So, I really wanted an induction hob. And I really wanted it to be able to hold a stable temperature. After all, if you've got something that delivers heat (in this case an induction coil) and something that measures heat then it should be trivial to set things up so that the temperature is swiftly raised to that level and then held there pretty perfectly. Or so you'd think...
The first issue I hit is that the vast majority of induction hobs that claim to let you set the temperature read that temperature using an infrared sensor. One that's under the glass hob surface. Glass isn't transparent to
the wavelengths of IR that let you measure temperature, by the way. Which means that what you're actually measuring the temperature of the glass under the pot. Which gives you a lag of 5-10 minutes, which is obviously completely useless. So you can instantly exclude about 90% of all portable induction hobs that claim to let you set the temperature.
That being the case there are two options for how to measure the temperature. Either with a temperature probe or with an exposed metal thermometer in the middle of the hob (that sits on a tiny spring so that it touches the pot but doesn't hold it in the air). So, let's have a look at the options there:
1)
The Breville Control Freak. Just amazing, works perfectly, incredibly precise, would love to have one. Is £1,400. So, no.
2)
The Njori Tempo. A crowdfunded cheaper version of the Control Freak. Looked very cool, but suffered from Kickstarter Syndrome, where they clearly couldn't help tweaking things all of the time, expected to use the Kickstarter money to create an initial version so that they could get the money together to do a proper production run, ran smack into issues trying to talk to Chinese electronics manufacturers in the pandemic, and eventually went dormant about three months ago. So, no.
3)
Klarstein Cook n Roll. This one uses a temperature probe, and is made by a reputable-looking German manufacturer! Who then turn out to be lying about the size of the heating area. Despite claims of a 26cm surface, the induction coil is only 10cm wide. Which means that it will end up superheating the central part of your pan and not heating the rest of it at all. So, no.
4)
Cusinart Tasty. Looks pretty good. Would ship from the USA. Isn't actually made any more. In order to control by temperature you have to use an app. So, no.
5)
Tokit. Some lovely reviews, and looks like exactly what I want. But...if you look at the 1 star reviews you see that a fair chunk of people have real issues with them breaking, and in a couple of cases it seems that it's not watertight, which is kinda essential for a device you're going to want to boil water on without being electrocuted. So, no.
6)
Salton - looks good. Except for being slightly lower wattage than the headline says. But is another US import, which is a bit of a pain, because it means that if it does die on me then it's not easy to get fixed. It's the current front runner though, as being the only one that's a not-ridiculous price, won't kill me, and doesn't require an app to set the temperature.
7)
Caso TC 2400 - looks awesome, only available in Germany, 10% of the reviews are "It didn't work". *sigh*
So, if anyone can recommend an induction hob with a temperature probe which actually makes direct contact, and won't kill me, doesn't cost over a grand, and I can buy from a UK supplier then I'd appreciate it!
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