Generally speaking, chefs prefer gas. Electric provides dry, even heat and is ideal for baking at precise temperatures, but it’s slow. Gas can be adjusted quickly to avoid burning or scorching foods.
Gas can leak though, and many voice concerns about carcinogens and greenhouse gasses released. Electricity is widely considered the safer choice, and better for the environment.
Electric ovens offer are better for baking, but they generally have a more dry heat, while gas ovens are more humid, so your choice really depends on what you’re cooking.
While wood-fired pizza ovens are amazing, evidence suggests electric might be better. There’s no fuel so no hood requirements, and they’re able to heat the stones evenly in a dryer environment– perfect for cooking crispy pizzas.
Just like ovens, having more even and steady temperatures is a big benefit for fry cooking, and electric fryers offer superior temperature recovery over gas, which is important when frying cold or frozen product.
Surprisingly, electric and gas griddles work very similarly—but electric griddles produce a more even cooktop than gas.
Electric charbroilers don’t provide flame. They can sear product, but gas can provide higher heat and a more authentic taste.
Electric steam tables are portable and don’t a direct gas line. Electric steam tables also don’t require a hood, and newer models don’t even require water. This means you can put it in more accessible places in the kitchen or the front of house and forego having to dig up the floor and add expensive indirect drains (floor sinks) for draining water and condensate.
Because combi ovens have their own cooking methods, electric components, and programmable cook settings, the differences between gas and electric are few and far between. Go for the option that best fits your budget– or the one that works best in your kitchen.
When choosing a salamander, factors to consider are heating speed, temperature control, durability, installation cost/complexity, and energy efficiency. Gas salamanders heat up faster and offer precise temperature control, making them ideal for high-heat cooking tasks, but they require a dedicated gas line and ventilation system. Electric salamanders are more convenient to install, energy-efficient and produce less emissions, but they may have lower maximum temperatures than gas.
Induction appliances are electric, but they use electromagnets to heat up the pans (you’re essentially cooking with magnets). Induction’s biggest benefit is its ability to heat up and cook food quickly. Many induction stoves can boil water in under two minutes. That’s ideal for a high-capacity restaurant.
It’s also easy to control the temperature with induction cooktops, and many have smart technology built in to help streamline the cooking process. And because of the way they heat up, they produce almost no ambient heat—a godsend to kitchen staff everywhere.
However, induction cooking appliances can have a significant barrier to entry. Not only are they pricier than their electric and gas counterparts, but they also require specialized pots and pans for the induction process to work. Pans require iron for them to work—you can’t use just any aluminum pan.
Electric appliances typically cost more, and installation can be more expensive and less flexible than gas (depending on how much amperage you have left in your panel and the size of your incoming gas line). Most gas lines that feed a cookline are a minimum of 1.5”and can service multiple pieces of equipment under the hood. It is important to understand the total BTU requirement for the new piece of gas equipment to understand if you will have enough gas pressure available. Adding additional stub-outs to a surface mounted gas line is much easier than running more wire in the wall for additional plugs.
While minimizing upfront costs is critical to short-term success, you also have to consider your operating expenses. Gas is the cheaper long-term option, but the cost of electricity is higher than the cost of natural gas. Take a look at the numbers.
As you can see on that link, gas is significantly less per million BTU’s then electric in most counties. Those figures can range on the west coast from electricity being 7X the cost of natural gas, to the east coast where it’s 4X the cost of natural gas. Overall electricity is going to cost you more to operate.
It’s more complicated when you account for energy efficiency with induction cook top units. Induction units are more energy efficient – For instance, it takes less electricity to boil a pot of water than gas.
A gas range has the longest life expectancy of most major kitchen appliances.
Although electric ranges aren’t far behind, there are more parts that could fail. Controllers can get compromised by heat and moisture more easily and ignition settings may fail to connect, rendering the oven inoperable.
Gas stoves are known to emit greenhouse gases. Even when gas-fueled appliances are off, they could still impact the environmental. The emissions resulting from the usage of gas stoves in the US are estimated to have the same annual climate impact as the tailpipe emissions of 500,000 cars, according to the Natural Resource Defense Council.
Some cities in California, includingSan Francisco, Berkeley, San Jose, and Sacramento, have already banned the use of natural gas appliances in new buildings. Unfortunately, restaurant owners feel like this hasty act to ban gas is kicking them when they’re already down. Many are still recovering from pandemic-era restrictions.
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