Doug > wrote:

> Am thinking of an induction cooktop for Christmas.
>
> Anyone want to share experiences, good & bad.

Posted about six months ago:

I do not have an induction range, but I have cooked on one at friends'.
I can say that if I were in the market for a new range now, an induction
one would be at the top of my list. Given suitable (i.e.
magnetic-based) cookware, "normal" cooking is as comfortable and
efficient as on a gas range. Induction ranges are as responsive and
fast as any gas ones. Their great advantages are the absence of the
potentially dangerous open flame or the heat of the range itself, as
only the cookware gets hot, and also of the dirt coming from burning gas
(as *some* dirt is always produced). They are rather safer to use than
any conventional alternative. Their disadvantages are the necessity of
suitable cookware with flat, smooth bottoms, so such vessels as woks and
cauldrons with concave bottoms used for such dishes as the Uzbek plov
are effectively out. Also, one has no open flame for singing peppers,
for example, or pin feathers of poultry or game, should it become
necessary. You also have to consider a higher initial cost of an
induction range. It is more economical in actual use, though.

See also <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Induction_cooker>.

Victor