Why Do Gas Hobs Have Different Sized Burners?

When you wake up in the morning, you cook eggs or pancakes on the gas hob. You probably use a large burner.

Then in the evening, the main course is cooked on the large burner, while the side dishes are handed over to the smaller, less preferred burners. But it's true that there's a reason gas hob makers don't just install four big burners. 

Based on different-sized pots and pans, stoves have different-sized burners for safety reasons. Burners of different sizes also offer options that allow homeowners to save energy and time. Other burners also provide varying degrees and distributions of heat for various cooking techniques.

This article provides several reasons why gas hob has different-sized burners. Some of these reasons might surprise you and even change the way you use your gas hob. 

Gas hob typically has three different sizes of burners:

A small burner

Two medium burners

A large burner

When using a heat source that can reach temperatures high enough to boil water and roast meat, you want to make sure everything is as safe as possible.

You can get pots and pans in a variety of sizes. In terms of safety, the biggest issue is when using a small pot on a large burner, and there are two problems with this situation.

The first problem is that when a small pot or pan is placed on a large burner, it does not fully cover the flame. 

By leaving these areas with significant heat exposure, your accidental exposure to them increases. This is especially true for front burners and those you use for active cooking (rather than simmering, etc.). 

The second problem is when you need to touch a small pot or pot handle sitting on a fairly large hot burner. This is because, in this case, the handle can get very hot. 

It is a habit to hold the handle with your hand to stabilize the pan while stirring food. You may also grab the handle to remove the pan from the gas hob without thinking, especially if your food is burning or boiling.

So, safety is one of the reasons why you can't have four big burners, even if one filled with your favorite gas hob is a dream come true. 

As a side note, when your handles are constantly exposed, the heat from using small pots and pans on large burners can damage them, causing them to break more easily. Pans without handles are difficult to use and introduce new safety concerns. 

Safety concerns aside, using small pots and pans on large burners wastes a lot of energy. The heat goes into the air instead of the cooker.

Using excess energy was once seen as a privilege. However, we know the impact on the environment and many people are serious about conserving energy and using alternative fuels and energy wherever possible.

Gas cooktops don't use alternative fuels, but we can make sure we use energy efficiently, starting with the right-sized burner for our little pots and pans. 

Also, wasted energy equals wasted money, so using the right burner can be considered a budget technology and economically sensible.

Whatever you cook over high heat in a small pot or skillet will cook quickly (but waste energy). However, if you try to cook something in a pan on a large pot or small gas hob, you will be there for a while. 

Trying to boil water on a small gas hob is very frustrating and will totally disrupt your meal time, make you late, etc.

Burning food is also a waste of time. You'll have to start over or try to salvage the dish, both options that end up doubling the meal prep time.

Burners are not only different in size. They also generate varying amounts of heat. For gas burners, this is obvious: the smaller the flame, the less heat. 

When you cook, you use different techniques. Some things you need to bake, and some things you need to simmer. Gas hobs are specifically designed to give you the best range of heating options.

Large burners are called power burners. These are best for roasting meats and boiling water as they generate a lot of energy. 

Medium burners can be called general purpose burners, and they are great for cooking most foods using a variety of techniques. 

Small burners are called slow fire burners. When the recipe says to let it simmer, try removing the plate from the large gas hob and placing it on the small gas hob. Your food will cook on the large burner instead of simmering.

On a large burner, the heat is not distributed well over the entire bottom of the pot or pan. The center is always cooler than the edge. This can make cooking food very difficult. 

However, smaller burners provide a smaller area, so the heat is distributed more evenly. 

If you need to cook evenly without stirring frequently, use a smaller pot or pan.

The above briefly describes the reasons why gas hobs have different sizes of burners. If you want to buy a gas hob, please contact us.

Greaidea is a professional custom gas cooktop manufacturer with over 20 years of experience. We have been committed to providing our customers and strategic partners with the best solutions and thoughtful services. In our R&D department, 16 engineers are employed to guarantee our R&D advantage and continuous improvement. Spend 3% of revenue on research and development each year. With an excellent manufacturing team and quality control team, we can achieve an annual output of 800,000 gas hobs and 300,000 range hood products with the best quality.