avanutria wrote:My mom made tea with a regular kettle on the stovetop. When it's hot enough it whistles due to steam escaping through a special spout cap.
Target does sell electric kettles but often you have to hunt for them. My Brit-on-holiday has bought several so far, heehee.
Sample UK and US kettles:
Omigod... The USA can put men in space, but they still use pre-war kettles? Oy vey...
And whether the blood be highland, lowland or no.
And whether the skin be black or white as the snow.
Of kith and of kin we are one, be it right, be it wrong.
As long as our hearts beat true to the lilt of a song.
The old fashioned way of boiling water by putting the kettle on the stove is best, IMO. I have yet to use an electric kettle that would get the water hot enough to steep the tea properly.
avanutria wrote:
Most (in my experience) American kitchens don't have electric kettles.
So how do you make a hot beverage? Or a pot noodle? Aside from the microwave obviously.
When you cook rice, or boil potatoes do you heat the water in the pan from cold? I usually boil it in the kettle so it's got a head start. Or are we back to the microwave again?
Been without a microwave for a couple of months now and cannot say that we miss it much. Instead of using brute force to thaw things in the microwave we just think a head, and we like the open counter space. Boiling water in a pot is about as fast, the only inconvenience is that you cannot heat it and forget it.
It really amazes me at times the redundancies that build up in the kitchen.
"Be not deceived by the sweet words of proverbial philosophy. Sugar of lead is a poison."
Tell us something.: A long time chatty Chiffer but have been absent for almost two decades. Returned in 2022 and still recognize some names! I also play anglo concertina now.
chrisoff wrote:So how do you make a hot beverage? Or a pot noodle? Aside from the microwave obviously.
Microwave, for me anyway. Most American versions of things like pot noodle are designed to go in the microwave rather than have boiling water added.
chrisoff wrote:When you cook rice, or boil potatoes do you heat the water in the pan from cold? I usually boil it in the kettle so it's got a head start. Or are we back to the microwave again?
In the pan from cold for me, though I also use a steamer for rice. Actually I don't use the kettle for either of these here in the UK either.
buddhu wrote:Omigod... The USA can put men in space, but they still use pre-war kettles? Oy vey...
The number of tea drinkers in the US is rather low (excluding iced tea), and the kettle suffices...when my mom made tea she was usually socialising with friends in the kitchen and they would chat while the kettle came to a boil. No need for a super-quick insta-boiling electric kettle.
I.D.10-t wrote: Boiling water in a pot is about as fast
I find the opposite, but then I've only got a rubbish electric hob. Perhaps if I had a gas hob it would be quicker. At the moment my kettle is lightning fast compared to a pan, nd it's just a cheap tescos one. If I had a fancy "fast boil" brand kettle it would be even quicker.
Joseph E. Smith wrote:The old fashioned way of boiling water by putting the kettle on the stove is best, IMO. I have yet to use an electric kettle that would get the water hot enough to steep the tea properly.
Uh oh... can-of-worms alert!
Some people would claim that the water you pour onto the leaves should have gone off the boil anyway in order to avoid scalding the tea...
I'm not even going to mention the tea-or-milk-in-first controversy... Oh, drat.
And whether the blood be highland, lowland or no.
And whether the skin be black or white as the snow.
Of kith and of kin we are one, be it right, be it wrong.
As long as our hearts beat true to the lilt of a song.
avanutria wrote:Most (in my experience) American kitchens don't have electric kettles.
I didn't even know they existed until I saw one on Good Eats.
If you put a lid on the pot, then the pressure helps to boil the water
faster. At that point, it's physically the same device as a stovetop
kettle, minus the whistle.
My mother had a pot with a whistle spout. It made so much noise that it certainly got your attention when the water was boiling. There was no other opening on the top of the pot, so you had to fill the pot through the pouring spout. I still have one on those that I never use anymore. One of the disadvantages of any type of pot where you boil water is that the pot very soon starts to plate with the minerals in the water. Yes, I know that you can put in vinegar to neutralize the minerals, but this takes time, and it is difficult to clean a pot that has no large opening on the top where you can get your hand inside. I remember my mother's pot got heavier and heavier from the mineral accumulation on the bottom of the pot. When this happens, the pot is no longer energy efficient, as there is an inch of insulating calcium on the bottom.
