We love our NuWave PIC (Precision Induction Cooktop) but there is a problem. We totally recommend that you get one and they're great, except for one thing - pancakes.
The empty pan
When you are using the PIC to heat something that has a lot of water in it, such as soup, it's great because the water helps regulate the temperature. That isn't true with an empty pan. The PIC apparently does not measure the actual temperature of the pan. Instead the temperature sensor measures the temperature of the NuWave surface and that is what it regulates, not the actual pan. This allows the pan temperature to run away since it takes time for it to heat the surface of the NuWave which is actually what is being regulated.
The pancake saga
The NuWave PIC is a convenient way to cook a few pancakes, but we experienced inconsistent results. After mixing the batter we would turn on the NuWave, set it to 340 °F, and let it heat up with a little oil or spray oil in it. The first pancake would sizzle and brown quickly in less than a minute but then subsequent cakes would barely get cooked after 2 minutes.
We also noticed that the oil would brown, which should not happen at 340 °F. We kept fiddling with the temperature trying to get it right but it was never consistent from day to day, so we took a few measurements to see what was going on. Having some experience with measuring stuff and using an Infrared Thermal Sensor, like the one in the picture to the right, we took a few measurements of the empty pan as it heated up. Taking a reading every 30 seconds revealed the following chart.
The chart shows some unsettling results
The chart shows some unsettling results. The temperature of the pan radically departs from the temperature setting and becomes dangerously hot, way too hot for either the oil or the non-stick coating. Soybean oil like what is in spray oils smokes at 450 °F. The pan reached 565 °F and was above the smoke point for about 5 minutes. That's dangerous because burnt oil is toxic. There is actually not much oil when it is sprayed in the pan, but we wouldn't want even a little toxicity in our food. Canola oil smokes at 400 °F and Butter smokes at 350 °F so 565 ° is way to hot for just about any oil.
We used one of the pans supplied by NuWave, the copper colored ones like in the picture above. The middle of the pan turned dark brown (decomposed) at these temperatures well above the 500 °F decomposition temperature for most non-stick pan coatings.
The graph to the right shows the temperature over time as it heated up and finally stabilized.
It took a long time to stabilize
One of the selling points of the NuWave PIC is that it only heats the pan so there is no wasted heat surrounding the pan such as with a gas flame or a standard electric burner. That advantage totally gets blown away if you have to wait, like we did, for almost 15 minutes for the pan to stabilize.
After waiting all that time our cakes came out totally consistent as the NuWave did indeed regulate the temperature. It regulated it at about 48 °F hotter (388 °F) than the set point though. If we were cooking with butter this is too hot.
Any of you familiar with the thermodynamics of heat flow will understand why that is, since the pan is heating the NuWave surface, but needless to say, the set point is not really the set point from the pans point of view.
The NuWave PIC is Great but not for Cakes
Due to the inconsistent temperatures, the burnt oil, and the burnt pans we do not recommend the NuWave for pancakes or any other food that is cooked in a mostly empty pan at high temperatures. For other foods that are cooked with lots of juices near the boiling temperature of water the NuWave is Great and a wonderful addition to the kitchen.
Where to buy a NuWave PIC
We have read some negative reports from customers who bought the NuWave PIC on-line so if you are going to get one get it from a reputable store or on-line at a major distributor such as Amazon Dot Com. We got ours at Bed Bath & Beyond. If you are considering getting a NuWave PIC on-line here are some reputable vendors to choose from.
