yeah, that’ll work!

Hi cp - wet hands. It’s hard to make induction touch top controls work with wet hands. I’m a little worried about Viking too, but it is the only 36” induction with 6 hobs. That said, I know there are “freedom” tops that allow you to place your cookware anywhere on the top. They only take four pieces at a time. BlueStar is a contender for sure, but again, only 5 hobs. Maybe I’m being silly about the 6.

How often do you use 6 hobs? I have 5 and even on holidays don't use all 5 at one time. I have the Bosch 800 36" cooktop and I love it. I have had to dry my fingers or turn it on or off with my other hand but it's a minor problem as far as I'm concerned. Of course YMMV.

Perhaps the chef is cooking the food on open gas flames, not in a pan. In that instance, gas does change the flavor.

Here is what I found:

http://theinductionsite.com/induction-makers/viking-induction-hobs.php

It does not look promising.

How about a high end portable induction unit for family feasts? Or add a small domino next to a 36", 5 hob unit.

Maybe he was referring to cooking temperature on induction vs. gas and not being able to get as high temps on the induction. I know with wok cooking the btus make a big difference and it does change the taste. We had a wolf range in previous house and did wok cooking on it and even with the higher btus on the wolf it doesnt compare to our platinum blue star with even higher btus when we wok cook. The food does taste different.

Zalco, thanks for the link.

Vin, if that’s something unique to wok cooking, I get it. Actually, I don’t know how the highest setting on an induction cooktop compares to the btus of a rangetop. I’m usually interested in the lower end of the spectrum... I should read some more.

Cooking over an open flame contributes to wok hei either by allowing the flame into the pan or by spattering oil being caught in the stream of heat from the burner and vaporizing.

"Hi cp - wet hands. It’s hard to make induction touch top controls work with wet hands. "

Uhm, I beg to differ, but I feel it depends on the brand. I've got a Bosch, and my hands are rarely dry when cooking. I just now dripped a lot of water on my controls, got my fingers to the point of more water dripping, and....

Water dripped on controls...

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Wet dripping fingers turning the induction to On... You can see the pool of water at the On/Off.

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Set to '5' with drippy fingers and a puddle on setting 5. As you can see, it works.

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Truthfully, the only issue I've ever had with water and induction is if I barely wring a soaking dishcloth, and wipe up under a pan (to wipe up salt, whatever) and I leave a pool of water under the pan. The range flashes, and turns off to protect itself. But that's easily avoided by using a damp cloth, not a full on water-logged cloth : )

Again, this is a Bosch. And I know my Mom's radiant heat cooktop with digital controls was a complete nightmare (Kitchenaide). If you so much as looked at the darned thing it would turn off and on at will (if you leaned over it, barely touched it).

As for charring, you would be right, Ming is wrong. Unless you are roasting (thus creating char) something like peppers over a flame. But, my range, my countertop toaster oven, my grill... can all char peppers. And guess what? My induction can create char on peppers in a hot pan - but it's more cleanup and not as 'pretty' a char (which is removed anyway) on a pepper - the biggest downside other than the mess in a hot pan is it takes more time. But you have to stand there holding the pepper with gas. I don't care how one does it, or which they prefer - gas or induction.

If one wants gas, get gas, but all this comparison of can't and can's is getting out of control, IMO : )

I have a Wolf induction and it's great except for the lack of knobs (Bluestar wasn't available when I purchased). Wet hands and spills from cooking are the issue (I'm not as neat as the TV chefs by a large margin). As others have said, Ming is incorrect. For charing peppers and such, the broiler in the Bluestar wall oven works a treat--it's just one step short of a salamander. There's really no reason to go for gas these days.

OK, wekick, that makes sense, and I've learned a new term... According to the Michelin guide,

"Stir frying, the cornerstone of Cantonese cooking, is all about wok hei, that complex charred aroma that fleetingly cloaks the piping-hot stir-fries served at Cantonese restaurants and zi char joints."

