With so many options, choosing pans for electric stove tops can be difficult.
Most types of electric stove tops are compatible with ceramic pots and pans, but it’s a good idea to read the owner’s manual that came with the cookware to make sure you’re using it correctly.
Ceramic cookware is long-lasting, durable, and versatile, and it can be used in the microwave, on gas stoves, and on most electric stoves. It’s also safe to use in the refrigerator and dishwasher.
Electric Stove Tops
The burner design and power of electric stoves differ. Electric stove tops traditionally have raised, flat coils that heat up as heat is generated by electricity. With ceramic cookware, you can use a lower heat setting than with gas cookware because of the way heat radiates from electric coil burners.
Instead of the usual coils, some electric stove burners have a solid disk. These solid disks are easier to clean than traditional coil burners because there are no crevices or holes to collect soot, burned food, or grease. However, cooking with ceramic cookware on solid disk-style burners takes longer because the disks heat at a slower rate than coil burners.
Glass-Topped Electric Stove Tops
Because the burner is encased beneath a flat layer of glass, glass-topped electric stoves are also known as flat-topped stoves. To show where the burner is beneath the glass, use an illustration or a painted ring.
It’s possible that the burner beneath the glass is radiant or halogen. Ceramic cookware can be used on both types of burners, but because ceramic is so durable and hard, it can scratch the glass stove top. When using ceramic on an electric stovetop, use extreme caution.
If you slide or scoot the best pots and pans across the glass stovetop, the ceramic cookware will scratch it. Because the burner requires direct glass-to-pan-bottom contact to evenly distribute heat for cooking, ceramic cookware with grooves or textured bottoms may not cook evenly on glass-topped stove tops. For the best results, use ceramic cookware with a flat bottom.
Electric Induction Stove
Ceramic cookware will not work on an induction stove. Cookware made of stainless steel or iron is required for induction stoves. Ceramic, glass, solid aluminum, and copper cookware will not conduct the heat generated by an induction burner evenly throughout the pan. Instead of simply heating a burner coil, disk, or element beneath the cookware, an induction burner cooks the food within the metal pan. On an induction stove, ceramic cookware is useless.
Ceramic Cookware Considerations
Despite the fact that ceramic cookware is extremely durable, it can be broken or chipped if not properly cared for. Ceramic cookware should be stored with other ceramic cookware rather than metal pots and pans.
Ceramic cookware gets hot just like any other pot, and if it gets too hot, it will burn your skin. To avoid injury, use potholders when the cookware is hot. For example, Emile Henry cookware can withstand temperatures of up to 480 degrees Fahrenheit.
When placing hot ceramic pots and pans on table or counter surfaces, use a trivet, hot pad, potholder, or towel to avoid damaging the surfaces. Always have food inside the ceramic cookware before heating for the best results.
Ceramic Is Heat Resistant
Ceramic cookware can withstand high temperatures – up to 850 degrees Fahrenheit or more, according to Ceramics – so you can use it on almost any stovetop where metal can be used. Ceramic cookware won’t work on an induction stovetop because it isn’t made of metal; it won’t respond to the magnetic field in the stove, so it won’t get hot. If you drag it along the surface of a traditional glass-top stove, it may scratch it, according to GE Appliances.
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