Eli5: If you have a gas stove, is it more efficient to do “slow-fire” or “high-fire” and how does it work?

Question

We’re in the middle of a typhoon right now and it would be nice to know how to conserve gas.

In: 27

Answer 1

> is it more efficient to do “slow-fire” or “high-fire” and how does it work?

It is more efficient to adjust the size of the fire to the size of the pot.

On the stoves I’ve seen, the flames are shot out sideways. The higher the flame setting, the more sideways they travel. A small pot on a big flame can be untouched by the fire.

You want the flames to “crawl” along the bottom of the pan for a bit and then vanish. The heat can then climb up the side of the pot rather than being pushed away from it.

Of course, it depends on what you’re cooking as well. Searing something in oil requires a different flame than boiling water for rice or pasta.