So there really is a difference between the two in wok cooking. Ming Tsai is right. And when Cook's Illustrated tells me to stir fry in a frying pan, it's really not the same. Lessons learned.

I stand corrected!

And still without a cooktop, but I'm visiting appliance stores this weekend. I think I can live without the wok hei as I have no wok, but it does bear saying that induction and gas are, at least in this one instance, not the same.

2Many - thank you for the recommendation. It's good to know at least one manufacturer makes a knobless that works with wet hands.

Jerry, the BlueStar is on my list. I'm not sure I can actually find one to look at, but it's on my list. I really love your kitchen and your choices.

It's the amount of heat, not the heat source. A dedicated wok heater (the commercial variety that chefs such as Ming use) heats far more than most home cooktops or ranges. The better induction cooktops come much closer to this than all but a few gas appliances. Chef technique is just as important.

"Chef technique is just as important."

Yeah - I lack that as well!

I'm a fantastic home cook, though I say it myself, and a pretty great baker, but my experience is in European and American cuisine (plus, I make a mean pakora). Maybe I'll be inspired to branch out a bit more in my cultural inspiration. I have been watching Milk Street/New Home Cooking - I just haven't tried any recipes from Asia or Africa or South America yet.

I've actually done the wok cooking the ATK way (12" pan). It turned out well, but I didn't have the same ingredients (or technique) as the TV chefs, so I can't say how it compared. I do a lot of baking and one-pot meals (even if the recipe wasn't for a one pot meal). This one started out as a marinara sauce recipe.

I won't claim to be an expert wok cook, but the amount of char or caramelization that results depends on the ratio of food mass to watts/BTUh that one can put into the wok and hence quickly into the food. Tens of millions of Chinese cook successfully on modest cooking appliances, and I suspect it is because they limit the food being cooked at the same time.

I have a supplementary wok hob made by Cooktek. As I recall, it is 3500W, or about 30k BTUh. I can char or not depending on power setting and amount of food. Making a very big stir fry quantity at once will not result in much char. I can, however, steam heat a rather large mass of material.

Chinese restaurant wok burners start at 100k BTUh and go up from there. They use knee lever gas control.

The induction wok hob, like all induction hob schemes presently used to my knowledge, has a small inner zone of limited heating -- mainly by conduction from the zone just beyond. This is different from gas burners, and residential users have the induction vs. gas trade-off of higher power in an annular cooking zone, or lower power (22k BTUh, maybe) in a more circular (spherical surface segment) cooking zone.

Choice is likely to depend on several other factors than differences in char.

Jerry - cut it out! I'm really hungry this morning. Started out as marinara indeed - looks yummy.

"Tens of millions of Chinese cook successfully on modest cooking appliances..."

Of course you are right kaseki.

And anyway, I'm not trying to be a restaurant chef. I guess I'm still a little uncertain of my choice, but even in gas-rich northeast Ohio my niblings worry about fossil fuel use, and even I dream of having a plug-in car fueled by solar panels so that I will literally be driving on sunshine.

Don't know about portable hobs, but induction cooktops heat the pan, not the glass top. The glass top does get heated by convection from the pan. A pan with a thick bottom (Fissler Original-Pro is what I've found to be the best SS pan/pot) will heat more evenly than a thin pan regardless of heat source (Wasted money on the ATK recommendation of All-Clad--they warp badly).

Bummer JJ! Actually, come to think of it, a few of my sister's A/C don't sit flat anymore either. I've been using my carbon steel pan on my sister's induction top (she has a Fazar - so cool! induction under tile) and it is as it's supposed to be - pretty thin but really good at transferring heat. It sears beautifully and sits flat as a pancake.

I thought my sister's A/C warpage was due to user error - she and her husband both thought they should stick hot pans in cold water as soon as they were emptied, while still hot, in order to get them clean. Of course, that's not what you're supposed to do. How did yours warp?

