Induction cooking pan bottom is concave – will this affect performance

cookwareinduction

I've just installed a convection cook top, I've researched it and am confident in my purchase. My question has to do with cookware. I've read reviews and bought a Cuisinart set that is "induction ready". I've cooked a few things with them and they work. I noticed that the bottom isn't truly flat though.

On a 12-inch skillet, the centre of the pan is 1/8 inch concave. I understand how an induction burner works (thanks to your site), and I want to take advantage of the efficiency of it. Is this a "flat bottom" or would a truly flat bottom pan be more efficient? Thanks for any insight to this, maybe I'm being picky, just want the best, thanks.

Best Answer

I don't think this should be an issue. The concave design is probably to reduce the amount of contact area between the cookware and the cook-top.

Having less contact area between the (hot) cookware and the cook-top keeps heat from flowing between the pan and the cook-top, resulting in: - a cooler / safer cook top - less wasted energy

For this very reason, those pans would not work well on a traditional electric stove where you want maximal heat flow (because the heat comes from the cook top, not the pan).