Pan Size vs. Burner Size (Explained)
It is essential to consider the size of the burner available at your home or workplace while purchasing the pan for usage. If the pan size is smaller than the burner, energy wastage will occur whenever you cook. Inversely, if the pan size is large, the food will not cook properly.
The Author
Coking is as old as the human beings themselves because food is the basic necessity of life.
The efficiency of a cooking system depends upon the compatibility of the burner and the cookware you are using.
This article would help you as a guide in the selection of pans compatible with the burner.
Importance of selecting a suitable burner and pan
The burners and pans available in the market vary in their shapes, sizes, styles, specific characteristics, and purpose of use.
Not only is the burner selection a problem, but also the choice of suitable cookware is a thing that needs to be taken seriously.
The usage of an inappropriate burner or cookware can make cooking a nightmare.
Whether you are the one who just stepped into the world of cooking or you are an expert in cooking working as a chef in a five-star hotel or running a small restaurant, the knowledge of the right selection of cookware or burner type will help you a lot.
You must be well aware of the purpose, the mode of working, advantages, and disadvantages of different types of burners and cooking appliances.
Types of burners available for kitchen
In culinary terms, a burner is a device that uses some source of energy and produces heat that is used for cooking.
The choice of a suitable burner depends upon your requirement. A few types of burners are mentioned below:
Radiant Ring Burner
A radiant ring burner uses infrared radiations to heat the cookware. It is small in size and is suitable for single burner stoves.
Only the areas of the cookware directly in contact with the burner would be heated.
In this case, the size of the pan must be compatible with the size of the burner.
The variation in pan size as compared to that of the burner will cause the food to cook unevenly. It is easy to clean and use and is inexpensive.
Convection burner
In convection heating burners, electric fans are used to spread heat to all parts of cookware.
This type of burner is comparatively large in size and is generally used in two burner stoves.
It also offers ease of cleaning due to its smooth surface but it is not inexpensive. Since electric fans are used, it may cause noise pollution.
Hot Plate
This type of burner is generally used in chemistry labs or in restaurants.
This type of burner lacks support on the top for cookware and a knob to turn on or off the burner.
It also does not possess special safety features.
They are difficult to use especially for those who are beginners in the field of cooking because hot plates have no option to reduce heat.
But this type of burner is useful when we have to cook food in a short time on a large scale.
Electric Burner
As it is apparent from the name, this type of burner uses electricity as an energy source and produces a flame.
The flame then produces heat that is used to cook food.
This type of burner offers various options to increase, decrease or quickly turn off the flame.
Such burners are easy and safe to use as they don’t emit harmful radiation into the surrounding air.
But this setup is costly as the main source of energy is electricity which is expensive as compared to gas or other energy sources.
Induction Burner
Induction burners are a technically advanced type of burner. Such burners heat the pans or cookware directly without producing flame.
Instead, a magnetic field setup is used in induction cooktops.
They are safe to use as they are turned off automatically as we remove the pan from the cooktop.
The risk of hand burning reduces by 90 percent.
But they need pans or cookware of specific material and have special installment requirements.
They are costly but the ease of use and other features pay the price.
Gas Burner
Gas burners use gas as an energy source. The gas is burnt in the presence of oxygen to produce the flame.
The flame produces heat which is used to cook food.
They are economical, easy to use, and give more control over the temperature range.
In case of gas leakage, there may be a risk of fire.
Types of Pans commonly used
Just like burners and other kitchen appliances pans also vary in size and style and are used for different purposes.
A brief overview of the most commonly used pans is given below:
Fry pan
A frying pan is used for shallow frying purposes like frying eggs, making an omelet, etc.
They are round-shaped, flat bottom, slightly deep, and have long handles.
The most commonly used frying pan has a 24-26cm diameter and is suitable to prepare a meal for 3-4 people.
Saucepan
Saucepans are deep, round-shaped, having a flat bottom and a long handle.
They are generally used for cooking food involving boiling. E.g., to boil eggs, make tea, boil pasta or prepare sauces, etc.
Wok
Wok is a deep round shaped, round bottom pan with two handles. It is used to deep fry snacks, fish, etc.
Griddle Pan
It is a type of pan having no edges, a bottom marked by special raised lines, and a long handle.
It may be square or round shaped. It is generally used to prepare pancakes, for cooking steaks, etc.
Selection of right pan
The selection of pan depends upon:
- Size of the burner
- The food you have to prepare
- Your budget
- Type of burner
Final Thought
In the end, I would like to say that choose the burner wisely keeping in mind the source of energy easily available for consumption, your budget, cooking requirements, and the level of safety in a particular burner.
After the selection of burner choose the pan according to your cooking requirement, without ignoring the burner size.
