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Amy Rosen is a cookbook author, food writer and the owner of Rosen’s Cinnamon Buns.
Is my gas stove trying to kill me? Until recently, I had never really given it much thought, but lately it has been troubling me. The hazards of natural gas have been lighting up the news cycle like a dish of brandy-splashed saganaki in Greektown. Various communities are defending fiery cooking on gas ranges as part of their traditional cooking methods, while the culture wars have equated possible gas stovetop bans with their right to carry arms: “God, guns, gas stoves,” tweeted U.S. Representative Jim Jordan earlier this year. (Hands off our American grilled cheese sandwiches?)
Here’s the issue: Natural gas is methane, and when burned it produces detectable amounts of nitrogen dioxide and other harmful pollutants associated with childhood asthma when poorly ventilated. Even when gas stoves are turned off, they release some methane gas, a contributor to climate change. Obviously natural gas is a cleaner source of energy than other fossil fuels we’ve eliminated from our homes, such as coal, but it’s still a polluting fossil fuel.
This puts me in a bit of a bind. I’ve made matzo balls on electric stovetops, fondue on hot plates and chicken cutlets over induction burners. But let me tell you, nothing beats gas.
Growing up in the 1980s, we had an electric Moffat Fiesta oven/stove with four elements that my parents got when they were first married. It was the future, they were promised. That oven was a workhorse for the ages, passed along in my family for 40 years or more, until one of my brothers finally donated it a few years back. Two of the elements were still working, as had been the case since the 1990s.
The problem with most electric stovetops, in my experience, is that all of the elements never work at the same time. Also, with electric there’s no standard temperature and no real temperature control. And I’m not just basing these unscientific findings on the vintage Moffat Fiesta. I’ve had newer electric stoves, too, and they worked a little better, but took an inordinate amount of time to heat up. Watching the coils slowly go from black to glowing red was akin to watching a pan of stovetop Jiffy Pop puff to its full capacity.
What about induction stoves, you may ask? I’ve used those, too, including most of the time I cook on TV. Induction burners are a favourite in studio kitchens owing to their sleek looks, the fact they’re a snap to clean, and there’s less need for an overhead hood for venting, meaning no special build-out and more room for overhead cameras. But perhaps most importantly, because induction cooking directly heats the pot or pan, rather than heating an element that then heats the bottom of the pan, induction stovetops are also safer because they never get hot. Now, all of that is great, but guess how many times I’ve turned on an induction cooktop and had it ready at the exact temperature I wanted at the exact time I wanted on live TV? Exactly zero times. What can I say? Advanced kitchen technology has never really worked for me.
But you know what does? Simply turning the knob of my 10-year-old JennAir gas stovetop and watching the circle of flames instantly come to life, like dancing blue genies, granting my wishes of hot, immediate direct heat and flavourful Maillard reactions on everything from seared scallops to deeply browned chunks of beef for my famous stew.
But change is coming, and for some, it’s already here.
New York is the first state in the United States to ban natural gas and other fossil fuels in most new buildings. The law bans gas-powered stoves, furnaces and propane heating while encouraging the use of climate-friendly appliances such as heat pumps and induction stoves. New buildings shorter than seven storeys will require all-electric heating and cooking by 2026, and for taller buildings, by 2029. Down South, the reverse is true, as at least 20 mostly Republican-led states have passed laws forbidding local governments from putting prohibitions on gas.
In Vancouver earlier this month, a motion by a councillor to ban the use of natural gas in residential homes was met with a swift rebuke. Its effect on cultural cooking practices, as well as other industries, was soundly criticized by residents and the mayor: “I want us to realize that roughly half the City of Vancouver is of South Asian or Asian descent,” Mayor Ken Sim said. “We talk about equity, diversity and inclusion, and taking away the ability of individuals in certain groups to perform one of the most basic functions – making their own culturally appropriate foods – doesn’t sit very well.” The mayor is referring to age-old culinary practices, such as cooking with a wok over flames.
When chef Anna Chen first opened Alma, her modern Chinese restaurant in Toronto, she considered going with induction cooktops, “but to retrofit the space would have cost a lot of money.” She says gas is definitely more affordable, but that’s not the only reason she uses it. “Gas fuels our woks,” she says, “without which we would not be able to create the ‘wok hei.’” The Cantonese phrase “wok hei” means “the breath of the wok” – the charred, smoky flavour that comes from stir-frying food in large iron woks over an open flame. Have you even been to a fantastic Chinese restaurant and observed the chefs using 8-inch non-stick Teflon frying pans over electric burners? I didn’t think so. Because there’s really no substitute for cooking over fire.
Is this the beginning of the end of gas cooking as we know it? Will I ever flambé again? I pride myself on having few kitchen gadgets: Give me a wooden spoon, a knife, a whisk, a bowl and a pan, and I can whip up almost anything. But taking away my gas stove is like taking away my secret weapon. It’s the main reason why I only need the wooden spoon!
Gas is potent and accurate. It’s fast and furious. It’s not just a stovetop: it’s family. So, do I give up my prized stove for the sake of the health of my loved ones and the planet? I guess I’d be a fool to choose crusty smashburgers over my little nieces, however reluctantly.
Since reading all the news stories, I have started using the venting hood whenever I turn on the stove, so that has allayed my immediate fears. I have a perfectly good stove that I know and love, so it’s not going anywhere until I’m forced to part with it. And when that day comes, I will no doubt enjoy the conveniences and efficiency of my new induction cooktop and will also appreciate breathing cleaner air and saving the planet. But for me, without those dancing flames, cooking at home will be a little less magical.