For years I lived in a small living space. I cooked on a hotplate and I boiled water in an electric teapot. However, since I purchased my first microwave (it still works, BTW), I have grown accustomed to heating my coffee or tea water, soup, or leftover casserole in the microwave. It is so convenient that I do not want to go back to the dark ages where I boiled water on the stove. I forgot to mention one exception. It is 17 degress F outside today, and during these winter months I usually have a large stock pot filled with boiling water on the stove. I monitor the relative humidity in another part of the house. I like to keep the RH above 40%.
buddhu wrote:Some people would claim that the water you pour onto the leaves should have gone off the boil anyway in order to avoid scalding the tea...
I'm not even going to mention the tea-or-milk-in-first controversy... Oh, drat.
What controversy?
You can either boil the heck out of your tea, extracting all of the bitterness pour it into a tin cup and modify any way you want (but most likely drinking it strait) and wait for the stuff to cool, or you can steep a nice tea, that still has subtle flavor, and add milk to your fine china cup and your strong tea and perhaps some additional water and drink it immediately while discussing whether it is better to have your pinky in or out and pride your self on knowing the meaning of MIF.
"Be not deceived by the sweet words of proverbial philosophy. Sugar of lead is a poison."
When I started seeing shiatsu clients at my home studio the Asian clients would see the rice cooker
on my kitchen couter top and ask me why I didn't have a hot water pot
too.
So, I invested in one. It makes great hot water for teas and French press coffee. Its temperatures are 208 and 140. If I want to presoak seaweed or dried mushrooms I have to dilute the water with cooler water.
I use our microwave oven for heating hot packs to put on my clients.
I don't use sponges because I never believed that they could be effectively sterilized in a pot of hot water, dish washer or microwave.
buddhu wrote:Some people would claim that the water you pour onto the leaves should have gone off the boil anyway in order to avoid scalding the tea...
I'm not even going to mention the tea-or-milk-in-first controversy... Oh, drat.
What controversy?
You can either boil the heck out of your tea, extracting all of the bitterness pour it into a tin cup and modify any way you want (but most likely drinking it strait) and wait for the stuff to cool, or you can steep a nice tea, that still has subtle flavor, and add milk to your fine china cup and your strong tea and perhaps some additional water and drink it immediately while discussing whether it is better to have your pinky in or out and pride your self on knowing the meaning of MIF.
Fine china cup? Pfff! A good chunky mug holds more tea and doesn't get mashed up so easily.
And these days I drink green tea, no milk, so I ain't getting into the milk thang.
And whether the blood be highland, lowland or no.
And whether the skin be black or white as the snow.
Of kith and of kin we are one, be it right, be it wrong.
As long as our hearts beat true to the lilt of a song.
hyldemoer wrote:I don't use sponges because I never believed that they could be effectively sterilized in a pot of hot water, dish washer or microwave.
Good thing this research came along! Now you know better
avanutria wrote:My mom made tea with a regular kettle on the stovetop. When it's hot enough it whistles due to steam escaping through a special spout cap.
Target does sell electric kettles but often you have to hunt for them. My Brit-on-holiday has bought several so far, heehee.
Sample UK and US kettles:
Omigod... The USA can put men in space, but they still use pre-war kettles? Oy vey...
We're just minimalist in knowing what we really need and what we don't. Everyone knows that if you need hot water for tea, you just fire up the coffeemaker sans coffee.
"If you take music out of this world, you will have nothing but a ball of fire." - Balochi musician
chrisoff wrote:But really, if you have a microwave in a kitchen chances are you're going to have a kettle as well. So boil the water in the proper bloody appliance in the first place and you don't have a problem.
Most (in my experience) American kitchens don't have electric kettles.
Seriously?
Then how do Americans make a cup of tea? Something's very wrong here...
An electric kettle is not commonplace in US kitchens. I remember watching The Young Ones years and years ago and they had one. I think Vyvyan put a grenade in it and the kettle blew up. Neil got blamed by Rik for blowing up the tea.
Everything I know about Britian I learned from that show.
Anyway, I looked up an electric kettle on Amazon and they did not get good ratings. The ones for use in the US just don't get hot enough quick enough. That may have to do with voltage, which is 110 in the US and 220 in Great Britian. And supposedly that makes all the difference. Microwaves do the job faster for us but usually limit us to a cup at a time.
Stovetop kettles work well for boiling a larger amount of water.
I sing the birdie tune
It makes the birdies swoon
It sends them to the moon
Just like a big balloon
