Polaris OBark

I currently have a stovetop (that came with the oven and house that it is attached to) that runs on propane. As an added benefit, there is no exhaust fan. This irks me, and the burners themselves seem to put out fewer BTUs than my backpacking stove.

I am thinking of replacing it with an induction stovetop. I thought I would buy a one-burner unit just to test out the concept (and augment/put off replacing) the existing burners.

Is it correct that induction stoves are more efficient than conventional electric coil burners, and that they heat more evenly?

One drawback is that I don't think they will work with my copper-bottomed pans (there is not enough steel in the bottom to make a magnet adhere), but we have several other options.

Any suggestions for good brands to try out?

rm -rf

This induction overview from America's Test Kitchen. I looked into single burner tabletop units a few years ago. I liked the idea of setting a temperature, but that appears to vary in accuracy, depending. I never did get one.

But this review mentions that these single burners usually have small coils, more suitable for smaller pans. And the 110 volt tabletops won't be as fast as the 240v-high amperage stovetops.

nathand

We bought a Duxtop portable induction burner after some evidence that the gas stove triggered my son's asthma (see for example https://slate.com/technology/2020/12...us-asthma.html) and it seems to have made a difference. I rarely use the gas stove now, and I hope to switch to a full induction range and electric oven eventually. I did buy some new, compatible cookware, and several of our older items work fine (cast iron frying pans, a small enameled pot). My only complaint is that really wide pans don't heat evenly on it, particularly cast iron (which is not a good heat conductor). It doesn't work well for pancakes, but I have an electric skillet that's perfect for those. I use the induction cooktop for nearly everything else and am quite happy with it. There are plenty of options for induction-compatible cookware, but if you'd like to buy fancy made-in-the-USA items, check out the occasional All-Clad Factor Seconds sales (sign up and they'll send you an email when a sale starts, every few months) https://homeandcooksales.com/

Polaris OBark

My Duxtop arrived last night. It got the highest review on NYT/Wirecutter. I boiled some water just to make sure it worked, but I will try cooking on it today. I appreciate the recommendation.