Electric cooking in Thailand without Aluminium.

[FlorC]

I've been using these wide rice cookers , you know the ones , with aluminium pot to
take out. You see them everywhere. But the unhealthy "teflon" , which is no more
than a sort of paint or anodisation of the alu surface , comes off and leaves the
aluminium exposed . This is not healthy either en doesn't look or smell clean. Now
those inner pots , are not replaceble with a new one, AND because of the curved
bottom , you can't use the heating plateau to put a regular pot or pan on. So you
have to throw away the whole cooker. Now I want a stainless steel pot instead of
the aluminium crap. Global house has only one and Home pro 2. They say stainless steel,
but not replaceable and have round bottom too. They are much more expensive than
the alu one that starts at 250 B. The cheapest SS is 869 B.

I should have brought my 1 plate heater from europe, but it was too heavy. They
don't seem to have that in Thailand. The only ones are the expensive induction plate
cookers , but that needs special cookingpots for the induction to work. I am not
keen on having a HF , high powered magnetic field in the house and the potential
interference on the mains. Gas cooking is not an option.
So how do YOU cook electric ?

[Sophon]

I really think that you are worrying too much about the effects of aluminium pots and induction cookers, but that is up to you. If that is what you want, old fashioned hot plate cookers like this one from Lazada are available in Thailand (Lazada also have other models).

Sophon

[FlorC]

Thanks Sophon,

Yeah , that's the one. You have all the freedom of which pot or pan to use. I've looked for it in small shops & the big retailers , but haven't found one. Lazada is an online shop , and I don't /can't buy online.

Why are they pushing these induction type ones ? They are everywhere.

[tolsti]

You can buy online with Lazada.... They have a cash on delivery option for many items. You don't have to give any details of cc etc.

[Sophon]

If you don't want to buy online Power Buy has this model. It may not be available in all their stores.

Sophon

[2fishin2]

Purchase a 1 burner "picnic" type. The kind that uses the small gas bottles. Best thing going.

[FlorC]

OK , thanks . Next time I go to Lampang , I'll check out the Power Buy one as there is none in Phrae.

2fishin2 : I know cooking with gas is a lot cheaper and better , but gas ( even small ) , is no option in my room.

[marcosss]

I use induction and I find your reason for not wanting to use it quite absurd. As for the Teflon surface coming off the pot, you either purchased a really cheap low quality pot or your cleaning techniques are not suited to Teflon cookware. Bottom line is, if the thought of cooking in a utensil that might be damaging to your health is so frightening, pay a bit more for your kitchenware, it will out last you. I have Teflon coated pots and pans that I've owned and used for over 20 years, they have discoloured and have a nick or two in the surface, but apart from that, they are in perfect condition, been cooking with induction for 8 years, the only comment I can make is that it is the best & only way to cook.

As for cooking in aluminium, there is no proof or evidence that cooking in aluminium has any detrimental health, on the other hand, eating rice, has been proven to have a negative impact on our health, due to its high glycemic load and it's effect on blood sugar levels.

[Nowisee]

I never have used a rice cooker... always cook in an aluminum or magnalite pan. Then again, I don't eat white rice... but, I will say the rice cookers are a walk away cooking device and I have to hang around for 32 minutes.

[FlorC]

I use induction and I find your reason for not wanting to use it quite absurd. As for the Teflon surface coming off the pot, you either purchased a really cheap low quality pot or your cleaning techniques are not suited to Teflon cookware. Bottom line is, if the thought of cooking in a utensil that might be damaging to your health is so frightening, pay a bit more for your kitchenware, it will out last you. I have Teflon coated pots and pans that I've owned and used for over 20 years, they have discoloured and have a nick or two in the surface, but apart from that, they are in perfect condition, been cooking with induction for 8 years, the only comment I can make is that it is the best & only way to cook.

As for cooking in aluminium, there is no proof or evidence that cooking in aluminium has any detrimental health, on the other hand, eating rice, has been proven to have a negative impact on our health, due to its high glycemic load and it's effect on blood sugar levels.

