[3469practice]

I have always used electric stoves for cooking. Recently, however, I moved into a new townhouse that has a gas stove. Now, one of my previous apartments also had a gas stove, and while I didn't like it as much as an electric stove, I was able to use it, more or less. I cannot seem to get the hang of the one I have now, though.

I've spent some time looking for advice online and keep running into people who say they love gas stoves because they cook fast and because they have "greater temperature control than electric stoves." The part in quotation marks is where I have problems as I have found the exact opposite to be true for both gas stoves I have used, but especially the one I have now. I cannot get gas to heat at a low enough temperature to cook my food the way I like it. No matter how small I make the flame, my food still burns. I cannot achieve a good simmer...everything cooks too fast. I cannot make proper pancakes...the outside burns while the inside stays undercooked. What am I doing wrong?

Part of the problem may be the age of the stove, which I can't do anything about since the homeowner had already indicated that he will not replace the stove. I also may be so used to electric stovetop cooking that there is some instinctual thing that I am doing which is screwing me up. Does anyone have any advice?

[jerkseasoning]

Hello 3469practice, I may be wrong, do not know if you are in the UK or not
but here since we had North sea gas piped, the flame is much fiercer and stoves had to be adjusted, which your landlord may not realise, this had to be done via a Government licenced Gas Company for safety reasons. He may have installed a cooker that had not been adjusted. You can purchase worktop size portable single or double electric hobs that you simply plug in to your normal electric supply which you may consider.

The only other alternative I can suggest is that you use very good thick based cooking pans so that your food will not burn on the outside so quickly, leaving the inside to cook properly.

I hope this will help you, good luck

[KYHeirloomer]

Very strange, as your experience is the exact opposite of most peoples'. Because the flame adjusts immediately to your knob, gas provides better control. With electric you have to either wait for the coil to heat up or cool down, or change burners.

I would guess that your burners need adjustment. Whether you're in the UK or US, the venturii valves on a gas stove have to be set to the type of gas being used. The fact that you cannot lower the flame enough would indicate that your stove is set incorrectly.

You didn't say whether you are on natural gas or bottled, but that's where the differences really show up. Bottled gas is a high-pressure system. Natural gas is low pressure. This can have a distinct effect on how the gas is delivered and how it burns.

Anyway, that's the first thing I'd have checked.

[DC Sunshine]

If your landlord won't help, some of these may come in handy to cook at lower temps:

heat diffuser: Newly tagged products at Amazon.com | FeedAgg.com

I've used ones with the handles before for low temp cooking, they're not bad.

[dscheidt]

Originally Posted by KYHeirloomer

Very strange, as your experience is the exact opposite of most peoples'. Because the flame adjusts immediately to your knob, gas provides better control. With electric you have to either wait for the coil to heat up or cool down, or change burners.

No, what the OP is complaining of is a very common problem with gas stoves. Many gas stoves have poor low flames, when new. Age doesn't help. Aged gas stoves also often can't keep a steady flame at anything other than full throttle. This can be fixed on most stoves, but I doubt the OP is going to get their land lord to spring for it. (hey, flames come out? Can't possibly be broken!) Get a flame tamer.