Induction Vs Infrared: Induction and infrared cooktops are becoming increasingly popular in today’s modern kitchen. Both are considered safer and more convenient than gas, but when it comes to speed, induction often surpasses infrared. Why does this happen? It is interesting to understand the hidden science behind this.

How does an induction cooktop work?

Induction cooktop works on the principle of Electromagnetic Induction. There is a coil inside the cooktop which creates a magnetic field when electricity passes through it. When you keep an iron or steel vessel on it, the same vessel starts getting hot directly. That means heat is generated directly in the vessel and not on the surface of the cooktop.

Infrared cooktop technology

Infrared cooktop works through Infrared Radiation. In this, heat is first generated on the surface of the cooktop and then reaches the vessel from there. This process takes some time because heat transfer occurs in two steps.

Why is induction faster?

The biggest feature of induction cooktop is that it heats the utensils directly. There is very little loss of energy in this and heating starts almost immediately. On the other hand, in infrared, first the surface is heated and then the vessel, which takes more time. This is the reason why food gets prepared quickly on induction.

Also ahead in energy efficiency

Induction cooktop uses about 80-90% of the energy directly for cooking whereas in infrared this percentage is less. This not only cooks food quickly but also saves electricity. Induction cooktop gets hot only when the correct metal vessel is placed on it, hence it is considered safer. At the same time, the surface of the infrared cooktop becomes very hot due to which there is a risk of burning. However, in infrared you can use any type of utensils, whereas in induction, special utensils are required.

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