Thanks for sharing your experience with induction cooking although you don't state why it is the best & only way to cook. I think proffesional chefs will still say gas cooking is the best and the cheapest.

Yes I buy cheap ALU rice cookers to cook all my food , and the coating fails. Even with more expensive one , I am not sure that this won't happen again. ALU is tainted by the things you cook , like tomatoes , eggs, ...Stainless steel is still the best and stays neutral , whatever you cook with it.

And although not 100 % proven , ALU can cause health issues , as does Teflon. Both keep a smell of the cooked food too. http://www.globalhealingcenter.com/natural-health/concerned-about-aluminum-dangers/

Yes eating crap rice , is bad , but we're living in Thailand , so there is not much choice , or you'd have to spend silly amounts for mediocre western food. Rice is a cheap filler .

[marcosss]

Hi florc induction is very popular with professional chef in the west, it has a higher efficiency than gas with zero emissions or lost heat. Stainless is my pot & pan of choice. As for eating in Thailand we follow a strict keto diet so zero carbs & lots of quality saturated fats. As for metal leaching it will happen with any metal including stainless, with salt or acidic foods. Found some lovely ceramic coated induction cookware, it would be quite delicate and require special care when cleaning.

Edited October 15, 2015 by marcosss

[marcosss]

Hi again Florc the aluminium health thing is probably some what over stated whatever does leach out would do so as a salt & probably less harmful than the affect of fluoride and chlorine found in drinking water in some parts of the world. Now back to induction, the way it works is by modulating a current at a high frequency through a magnetic coil on which your ferrous pot sits, the molecules in the pot are pushed & pulled at this high frequency which causes them to heat up very quickly, the hotter you want it, the more current you pour into the coil. A cheap induction hob will regulate the temperature by a combination of current limiting & timing the on time to the coil, they usually have quite crude temperature increments, but if you're someone who cooks a lot you can get to know your hobs idiosyncrasies. Advantage over gas, your pot heats up considerably faster, when you switch it off, it's the same as gas with no residual heat, due to its efficiency, I'd say it's cheaper & more convenient than gas. Like I said once you use it & get how it works, you simply never look back, even my missus who has been a gas user all her life, has had the same epiphany, she swears by our induction hobs. When we moved to Thailand we were a bit disappointed in what we could easily find in induction hobs as we didn't know where to start looking for commercial ones. So we settled for a pair of 2100watt domestics. They cost around ฿1400 each & to my surprise, after an initial getting used to them have found them to be absolutely fantastic, the only thing that I'd like is finer temperature control, but at the price I'm not going to complain. I'll try to post some pictures of what we manage to cook on our hobs.

[2fishin2]

Induction "cooking" in aluminum pans isnt really cooking. You cannot regulate heat like gas or even electric. There's a reason why gas cooking has been around so long and will continue to be.

[marcosss]

Ah sure, I cook on induction based aluminium pans and I get perfect results. Whatever you base your assertions on is utter bullocks. On a good quality induction hob you can control temperature to within 20 degrees C. Oh there's a reason why coal has been around for so long, oh there's a reason any other forms of applying heat to a pot has been around for so long. Because people are not capable of adapting to other technologies.

[marcosss]

I use induction and I find your reason for not wanting to use it quite absurd. As for the Teflon surface coming off the pot, you either purchased a really cheap low quality pot or your cleaning techniques are not suited to Teflon cookware. Bottom line is, if the thought of cooking in a utensil that might be damaging to your health is so frightening, pay a bit more for your kitchenware, it will out last you. I have Teflon coated pots and pans that I've owned and used for over 20 years, they have discoloured and have a nick or two in the surface, but apart from that, they are in perfect condition, been cooking with induction for 8 years, the only comment I can make is that it is the best & only way to cook.

As for cooking in aluminium, there is no proof or evidence that cooking in aluminium has any detrimental health, on the other hand, eating rice, has been proven to have a negative impact on our health, due to its high glycemic load and it's effect on blood sugar levels.

Thanks for sharing your experience with induction cooking although you don't state why it is the best & only way to cook. I think proffesional chefs will still say gas cooking is the best and the cheapest.