Well, I've never stuck them in cold water while hot, so that's not the issue. They just warped from use. The Fissler pans are rock solid. If you look at the user A/C reviews, there are a lot of warping complaints.

I didn't realize that with A/C. Makes you think. I will check out the Fissler pans. Thanks JJ.

Another huge Fissler fan here. They are better than Demeyere.

FWIW Cities in California are banning new gas appliances already, not many yet, but my neighboring city has, mine will soon.

eam44,

Grace Young is usually accredited with the term wok hei. She is like the Julia Child of Chinese cooking. She was Test Kitchen Director and Director of Food Photography for over forty cookbooks published by Time-Life Books. Her book Stir-frying to the Sky’s Edge, won a James Beard award. She is very accessible and even answers question on her FB page. I like her because as talented as she is and as much knowledge as she has, she is not an elitist. This is what she says about induction.

”You can stir-fry on an induction stove. You will need a 14-inch flat-bottomed carbon-steel wok. Once in a while the contact of the flat-bottomed wok with the burner isn’t perfect. The flat-bottomed cast-iron by Joyce Chen works perfectly on a glass-top but I don’t like cast-iron because it is so heavy—and therefore very clumsy to use when stir-frying when you need to be able to pick up a wok quickly. It also takes much longer to preheat and once your stir-fry is done the pan retains heat so if you don’t get the food out promptly it will overcook. So each pan has its advantages and disadvantages. I’m sorry there’s no pan that’s 100% perfect.The best source for a carbon-steel or cast-iron wok is the WokShop.com. It’s inexpensive, American-made and built to last. When you order your wok, call and speak to the owner Tane Chan. She is extremely knowledgeable about woks.

Carbon-steel and cast-iron are the traditional materials for woks in China. Both become naturally nonstick with use, like a cast-iron skillet. With use, you’ll need less and less oil for cooking as the nonstick surface develops. Carbon-steel heats quickly and spreads the heat evenly up the sides of the wok. In contrast, stainless-steel will not develop a natural nonstick surface with use and in fact, food is likely to stick.”

https://www.graceyoung.com/shop/

if you have an AC pan you might be able to get it replaced under warranty. Depending on where you bought it, you might be able to take it back and they will replace it on the spot. I know Bed, Bath and Beyond does this. I wonder sometimes if the layers warp because of the different metals.

I haven't bothered replacing the A/C pans under warranty because the reviewers indicate that the replacement pans warp as well.

wekick - thank you so much for the information! Grace Young sounds amazing - I'm going to watch a video of her cooking! I have a carbon steel frying pan - maybe it's time for a wok! Well, when I have a functional cooktop then it's time for a wok. My sister's A/C pans are 20+ years old, so my guess would be that they are out of warranty, but that's still good to know.

The warranty is supposed to be lifetime, but they may not have registered them.

No it doesn’t. Go induction. You’ll love it forever

About warping, I used my mothers early 1980s, made in France, stainless steel with a copper sandwich bottom Cuisinart pots and pans until a few years ago. They did not warp. And I was guilty of certain crimes against metal described above.

Frigidaire professional induction. 5 burners one has a bridge to put 2 together. Instant heat...You’ll love it. I have electric, gas and induction and I’d change the other 2 to induction if I could afford it!

I'll ask my sister if they registered them - she probably did, actually. Thanks JJ

tk - I've made an appointment to see the BlueStar Induction top tonight. They also carry the Frigidaire, so I will look.

Zalco - "crimes against metal" - ha! I inherited my mother's Le Creuset and I look forward to introducing them to a new cooking surface.

A friend is about to install the GE Profile Induction with a Zephyr downdraft in a few weeks. Time will tell how they like it but it sounds promising. Cleaning an all glass surface where nothing sticks to the burners sounds like a dream.

Particularly since only the part under the pan gets hot.

Warping can be dealt with using three silicone sheet pads in a triangular pattern over the hob. The only times that the ones I've made for DW were slagged (rarely now) were when the hobs were turned on under empty pans but the cook wandered off to do something. The resulting gap under the pan will also leave the hob glass (Ceran) somewhat cooler than the pan being heated.

