If you also have an electric oven on the same ring, you may in fact need an even higher rated cable.Bear this in mind because it’s the single most important consideration when purchasing any electrical cooking appliance.

All three zones benefit from power boost settings and are controlled using Smegs minimal touch slider design. It also has a clever Eco-Off setting, where the cooking zone shuts down a little bit before the timer sounds, making use of the residual heat and saving that little bit of energy. Especially if the island is a little bit shallower than normal. This is where I’ve used them the most in my kitchen designs! The Bosch PUE611BF1B features TouchSelect controls, which means that selecting the right mode to suit your cooking task is straightforward. Induction hobs are also frequently praised for their speed and energy efficiency and this is where this model really excels. While we can’t show you the exact model of hob that is right for you, we can offer some help deciding which to choose. Size

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x FlexInduction zone with 2 usage possiblities: 2 single induction zones of 380 cm² or one flexible induction zone of 760 cm² Cost to run: We asked whether the induction hob was costly or relatively cheap to run based on our 10 minute pasta-boiling test. The Neff’s TouchControl interface is easy to use but, like all touch sensitive controls, it can sometimes be really fiddly changing power settings. Also, your fingers will leave a lot of marks on the shiny ceramic glass surface in the process but thankfully the whole thing’s a doddle to clean. Neff is known for its high-quality kitchen appliances, and this induction hob is certainly no exception to this.

You may also need to buy a new cooker hood. Most standard cooker hobs are 60 cm, and depending on the model you have (if it isn’t powerful enough for your new hob), you may need to buy a 90 cm hood for your new hob. This AEG candidate also proved to be a speedy customer, with a 1.5 litre pan of water being heated to 90 degrees in a touch over 3 minutes in the flexible zone. Over the standard rings, it also managed to boil a small 500ml pan in 90 seconds or so, offering an especially fast time that’s largely thanks to the fact this AEG hob drew 2800W of power. It also offered consistent heating over the flexible zone. Aside from the four huge cooking zones which are big enough to accommodate extra large cookware up to 24cm in diameter, this model also features ‘flexinduction’, which means if one zone isn’t big enough for the pan you’re using – say, a roasting tin up to 40cm in length – it will automatically activate more inductors so the ingredients are heated evenly. It also features boost for any zone which ramps up the power by 50% for speedy boiling or high-heat frying.

Some induction hobs draw up to 7.4kw of current and that means having a separate ring main fitted if your current setup is, like many older kitchens, just a standard 13 amp cooker plug.Boy, did I find that out the hard way. Cast iron takes longer to heat up but the whole pot retains heat for much longer than stainless steel. This makes cast iron the best material for cooking slow-and-low hob-based casseroles and stews (thing Le Creuset) but not, conversely, for anything that requires constant temperature fluctuations. For that you need stainless steel. Since stainless steel has low heat conductivity, many manufacturers apply very thin sandwich layers of aluminium and/or copper to the base of their pans so they have excellent magnetic properties along with superb heat conductivity. To date, our favourite – ie the fastest and most efficient – stainless steel pots and pans are those that hail from the Cotswolds-based Robert Welch stable. We reviewed the company’s Campden 3-Piece Saucepan Set last year and were mightily impressed by the speed with which they boiled water – surprisingly, they were faster to boil than most of our other induction ready pans. Robert Welch saucepans use a base layer comprising a combination of stainless steel with sandwiched layers of aluminium and copper for maximum conductivity. This writer’s been using them regularly for the past year and they still look brand new. This SenseBoil induction hob from AEG detects rising bubbles and automatically reduces the heat down to a gentle simmer. This handy safety feature means you can focus on the more important things in the kitchen, no more watching and waiting for water to boil! Direktouch controls allow you to precisely select the heat level using the latest digital technology. The MaxiSense cooking zones automatically detect the size and shape of the pans being used. Heat will immediately distribute to the base of the pan ensuring energy isn’t wasted without affecting the performance. If you require intense rapid heat then the Powerboost function can provide an instant burst of heat which is faster than an electric kettle! Able to boil water in under 90 seconds, it is perfect for boiling potatoes or pasta and can be just as useful for searing meat. This AEG hob is enabled for the Hob2Hood feature meaning that if you opt for a compatible hood the two appliances can communicate with each other and the hood will act accordingly to the level of extraction required by the hob. It’s also handy that there are two different cooking areas with this Samsung candidate – two are more normal circular zones while the other two makes for a Flex Zone of sorts that are really mid-sized burners. As well as offering four zones to play with, the NZ64K5747BK also has some handy features such as Power Boost to offer some extra cooking oomph to one of the four zones, as well as a keep warm function and a global pause button for if you need to step away from the hob at any point. A handy pause function and warm function mean you can safely leave things cooking slowly while you answer the door without fear of everything boiling over or burning.

It comes with 2 boost zones for fast cooking as well as a bridge zone that combines two of the zones to create one larger cooking zone. Perfect for big dishes or trays. The induction hob works by heating your cookware directly, instead of just transferring the heat from hob to pan and pot. In other words, the hob itself stays almost completely cold, as induction places the heat directly into the base of the pot or pan. Induction hobs for every home and cooking needOther things you'll have to get used to are cooking on lower power settings than you're used to – see mistake #5, above – or reducing cooking times. Induction may not involve flames, but it can be fierce. So be prepared for the possibility of needing to kit yourself out with a new set of pans if you invest in a FlexInduction hob. The pans that will work are: Gaggenau's induction hob has five flexible cooking areas with 17 power levels and a memory function. Since this model doesn’t have a bridging function, you may need to stir the food a little more frequently if using a saucepan that’s bigger than the largest zone but, again, this has never caused me a problem.

Finally, what features does your hob have at the moment that you can’t live without? And what features does your current hob have that you have never used, not even in a moment of curiosity? What we’re looking at here is a stunning panorama of pot-boiling glamour. The iQ700 is a monster by any standards – it’s 90cm wide for a start – and that means it’s capable of whipping up a Henry VIII banquet at the drop of a titfer. The Miele KM7201FR is an especially fast heating hob, but it’s one that’ll come at quite the premium price.Other benefits include the fact that induction hobs are easier to clean than either gas or ceramic, controllable heat means pans very rarely boil over anyway, and an absence of a naked flame means there is a reduced risk of fire. We’ve just covered 90 cm induction hobs above, but we have also covered 60 cm induction hobs in other articles. The 90 cm hobs above are ideal if you want to have a bit of extra counter space in front of the hob, but there are some considerations to make with these hobs. Unlike ceramic or gas hobs that heat the entire pot or pan which in turn transfers the heat to its contents, electric induction hobs heat the ingredients directly using the invisible powers of magnetism. In fact, with the induction system, the pan itself becomes the heat source or element – electromagnetic waves magically penetrate the base of the pot and begin to agitate the electrons in the ingredients, which in turn creates heat for cooking. If you already have a 90 cm hob in your kitchen that you’re replacing, then a 90 cm hob is perfect for the job. And if you’re having a new kitchen installed, the world is your oyster (or hob in this case). Storage & organisation Furniture Textiles Kitchenware & tableware Kitchens Lighting Decoration Rugs, mats & flooring Beds & mattresses Baby & children Smart home Bathroom products Laundry & cleaning Plants & plant pots Home electronics Home improvement Outdoor living Food & beverages Christmas Shop Shop by room