I can only speak for myself when making the leap to induction after an electric cooktop. I knew induction was for me and my style of cooking. There was no need whatsoever to have electric when induction was so much faster and cleaner. There aren't any pots/pans that I treasure enough to keep electric either. I have Bosch that is serving me very well. Since you have already used induction it should be an easy call. Enjoy.

Skip the hybrid. You'll just have one side unused (or maybe one side dirty?). Time to commit, sir! ;)

There's a reason very few people like plain old electric.

Don't waste your money on a hybrid. A few of the brands discontinued them. That should tell you something. The Electrolux gets you the most bang for the buck. The two large burners in front are perfect for your griddle. Try using a silpat or silicon bake pad underneath so the caste iron will not scratch the glass.
Others brands to check out for the 36" are GE or Bosch. Although none offer two large burners like the Electrolux.

Some SS pots work on induction. Many of the triply do. Just check with a magnet.

As far as cast iron goes, I use it regularly on my induction cooktop and don't find there's a need to cushion it. Of course if I'm anticipating a spillover, I do like to put a paper towel down beneath it...

I'd go for all induction. After using conventional electric my entire life, I'm loving the almost instant heat of induction & gas. Our last electric cooktop had 2 "thermostat" burners & 2 conventional radiant--the thermostat ones drove me crazy since they didn't really keep a constant temperature & would burn things. A big difference between induction & radiant burners is that the radiant ones continue to generate significant heat even after being turned down or off; while the induction surface can get hot, cooking stops when you turn it off. With radiant, I found I had to set one burner on high & another on low, and move pots between them for good temperature control, which meant I also ran out of burners. This is not necessary with induction (or gas).

Thanks all for the feedback.

Fori hit it on the nail -- our current hybrid is clean on one side and dirty on the other. We do tend to use both sides evenly, but I believe that is because our old Jenn Air induction really did not put out the heat that was advertised. That, plus being right handed made those burners more accessible.

We have All Clad Stainless Steel pots and various cast iron pots, so that is not an issue. But I agree with the other poster that it is worth moving up to pots that work with induction -- we did that 6 years ago and never regretted it. (Watch for a great sale at Macy's).

Thanks for confirming that I really will not miss the mess and baked on the glass and the heat of the hybrid side.

OK, the main reason I don't want to go all induction: canning and food pressure cookers do not seem to attract magnets. I still can some foods and pressure cook beans regularly. So anyone have another suggestion than hybrid if replacing a cooktop? I have 20 year old electric/radiant heat Thermador and it has been great, but knobs all broken and too expensive and/or obsolete to replace.

There are not a few good-qauality induction-ready pressure cookers. Try Kuhn Rikon or Fagor just for starters. Or just do a Google:

https://www.google.com/search?q="pressure+cooker"+induction

Hillbkr_comcast_net:

How often are you pressure canning and what size pressure canners are you using?

Are you doing production canning with huge pots with 20 to 40 quart capacities? If you are doing larger volume canning sessions, there are no induction capable substitutes. (Frankly, at that size, you pretty much have to use aluminum because ferromagnetic versions would be too heavy to lift when full.)

OTOH, if you have been using one of the smaller models (say, a 10½ quart All American or 15-quart Presto), there are some good induction-capable options such as the 10 qt. models in several of Fagor's product lines lines. Fagors are set up to make it easy to vent off air as the pot comes to heat. Last time I checked, Costco.com had the 10 quart Fagor Rapida model with a canning kit and instructions for under $100. Kuhn Rikon has a 12 quart model which is very easy to use and also works for pressure canning but is very $$$.

Plus, for pressure-cooking beans (and pretty much anything else), an induction-capable, stainless steel, spring-valve model can seem like a huge improvement. Not only easier to use (IMO), but also having no worries about any acidic ingredients causing "off" and metallic flavors in your beans.

Frankly, if I were doing enough largish spates of production canning that would make it worthwhile to have a 20 quart or larger All American type pressure-canner, I would skip a hybrid range/cooktop. Instead, I would get a full-induction range and look into a couple of other options for running the big pressure canners during those times I needed them. One option would be using a commercial 2500 watt portable burner like the ones from Cadco. Something to consider, thugh: can you easily install a 20 amp/240v outlet in the kitchen or an alternative workspace, such as garage. The other alternative would be one of the propane-fueled portable campstoves with the stands and 30k-btu burners. These will easliy hold pots up to 14" in diameter and will get the pressure-canners to heat quickly. The brands I know of are Coleman and Camp Chef. A two burner model should be under $100. I saw a 3-burner model at Costco last week for about $149. They use the same 20 gal. propane bottles that are used for gas grills. Pull them out for canning season, fold them away when you don't need them.

crazyone:

>>>" high end SS pots will not work on induction?? * * * i had only thought i wanted that system untii was told you need certain pots.. I do not want to buy new pots."<<<

I'm not sure I take your point: is this an argument for getting a hybrid or is this a statement of why you don't want to consider induction at all?

Maybe I'm misunderstanding what you seem to have been told about needing "certain pots" but it sounds like whoever told you this was seriously mis-informed. You just need pans with bases that will hold a magnet. These days, that is most high-end SS pots.

Perhaps you (or your source) were thinking about high-end pots that have stainless steel interiors with non-ferrous exteriors? Examples of those being Falk's stainless-lined copper pans and All Clad's MC and MC2 pans with stainless liners and thick aluminum exteriors?

Um... JW, this thread is from 2009-2011...

Oh for dumb!

I just looked at the date on owlcroft's post and went my merry way.