Yes I buy cheap ALU rice cookers to cook all my food , and the coating fails. Even with more expensive one , I am not sure that this won't happen again. ALU is tainted by the things you cook , like tomatoes , eggs, ...Stainless steel is still the best and stays neutral , whatever you cook with it.

And although not 100 % proven , ALU can cause health issues , as does Teflon. Both keep a smell of the cooked food too. http://www.globalhealingcenter.com/natural-health/concerned-about-aluminum-dangers/

Yes eating crap rice , is bad , but we're living in Thailand , so there is not much choice , or you'd have to spend silly amounts for mediocre western food. Rice is a cheap filler .

Sorry didn't reply with a quote. See my replies above.

[marcosss]

Cooked on induction

[NickJ]

I didnt read the entire thread so sorry if this has been posted........Beaware how your Thia counterpart cleans your teflon pots and pans and rice cookers.....they often enjoy scrubbing the life out of them with scouring pads.....

[marcosss]

Braised chicken breast with with burnt butter sage, balsamic cream mushrooms and buttery cauliflower mash. All cooked in anulon aluminium induction cookware on induction hobs. Hmm seems that you can cook in aluminium and induction.

[jpb1963]

do the unduction hobs use a lot of electricity - I notice that the comment above was made cheaper than gas is that definite or assumed, I always thought that electric cooking was generally more expensive.

[marcosss]

I didnt read the entire thread so sorry if this has been posted........Beaware how your Thia counterpart cleans your teflon pots and pans and rice cookers.....they often enjoy scrubbing the life out of them with scouring pads.....

Haha! I don't have a Thai counter part so no issues there. Definitely not hear for a Thai wife.

[marcosss]

do the unduction hobs use a lot of electricity - I notice that the comment above was made cheaper than gas is that definite or assumed, I always thought that electric cooking was generally more expensive.

I must state that I don't know what it costs for gas here, it's probably quite cheap, if it's comparable in cost to electricity, which I also find is quite cheap here then I make the following statement.

Gas & radiant electric hobs. Generally it is due to the inefficient form of having to transfer the heat from a hotplate/burner to the utensil. As I described above, induction acts directly with the utensil & making it the heat source. The better the quality of the pot the more efficient the entire process. Here is a simple test. Take 1litre of water and bring it to the boil using gas, time the process. Do the same with an induction hob. I dare say that the hob will come to the boil more rapidly. Providing they are of equivalent k/joule & wattage it will all come down to efficiency. Bottom line, higher efficiency means lower running costs.

Unfortunately I don't know what the comparison unit costs for a litre of butane vs a kilowatt of electricity is.

Edited October 17, 2015 by marcosss

[jonw8uk]

do the unduction hobs use a lot of electricity - I notice that the comment above was made cheaper than gas is that definite or assumed, I always thought that electric cooking was generally more expensive.

well, in a post above he said he uses a pair of 2100watt induction cookers

If you cooked on full power for half an hour you would use 1kW hour, or 1 unit, so that's 3 to 8 baht depending on how you pay your bill

[marcosss]

do the unduction hobs use a lot of electricity - I notice that the comment above was made cheaper than gas is that definite or assumed, I always thought that electric cooking was generally more expensive.

well, in a post above he said he uses a pair of 2100watt induction cookers

If you cooked on full power for half an hour you would use 1kW hour, or 1 unit, so that's 3 to 8 baht depending on how you pay your bill

adding to this I can confirm that most (95%) of cooking is done at a setting of 400 watts with searing done at 800 watts

The only time I use full power is to heat up to boiling a 5 litre pressure cooker, this takes around 25 minutes. It is then held at pressure with 800 watts for the duration, usually 20 minutes.

Edited October 17, 2015 by marcosss

[marcosss]

Reducing whey in an anulon pan on a cheap Phillips induction hob. A more expensive hob will give you greater temperature control.

[2fishin2]

If you are worried about how long it takes to boil water....you have too much time to waste.

