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By Pat McKenna, Chair NEO Sierra Group
Reheating a slice of pizza or preparing dinner for your family?
You might have several appliances available in your kitchen that
can handle both of these tasks, but the one you choose—and
how you use it—can have a significant impact on your energy
consumption.
The energy consumed by electric
appliances is measured in watts.
The energy consumed by gas appliances is measured in British
thermal units or Btus. One Btu is equal to approximately 0.293 watt-hours.
Check the label on the back of each appliance to find its average
wattage, and multiply that figure by the number of hours required
for cooking to determine which appliance would be the most efficient
for your needs. For example, heating water in a 900-watt microwave
oven for five minutes (0.083 hour) uses much less energy (75 watt-hours)
than an electric stovetop, which can use up to 2,000 watts (167
watt-hours) in the same amount of time on its “high” setting.
Here are some other ways to use
less energy in the kitchen (no
calculator required):
- Think small.
Ovens: In general, the smaller the oven, the less energy used in cooking, so
choose the smallest appliance suited to the task.
Stovetops: With an
electric stovetop, make sure your pan completely covers the heating element.
With gas burners, make sure the flame is fully below the
pan; otherwise, you’re paying to heat the air around the pan, not just
the pan itself. Also, use the appropriate size pan for your meal.
- Keep appliances clean. Clean
surfaces maximize the amount of energy reflected toward your
food.
- Keep
a lid on it! Covered pots retain heat and help
cook food more quickly.
- Take advantage of residual
heat. Turn off the oven or electric
stovetop several minutes before the recipe indicates. Both
will stay hot enough to complete
the cooking process.
- Don’t preheat the
oven unless a recipe requires it.
- Use the right cookware. Glass
and ceramic cookware conducts and retains heat better than metal.
If a recipe calls for
a metal baking pan, switching to glass
or ceramic allows you to lower the oven temperature by 25 degrees.
- Don’t peek. Opening
the oven door can lower the internal temperature by as much as
25 degrees. Use a timer to set the cooking time, and be sure
your oven window is clean enough for you to see how your dish is progressing.
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