Guides

Can you use cast iron on an induction hob?

The short answer: yes. Iron is magnetic, so cast iron, bare or enamelled, works on an induction hob. Three habits make it work well: heat it gradually, lift it rather than drag it across the glass, and use a zone that matches the size of the base.

Season enamelled cast iron casserole in Blue Mussel

Why cast iron works on induction

An induction hob does not get hot itself. A coil under the glass makes a changing magnetic field, and that field makes the base of a magnetic pan heat up. The heat is made in the pan, not passed into it. Anything a fridge magnet sticks to firmly will work, and cast iron is about as magnetic as cookware gets. Enamel is simply glass over the iron, so an enamelled casserole works exactly as well as a bare frying pan.

Heat it gradually

Induction delivers heat very quickly, and only to the part of the base sitting over the coil. Cast iron spreads heat slowly. Put the two together on full power and you get a fierce hot spot in the middle and a cool rim, and with enamel, a sudden temperature change it would rather avoid.

Put the pan on the zone with a little oil or fat in it.
Start on a low to medium setting for 2 to 3 minutes.
Turn it up to where you want it and give it another 2 to 3 minutes before food goes in.

Five minutes of patience gives you an evenly hot pan, which is the whole point of cast iron. Once it is hot, you will need less power than you expect to keep it there.

Job	Setting on a 1 to 9 scale
Simmering a stew or braise on the hob	2 to 3
Softening onions, preheating	4 to 5
Browning meat, frying	6 to 7, after preheating
Searing steak on a preheated pan	7 to 8

Hobs vary, so treat these as a starting point and adjust to what you see in the pan.

Lift it, don't drag it

Induction hobs are glass. The base of a bare cast iron pan is slightly rough, and a full casserole is heavy: our 26cm weighs 6.1kg before anything goes in it. Slide either across the hob and you can scratch the surface. Lift to move, and set the pan down rather than dropping it. The same goes for shaking a pan on the hob: lift and toss, or use a spoon.

Match the base to the zone

Most induction zones have a minimum pan size, and a small pan on a large zone may not be detected, or will heat only in the middle. Use the zone whose ring is closest to the size of the base. For a long piece that spans two zones, link them with the bridge function if your hob has one, or heat both zones to the same setting.

A few other things worth knowing

Buzzing is normal. Heavy pans on high power can hum. It quietens as you turn it down.
Never heat a pan empty on full power. Induction can take an empty pan very hot very quickly.
Keep the base and glass clean. Grit trapped between the two is what scratches.

Season cast iron on induction

Our cast iron pieces are made to work on every hob, including induction:

Cast Iron Casserole: enamelled, 22cm to 30cm, £80 to £120. The 26cm is £100. Oven safe to 230°C, 10 year warranty.
Cast Iron Shallow Casserole: 26cm £80, 30cm £90.
Enamelled Cast Iron Griddle Pan: 27cm, £60.
Cast Iron Frying Pan: bare and pre-seasoned, £12 to £38 in 10cm to 30cm.

Keep reading

Questions people ask

Will cast iron scratch my induction hob? Only if it is dragged, dropped, or has grit underneath it. Lift it to move it and keep the base clean.

Does enamelled cast iron work on induction? Yes. The enamel is a coating; the iron underneath does the work.

Is cast iron slow on induction? It takes a few minutes longer to heat than a thin pan, then holds its heat far better, so the temperature barely drops when food goes in.

Why is only the middle of my pan hot? The power was turned up too fast, or the zone is smaller than the base. Start lower and give it time to spread.

Can I use cast iron on a ceramic or gas hob too? Yes. The same rules apply on any glass hob: heat gradually and lift, don't drag.

Cook it with

Cook like it matters.

From the cooks at Season, a London cookshop since 2005.