Interesting kaseki. It would be awesome if I could just cook on the Silpat! In truth I will be delighted when I can boil an egg - not on a borrowed hotplate.

Love my Bertazzoni induction range. They make a 36" cooktop with knobs but alas it only has 5 burners.

I've considered that one moose! It's a beauty for sure. I get a little hung up on power burners, both at the low and high end, simmer and sear. The BlueStar is more powerful, but nothing is prettier than the Berta.

Suggest cutting up pure silicone sheet instead of Silpats. I don't think Silpats are made of the highest temperature silicone due to their clear areas. Better should be iron oxide red, and temperature rated blacks and blues. Suitable material can be found at MSCDirect.com. Thicknesses between 0.040 to 0.060 inches should suffice.

Eam44, if you want an open flame to use with a wok, a friend of mine uses an outdoor burner from a turkey fryer.

kaseki, that’s a cool idea - I was fantasizing but it’s good to know it can be done, and how.

wekick - I didn’t know there was such a thing as a turkey fryer - but of course there is. People love to fry turkeys for Thanksgiving. I’ve never eaten a fried turkey, but you know I’m going to go look for a turkey fryer now

Thank you both!

OK, quick update. I saw the Frigidaire, Thermador, Wolf and BlueStar. They all look nice in their own way. They all look like pieces of glass, some with knobs. I’m not sure what I was expecting. I did not see the Viking because no one near me carries it. I’m not sure what I was expecting, but none of them made me swoon. The Thermador is equipped, not with knobs but with WiFi. So if I’m on the couch and don’t want to get up to turn the stove off, I can do it using my iPad. The BlueStar will probably be fine even without WiFi....

Were you able to use any?

No, the Thermador was hooked up but they didn’t have pots around and if they did I might have just boiled water. I get it. I did turn the knobs on the Frigidaire and the BlueStar. Nice knobs. The truth is I’m currently boiling water on a hotplate and I can cook on just about anything. I’m starting to feel a little silly for worrying so much.

@eam44 - Any cooktop yet? I may be changing course and trying to get a 36 inch induction RANGE so I don't need to have a seam in my marble. I was pretty set on the BlueStar cooktop, but here we go again. I really like the looks of the Bertazzoni, but I hear BAD things. Fisher and Paykel has a 36 inch, Miele, Dacor, Aga, Wolf. I'd get the Wolf in a heartbeat, but don't love the looks of it. The knobs only control the oven, and the induction top is just their regular one set on the top of the oven. I don't like the looks of the Miele (too modern) - Any advice anyone?

@eam44 - Have you gotten anything yet? I just got my permit so I need to get shopping as everything is so delayed.

Hi @DesignGirl! I had to remove three huge trees (maple, oak, oak) and grind stumps. Same cost. So I have waited. Are your front runners still BlueStar and Wolf?

@eam44 - Oh dear - we had to remove 8 huge pine trees a few years back so I feel your pain. I think I'm going to pull the trigger on the Blue Star. as Wolf doesn't have knobs. What did you think when you saw all of them?

I haven’t seen the Blue Star, ☹️ But how could it be anything other than fabulous? For every other brand it’s exactly as you’d expect, the more expensive models look and feel more expensive. The Thermadore is lovely, gorgeous really, but the clunky controls rule it out. In my head I thought maybe the Berta Pro, but they’ve had reliability issues in their induction ranges, and with the pandemic, could you imagine being home and not being able to cook? That said, the only reviews I’ve found here are from people that love their Berta induction.

I use my sister’s Fazar induction top all the time. It annoys me when my hands are wet and there are no knobs, but I wonder whether I’m making too big a deal of that. In reality I dry my hands and press again. But I think the BS is lovely, we’ve both waited so long that it’s not really a new product, so go for it. You’ll be done before I am!