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Aug 18, 2023

California’s move to induction stoves comes with advantages you might not know about

For years, the centerpiece of every showcase California kitchen was the gas stove. Large, sleek and intimidating in a cheffy-weffy way, they were considered an absolute necessity for the

For years, the centerpiece of every showcase California kitchen was the gas stove. Large, sleek and intimidating in a cheffy-weffy way, they were considered an absolute necessity for the well-appointed home.

In fact, California’s love affair with gas ranges isn’t confined to the well-heeled. About 70 percent of our state’s households use natural gas for cooking, according to a 2020 analysis from the Energy Information Administration.

But times are changing, as you may have heard. Recent evidence links natural gas appliances to childhood asthma, and there’s no denying the deadly dangers of residential natural gas or its conspicuous carbon footprint.

As it does with so many environmental reforms, California is leading the way to the post-gas era. In 2019, Berkeley became the first U.S. city to ban gas lines in most new residences and commercial buildings. Since then, at least 50 California cities and counties have followed suit, including San Francisco, Sacramento, Los Angeles and Irvine.

Beginning in January 2023, all newly constructed homes must have electric supply panels and circuitry for all-electric appliances and heating. The new building code doesn’t ban the installation of natural gas appliances, but that era will arrive in 2030 as part of the California Air Resources Board’s mandate to lower the “carbonization” of structures and improve indoor air quality.

Fortunately, technology is changing with the times. Besides traditional electric stoves, a more modern alternative to gas heat is induction.

Actually, “modern” is a bit deceptive — induction heat has been around for more than a century. It was patented in the early 1900s and made its debut at the Chicago “Century of Progress” World’s Fair in 1933.

According to the Appliances Connection blog, Frigidaire brought induction stoves to market in the 1950s and Westinghouse did the same in the 1970s. But early models weren’t big sellers. They were expensive and plagued by low power, unreliability and noise problems.

American manufacturers made their last induction stoves for the home in 1999, but they continued to be sold in Europe and Asia, where they were gradually improved. Now, lower prices and growing environmental concerns mean their popularity is booming for both commercial and residential use. The global market for induction cooktops was about $21 billion in 2021 and is expected to reach around $35 billion by 2028.

Induction cooking is based on magnetic conductivity between the burner and a pot or pan. Frigidaire, one of the first companies to use the technology, explains how it works on its website: “An electric current is passed through a coiled copper wire underneath the cooking surface, which creates a magnetic current throughout the cooking pan to produce heat.” Induction cooking is considered safer, more energy efficient and faster than gas or electric.

Rachelle Boucher is a proselytizer for induction. Boucher spent the first part of her career as a private chef for filmmaker George Lucas, the rock band Metallica and other big names in entertainment and sports. Now she likes to call herself “The Appliance Whisperer.”

Boucher is cofounder of Kitchens to Life, experts in kitchen electrification. She’s also Senior Lead for Culinary Events and Experiences for the Building Decarbonization Coalition, which is dedicated to eliminating fossil fuels in buildings.

It’s not just home cooks that are warming to induction, Boucher said from her office in Pacifica, near San Francisco. Professional chefs, notoriously traditional in their ways, are beginning to see the light, too.

“I know many chefs who became advocates like me. I came to this because while (working) for Sub-Zero and Wolf and Miele, I was cooking on the big fire-breathing gas ranges. And right next to them were induction ranges. They didn’t look as dramatic. Many people misconstrue them for the older-style electric (range). But by working side by side on these two technologies, I and my colleagues became 100 percent converts.”

Boucher is passionate about induction cooking’s advantages of speed, power, control and efficiency.

“What’s exciting and fascinating is that induction works twice as quickly as gas. You’re literally boiling water in half the time. And 90 percent of the energy used goes into the pot. Gas is at most 35 percent efficient. All the rest of that energy is going into the home as heat. There are things you discover when cooking with induction like, ‘Wow, I’m more cool and comfortable in my home. My pot handles don’t get hot. I can reach over the pot without burning myself.’”

In restaurants, the effect is even more dramatic, Boucher said. “(Induction cooking) can turn a 100-degree kitchen into a 70-degree kitchen. And everything is so much more quiet.”

Boucher warns that cooking with induction requires some equipment adjustment.

“Cookware does have to be magnetic. If you take a magnet and put it on the bottom of your cookware and it sticks, you’re good. Anything aluminum like Calphalon doesn’t work. Pure copper doesn’t work. Copper-clad does. Glass cookware doesn’t work. Cast iron and enameled cookware are great.”

Prices for induction appliances have come down in recent years, but they’re still usually more expensive than standard electric models, Boucher said.

“When you look at ranges that are equivalent in those categories, induction carries a higher price tag. But it has loads of features like automatic shutoff when pans are removed. If you go down a price level, even your average lower-priced induction is still going to cook way faster and more controlled than a gas range in the same price category.”

Rebates are making a huge dent in retail prices for induction appliances.

“You can sometimes bundle the rebates,” Boucher said. “Some California counties have both state and local incentives. And there’s a new (rebate) program available through the Inflation Reduction Act.”

The legislation includes $4.5 billion in funding for states to provide rebates for the purchase and installation of new electric appliances, including ranges, cooktops and wall ovens.

Interest in induction cooking continues to build as other states follow California’s lead. More than 100 jurisdictions nationally are adopting electric-only building ordinances.

“There is a growing awareness of the conundrum of burning fossil gas in your home,” Boucher said. “Air quality is becoming a big thing — that’s driving a lot of it. And there are a lot of chefs now, myself and others, standing up and saying, ‘This is an amazing technology. Let’s do this.’”

Induction appliances are sold in three configurations:

Note: Both business and residential customers may borrow a tabletop induction unit free of charge from SCE’s Foodservice Technology Center.

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