We've been using fire to cook with since, wait for it....the dawn of time (or at least since fire was discovered)

Fire will ALWAYS be the preferred method of cooking until the end of mankind.

Snob fire all you want. It will always be king

[jpb1963]

do the unduction hobs use a lot of electricity - I notice that the comment above was made cheaper than gas is that definite or assumed, I always thought that electric cooking was generally more expensive.

well, in a post above he said he uses a pair of 2100watt induction cookers

If you cooked on full power for half an hour you would use 1kW hour, or 1 unit, so that's 3 to 8 baht depending on how you pay your bill

adding to this I can confirm that most (95%) of cooking is done at a setting of 400 watts with searing done at 800 watts

The only time I use full power is to heat up to boiling a 5 litre pressure cooker, this takes around 25 minutes. It is then held at pressure with 800 watts for the duration, usually 20 minutes.

thanks for that very helpful

[marcosss]

If you are worried about how long it takes to boil water....you have too much time to waste.

We've been using fire to cook with since, wait for it....the dawn of time (or at least since fire was discovered)

Fire will ALWAYS be the preferred method of cooking until the end of mankind.

Snob fire all you want. It will always be king

most insightful comment I've ever come across, if you live in a cave. Your typical of the naysayers that troll Thai visa, can't say anything of value, so you just bag what people have to say. You're Sad excuse for a human being, oh oops, would you class a knuckle dragging Neanderthal as a human being? Time to go back to the cave & hop on the wood fire powered PC and try to think of something really negative to reply with. You have a reputation to uphold.

[2fishin2]

If you are worried about how long it takes to boil water....you have too much time to waste.

We've been using fire to cook with since, wait for it....the dawn of time (or at least since fire was discovered)

Fire will ALWAYS be the preferred method of cooking until the end of mankind.

Snob fire all you want. It will always be king

most insightful comment I've ever come across, if you live in a cave. Your typical of the naysayers that troll Thai visa, can't say anything of value, so you just bag what people have to say. You're Sad excuse for a human being, oh oops, would you class a knuckle dragging Neanderthal as a human being? Time to go back to the cave & hop on the wood fire powered PC and try to think of something really negative to reply with. You have a reputation to uphold.

Actually your post is the most insightful yet as it gave me the chance to do some inner self-evaluation of my thoughts and opinions about this thread.

I gave a value added answer earlier in the thread to the OP. And now I find myself arguing with a self proclaimed "induction cooking expert."

You are completely correct, Im sad for allowing myself to be drug down to your "expert" level.

[emoji722]

[FlorC]

Thanks guy , especially Marcosss, for your insides and photographs. I did know how induction cooking worked , but frankly I'm still not keen on high powered coils leaking HF magnetic fields and causing HF interference on the same powerlines that my computer and other sensitive devices use. For me it's also more a cost thing , If I get lucky and can go back home , I have to leave a lot behind , so even a normal heater + pot (and a trip to Lampang = 300 B ), is getting too expensive .

I'm just gonna wait 'till Makro opens here in november , cause no shops have what I want here in Phrae. The only stainless steel rice cooker is at home pro , 869 B, a rip off of about 400 B compaired to regular cookers. On the market they sell Stainless Steel pots for 25 B , you need maybe 5 of them for a cooker = 125 B, not 400 to 500 more .

[marcosss]

Thanks guy , especially Marcosss, for your insides and photographs. I did know how induction cooking worked , but frankly I'm still not keen on high powered coils leaking HF magnetic fields and causing HF interference on the same powerlines that my computer and other sensitive devices use. For me it's also more a cost thing , If I get lucky and can go back home , I have to leave a lot behind , so even a normal heater + pot (and a trip to Lampang = 300 B ), is getting too expensive .

I'm just gonna wait 'till Makro opens here in november , cause no shops have what I want here in Phrae. The only stainless steel rice cooker is at home pro , 869 B, a rip off of about 400 B compaired to regular cookers. On the market they sell Stainless Steel pots for 25 B , you need maybe 5 of them for a cooker = 125 B, not 400 to 500 more .

Not a problem FlorC a pleasure to be of some help.