More restaurants and Americans in general prefer cooking with propane than with electric ranges. That’s the word from the American Gas Association, The Gas Company and Kaua‘i restaurant professionals. Many isle residents, instead of using electricity to power appliances like
More restaurants and Americans in general prefer cooking with propane than with electric ranges.
That’s the word from the American Gas Association, The Gas Company and Kaua‘i restaurant professionals.
Many isle residents, instead of using electricity to power appliances like clothing dryers, water heaters and stoves, use propane instead of electricity, said Napela Napoleon, sales account manager at Gaspro, one of the propane distributors on Kaua‘i. Appliances manufactured in other states to use natural gas but sold in Hawai‘i come equipped with a converter to use propane, and convertors are available, said personnel at Sears.
What is the difference between propane and natural gas? Here’s the scoop from the “Natural Handyman,” a database of information about home repair (www.naturalhandyman.
com): Natural gas is a mixture of various naturally-occurring gases extracted from deep within the earth.
Natural gas is primarily methane (also known as ‘cow farts’), but also contains other flammable gases such as propane, butane, carbon monoxide and hydrogen. The main uses for natural gas in homes are for heating, hot water, clothes drying and cooking.
Propane is extracted from natural gas, and is an LP gas, an acronym for liquefied petroleum. Propane can be turned into a liquid under fairly low pressure, which allows shipping and storage of large volumes in relatively small containers.
Other gases can also be liquefied, but propane is the most common: the terms LP gas and propane are often used interchangeably.
Propane is commonly used to heat grills, stoves, lanterns, soldering guns and heaters.
In the islands, we don’t have natural gas; instead we use propane for heating and cooking. It’s piped into our home appliances from outdoor tanks.
“Nowadays, price of gas is going up, including propane. I’m not sure how much you would actually save using it. A lot of homeowners say they do save,” Napoleon added.
“Basically, cooking with gas or electric is a matter of personal preference,” said Shelley Paik, communications and member services coordinator at Kaua‘i Island Utility Cooperative.
“Before I moved here (from O‘ahu) I had a gas stove, but here I have electric,” she said.
“Most (restaurants) use gas. The island of Kaua‘i is one of the most expensive places to run electric equipment,” said Mark Dill, manager of American Restaurant Supply in Lihu‘e. The company services and supplies equipment to just about every restaurant and commercial kitchen on the island.
“With gas equipment food cooks faster with gas than with electric.
Also, chefs like to have certain type of flame that they can only get with gas. They can’t get the same type of cooking quality with electric,” he added.
Chef Mark Sassone of JJ’s Broiler in Nawiliwili, agreed.
“It’s easier to regulate. For example if you are boiling something and have to reduce the heat to simmer, with electric you have to move the entire pan and wait for the stove to cool down. With gas, you just lower the flame,” he said.
“It’s way easier and it’s a lot cheaper because electricity on Kaua‘i is so expensive.” Repeated calls to the Kaua‘i Island Utility Cooperative went unanswered, so there’s no “official” word from our electric utility service on what method they think is preferred.
“A lot of foods heat up faster with gas because the flame gets hotter faster with gas rather than electric. When you turn on your electric stove you have to wait for your heating coil to heat up, whereas with gas, the flame is already hot,” Napoleon said. “In Hawai‘i we do a lot of outdoor cooking, and I think about everybody has a propane tank.” And for people out there with only an electric stove, don’t fret! You can still use gas outdoors on a grill, or get a small camping stove to get that perfect temperature, more control and that unmistakable fresh-grilled taste.
