Is it possible to use a Pyrex double boiler on a glass ceramic cooktop without using the wire spider underneath it (a requirement when using it on a coil-type element)?
TIA
Trent
- posted
11 years ago
OT: Pyrex on Glass Ceramic Cooktop?
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- posted
11 years ago
I'd look up the owner's manual, on line if you don't have it. I just got rid of my electric, that came with the house, and instr. said not to use glass. Owned an old JennAir a while back, and made the mistake of putting an empty pyrex pie plate on a burner I thought was off (finishing prep for T'giving dinner). About two or three minutes later, as we had just sat down for dinner in the dining room, the pie plate exploded! Long shards of glass all over the kitchen, and it sounded like a bomb. I've never used the Pyrex intended for stove-top cooking, but letting one boil dry gives me pretty awful hazards to contemplate. Of course, we never PLAN to let one boil dry. I'm back to gas range and loving it :o)
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11 years ago
Yeah I just went from electric to gas Lot cheaper to cook on natural gas
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11 years ago
I just got rid of gas cooktop that came with the house and installed electric :) Had to pay $400 for the 240V line and capping off the gas pipe. The lady of the house can't stand the soot and grime cooking on gas creates. This kitchen is open to the rest of the first floor space and no vents anywhere. Can't believe they put a gas cooktop/oven there in the first place.
Back on topic tho: I never knew Pyrex isn't compatible with glass tops. Perhaps it was not the type of the surface per se but just any type of intense heat? It would seem you'd need to be even more careful with gas flames then, no?
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11 years ago
I don't know your relative energy rates or how much you cook. But in my experience, the electricity used by a range, oven isn't enough to make much difference on an electric bill. In the typical house, you just don't use it that many hours to make it matter. Something like AC, now that is a different story. The choice of gas vs electric is usually a function of preference and availability.
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11 years ago
:) Had to pay $400 for the 240V line and capping off the gas pipe. The lady of the house can't stand the soot and grime cooking on gas creates. This kitchen is open to the rest of the first floor space and no vents anywhere. Can't believe they put a gas cooktop/oven there in the first place.
Perhaps it was not the type of the surface per se but just any type of intense heat? It would seem you'd need to be even more careful with gas flames then, no?
My exploding pie plate was not intended for stovetop cooking (microwave or oven). The "pots and pans" made of Pyrex are different, and I have never used them.
Don't want to start a war over gas vs electric, just that I prefer gas and have done a lot more cooking with it than elec. We just moved into a house that had a Frigidaire electric range. The oven was haywire, really tough to bake or roast with the temp settings, so replaced. The cooktop on the range, though, was really nice. I would not have minded keeping it if not so expensive to replace a thermostat....$150 more than the thermostat paid for my new gas range. No bells or whistles or automatic anything (new washer and dryer and play Beethoven's fifth:o) Cost us $160 to run a gas line to the kitchen and then discovered that there was something quirky about the electric line in that area, so spent another $200 for new breaker and elec. line.....I wasn't in trouble with the master until the electrician left :o) His friend.
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11 years ago
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A properly functioning gas cook top does NOT make "soot and grime" It only produces CO2 and H2O
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11 years ago
:) Had to pay $400 for the 240V line and capping off the gas pipe. The lady of the house can't stand the soot and grime cooking on gas creates. This kitchen is open to the rest of the first floor space and no vents anywhere. Can't believe they put a gas cooktop/oven there in the first place.
Perhaps it was not the type of the surface per se but just any type of intense heat? It would seem you'd need to be even more careful with gas flames then, no?
FWIW, we've cooked with gas for decades and never experienced "soot and grime." If your gas range is creating soot, it probably needs maintenance. If you have grime problems with gas, you probably have grime problems with electric, too.
Gas is much more controllable than electric for cooking. And cheaper. I doubt you'll find many restaurants using electric.
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11 years ago
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Probably should learn not to burn the food...
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11 years ago
On Wed 19 Dec 2012 06:23:21a, Norminn told us...
FWIW, I live in a condo where gas is not available, so that isn't an option, even if I wanted gas, which I don't.
I have a new electric range with radiant elements under a glass ceramic cooktop.
My premise for _possibly_ using the Pyrex double boiler is that only simmering or boiling water (~212°F) would be used in the bottom pot, limiting the temperature that the pot can reach. The glass cooktop, in a sense, provides a barrier from direct contact with the electric coils.
The old Calrod type of exposed coils will definitely cause virtually any non-metallic material to explode.
Thanks for your comments...
Trent
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11 years ago
On Wed 19 Dec 2012 06:58:11a, Attila Iskander told us...
Gas is not available in my area, hence the question which was not addressed.
Trent
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11 years ago
I really think you need to read the owner's manual You could also try to see if there is a FAQ at Pyrex And if you're not sure, just use the heat diffuser to be safe
The real problem is that if the Pyrex is thin, it will heat up unevenly, which is the time that it's at risk of breaking.
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11 years ago
I use propane for that reason. It has been good for the past 30 years here.
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11 years ago
:) Had to pay $400 for the 240V line and capping off the gas pipe. The lady of the house can't stand the soot and grime cooking on gas creates. This kitchen is open to the rest of the first floor space and no vents anywhere. Can't believe they put a gas cooktop/oven there in the first place.
Sorry to hear you wasted that money. I've been cooking with gas for over 60 years and never had soot or grime. You evidently had a poorly adjusted appliance.
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11 years ago
Whaaa?
I'll take natural gas over electricity any day.
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11 years ago
Sure, but that's not always possible and usually throws the cost advantage out the window (not that the cost of running a stove is a huge deal).
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11 years ago
The Pyrex brand used to be borosilicate glass. The stuff they have been selling for quite a while isn't borosilicate anymore. The new stuff isn't as heat resistant. (Seems kinda like bait and switch.)
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11 years ago
BEWARE: "Pyrex" is both a material AND a company name. Pyrex (the company) makes non-pyrex (the material) stuff. The non-pyrex material does NOT function like the pyrex material.
This is the same confusion you find with TSP. You can buy TSP-labeled stuff that has no TSP in it!
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11 years ago
But how about those great prices for the pieces at the big box mart? Quality seems to be a low priority thing anymore.
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11 years ago
I put Corning glass square bowls on the glass top stove occasionally with no bad results but it is always low heat. High heat would just burn the food in the bottom of the bowl. I preheat Corelle plates on the stove sometimes too.