Cooking on the range burners

[rjwong]

In my apartment kitchen, I use a Western Holly Townhouse range/oven with four gas burners.

Most of the time, I find myself using the Front Left (FL) burner, with the Front Right (FR) burner for my tea kettle and/or simmering. I rarely used the back burners.

Which burners do you use for cooking? Is it best to rely on one burner most/all of the time? Should I occasionally use the other burners, just to be fair? BTW, I'm left-handed. Would you have figured it out by which burner I use?

[Shalmanese]

Are the gas burners all the same size? On mine, the back left and front right are simmer burners. The back right is a medium sized burner and the front left is a high heat, wok burner. I mainly use the simmer burners for stews or braises, the medium one for boiling pasta or potatos and the wok burner for high heat saute.

[Fat Guy]

Assuming there are no special circumstances (e.g., a range that's pushed up against a wall, or an assymetrically powered burner array), on a four-burner range, righties typically use the front-right burner for all their sauteeing and other hands-on cooking, and lefties use the front-left. I've seen it so often that if somebody is using the front-left burner I'll say, "Hey, I didn't know you were a lefty." The back burners rarely get used for sauteeing by anybody, because you have to reach farther (and often across other burners) to use them. The back burners are more appropriate for stockpots and things that simmer.

Of course, the burner you use the most will probably break first (as will its control knob). So if you wanted to vary your routine, the benefit wouldn't be fairness to the burners (though that is an admirable motivation) but, rather, the longevity of the range. Whether using a less convenient burner is worth it, I leave to each individual. I'd rather just repair my front-right burner every decade or three, or just replace the whole range, or move to a new home.

[Marlene]

I'm a lefty and I use the back right burner most often. I have no idea why.

[Anna N]

At home, front right burner BUT at daughter's house one of the back burners - to avoid accidents with a toddler and pets!

[Marlene]

At home, front right burner BUT at daughter's house one of the back burners - to avoid accidents with a toddler and pets!

←

I think that's why I use the back burners so much. I got used to doing so when the lad was small, and now it's just habit.

[BarbaraY]

I use right front because it's my high heat burner. Back right is a simmer burner and the two on the left are medium heat. I only use the back burners when the front ones are in use or to simmer the stockpot or anything, like beans, that take a long time.

[Mayhaw Man]

Front left for sauteeing.

Right rear for the kettle of for anything fast as it is a larger burner than the other 3

It's funny though. Steven is right about rotating to save the knobs, the knob on the front left has broken twice in 14 years. Admittedly, it is a 1950's O'Keefe and Merritt (same as stove #8), and you would expect some stuff to go wrong-but really the only thing that ever breaks is the knob that I use the most. You can still get them, but as they are made out of bakelight, and not plastic, they don't exactly give the things away.

[highchef]

On my new cooktop, RF is large and high btu, LF is the simmer burner and small. the two back burners are of midrange btu's, one large, one small. continuious grate. I like this one, the last one blew up. twice. ouch.

[SuzySushi]

I have a standard electric range. I use the front left burner most often because that's the largest/high heat one. Front right burner next most-often. Back right burner mostly for simmering. Back left burner least often because I rarely have all four burners going at once (no room for the pans!) and it acts as a vent for the oven.

The electric coils are plug-in so can be easily replaced if they wear out. I've already replaced the burner pan on the front left burner once (that's in 1-1/2 years of use!) and it's due for replacement again.

[saskanuck]

I use my back burners all the time because I have two kids who like to be in the kitchen a lot. I have one large high-heat burner and a smaller regular one - it's a standard electric stove.

I rarely, if ever, use the front burners. My 11 year old son uses them to make scrambled eggs, quesadillas and such because I don't like him reaching over the burners in case one gets turned on by accident.

[Busboy]

All my burners are different sizes, so my choice depends on flame demands and pot/pan arrangement. The right front is the Big Bertha, so it's the first choice for anything that needs beacoup BTUs or a wide, low flame. That's where the big iron skillet lives.

The left front is the second-smallest of the four -- the smallest are the "warming" burners; right rear and smack-dab in the center -- it gets sauces and vegetable sautees.

The left rear is the #2 in terms of power, but doesn't get used as much as the front burners. It's for boiling something while you're making a sauce up front.

[bilrus]

I'm a front left for most things, primarily because it is on the side where I do my prep work. My high BTU burner is front right, so that is where the wok and boiling water goes. The back is where the pans I need to show less attention go.