Gas versus electric cooking

welsh_worrier

Been coping with gas cooker for a few years which is in a sad state.
Just 2 burners working on hob .Oven has to be ignited with lighter or match.
I burn my fingers each time I light oven.Daughter came around today and
she couldn`t believe how I`ve been coping all this time(she is never around when I cook).Anyway she was horrified and immediately went online to look
at cookers for me. She has now ordered me a new cooker which she has
paid for.Only thing is electrics cooker were cheaper and I have always cooked on gas
Do you think I`ll cope with it after 35 years on gas?

kethry

I cook on gas too... i love gas hobs and i wouldn't change even if you paid me money to do so.. i struggle when i go down to my mom's - she has a ceramic hob and an electric oven.

two big problems: electric rings aren't as adjustible, heatwise, as the gas rings. second: oven temps are different. its going to take a while to get used to dealing with things at *C rather than gas marks. I'd write out a translation table and blutack it somewhere where you'll see it easily.

sorry.. i know its not good news.. good of your daughter to help you out though!

keth
xx

welsh_worrier

I think electric oven will be more reliable(could never get gas oven at correct temperature(often burning outside of cakes before cooked).
However it is hob that is bothering me.Do rings take time to heat up and how long before they cool down.

PasturesNew

As you have a gas cooker, I am surprised there is also an electric cooker point available.

Yes, the rings take time to warm up. But they're pretty quick, never timed one but I'd say in about 20-30 seconds you'd probably want your finger off it.

Yes they take time to cool down. Maybe 5 minutes or so. Can't be less than a gas hob though... they must get hot being in those flames.

I have never managed to balance a saucepan on gas, I find them very precarious. Also, with electric, I like the way you can turn them off a few minutes ahead of time (before you forget) and things are still "cooking".

meanmarie

Hi Welsh Worrier,

I have cooked on electric hobs for most of my long life...takes adjustment, as heat remains much longer than with gas, so you learn to turn off sooner. It does take longer to heat up and when turned down doesn't react as quickly as gas, so consider your new cooker a learning curve...what a good daughter you have!

The electric oven is very reliable and if fan assisted will mean that you can fill the oven and not worry about 'hot or cool spots'...you will need to get used to centigrade temperatures, but if you do as previous poster advised and print a 'translation' which is convenient to refer to until you acclimatise you should have no problems.

The main thing I would advise you to do is to buy a small camping stove type of gadget to allow yourself to cook in a power cut, and an electric kettle if you now use the gas to boil a kettle...too slow on electricity.

Enjoy your new cooker and no burnt fingers!

Marie

shelly

meanmarie wrote: »

The main thing I would advise you to do is to buy a small camping stove type of gadget to allow yourself to cook in a power cut,

That reminds me I need to get one of these. Where we have moved to is an electric oven and ceramic hob. We suffer from quite a few power cuts and its very annoying when in the middle of cooking something. Least with a camping stove thingy I can do noodles or pasta etc.

D&DD

I was brought up learning to cook on gas and when I first met my OH I cooked him a romantic meal at his mums house while they were away...problem was she had all electric and it took me 3 HOURS to manage a rather dire shepherds pie :rotfl:

Imagine my horror when our first flat was all electric :eek: Now I love my electric cooker and would find it equally hard to adjust back to gas..that said meanmarie has made an excellent point about power cuts..we have them quite a lot so have just purchased a little camping stove from robertdyas..It does make me wonder wether our next cooker should maybe be a dualfuel one with a gas hob..
I'm sure you'll get used to your new cooker quickly has it got a fan oven? My one tends to cook meat etc perfect but you do have to be a bit careful with cakes etc..I usually do these in my 'slow' oven

Rossy2692

I was all gas cooker until we had a new kitchen 4 years ago, we had an electric fan oven put in with gas hob, I was petrified:eek: Change after years of cooking all gas was frightening but i can honestly say I will always stick to this combination, gas hobs in my opinion are much better than electric, easier to control, instant heat instant reduction of heat and my electric oven better cooking, even heat distribution.

Michaela

rygon

Ive used halogen, gas and electric and found gas the best by far due to being able to control the heat much better (even when using the oven).
Saying that its cheaper may end up costing you more. As said a few posts up it will be suprising to have a cooker socket. these need to be rated higher than a normal socket (45A as opposed to 13A) thus you will need to have a wire from your fuse box to the oven area. This will most probably means routing a wire up the wall, along the floor spacing above and then down to the oven (if you want it looking the neat the that means chiseling out the wall). Getting this done by contractors can be expensive

spaghetti_monster

hi guys!
Just wanted to say thanks too - have been reading with interest as I'm about to get a new cooker as currently the oven part is broken.
It's a gas hob and electric oven so maybe I'll stick with this combination as lots seem to be enthusiastic about that!
Alex x

Al_Jolson

I would definitely recommend a gas hob as you have so much more control over it. If you need to turn the hob down to let something simmer, it takes a few minutes for the temperature to adjust with an electric hob.

I have always had a combination cooker with a fan assisted electric oven, and I have no complaints about it. My mum's electric oven is ancient and takes ages to heat up, but mine only takes about 5 or 10 minutes so modern ovens are clearly much quicker. Not sure if a gas oven would be quicker though. I think I had a gas oven once in a flat I rented, but couldn't have used it much as I don't remember what it was like!

It is really nice of your daughter to order this for you, but as it's something you will have for years, if you would prefer gas, I would tactfully see if she can change the order. The company might let you as long as you are still ordering from them.