Gas or electric cooking? Which do you prefer?

I've cooked on both electric and gas stoves and while they both accomplish the same thing, I have to say cooking with gas is different than an electric stove. They both have their pros and cons I guess. If you're just boiling water I guess it really makes no difference.

With gas you do not have to wait for it to heat up as you do with electric. As soon as you ignite the flame it's ready and the amount of heat can be adjusted instantly, where as with an electric burner it is slow to heat up or change the level of heat. With gas, what you see is what you get and it is pretty easy to judge how hot it is visually by looking at the flame size. You can also turn the flame right off if you need to completely remove heat. I believe these to be some of the pros for cooking on gas stoves.

With electric stoves I believe it is easier to achieve a lower heat level than is possible on some gas stoves, at least the ones I've used it is hard to get the flame low enough to just keep something warm without getting it too hot without having the flame go out which could be dangerous since gas is continuing to come out. This I'm sure is probably better with more expensive/better quality gas stoves.

I have heard it said that electric ovens are better for baking because the heat is dryer, and gas stoves produce a heat with more humidity which I have no idea if this is true, and I haven't noticed any difference whatsover but I'm no chef. I have no idea which oven preheats faster, and my gas stove has no indication of when its ready but I can usually tell by peeking underneath to look at the flame size. This probably depends on the stove itself, I suspect gas is probably a little faster but this is just speculation.

I'd be interested to hear from people that have experience with both or have a preference for one or the other and why. Also interested if it makes any difference to someone that's really into cooking or cooks professionally. Me personally, my cooking is far from professional and I can pretty much use either one effectively especially once I learn the stove.

I do like the pretty blue flame of my gas stove tho, I'm a pyro! I also like cooking weenies over it like a campfire for hotdogs! This can actually be done over an electric burner but its not quite the same experience.

 

Wow, you've put a lot of thought into that. I've used both and prefer gas. I actually hate cooking on electric. I don't really cook that often. My husband went to school for culinary arts and he also prefers gas. I don't really know pros and cons. I just like it better. I've never had a problem baking in a gas oven.

 

I have electric in my home now but growing up my parents had an electric stove in the kitchen and a gas stove in the basement for canning food. I prefer gas because it heats faster and because you can turn the burner off when the food is done and you don't have to find a place to set your pot or skillet. You can leave it sitting over the burner. On an electric stove, the burner can still be very hot for a while after turning it off and you risk burning your food if you aren't careful.

 

Gas.

 

I don't even have a kitchen, don't cook, avoid eating cooked food. I feel MUUUUCH better when I eat as much raw food as possible; younger, clear head, limber.
Much cheaper.

 

I have only ever had a gas stove. The few times I used electric at someone elses place it seemed hard to control the heat. When you turn gas down it is down. With electric it takes a while to reduce the heat.

 

I've only ever used electric, so I have no idea. It would be nice to be able to have the pan instantly hot, but I suspect that you're right about it being easier to maintain low heat on electric stoves.

 

Natural Gas here, much much cheaper actually....

 

When electric stoves/ranges just starting to really catch on in the 60's and early 70's, electricity was much cheaper than gas, so many developers used electric appliances in new construction.
A few short years later and electricity costs eclipsed gas and a lot of people were not too happy with electric appliances. Electric bills became enormous. Using electricity to generate heat is horribly inefficient and requires a lot of energy.
In my opinion gas is much better for cooking. You have much better control over the heat.
The newer induction cook tops are supposed to be the shit though, anybody here have any experience with them?

 

I use either and really don't have a preference. Most places I've lived have had electric.

 

Gas is way better if you use a wok.

 

Gas is much better from a cooks standpoint. You can control the heat better, and it allows you to roast things from the flame. You can inject steam into gas ranges through several methods like a small pan of water which will balance out the baking advantage that gas stoves have.

 

and you can kill yourself easier with a gas stove..

 

Now your cooking with gas, look at you go!

 

Gas with an electric pilot.

Heats more evenly, easier to control the temperature too.

 

I huffed gas once when I was younger..maybe twice, but anyway that stuff gets you super high..I know, stupid but what can you do