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Why you might need an electric kettle

Do you use an electric kettle in the kitchen?

  • Yes

    Votes: 50 84.7%
  • No

    Votes: 9 15.3%

  • Total voters
    59
I have a Braun kettle that's probably close to 15 years old. It replaced a Bodum when it was taken to my office. Don't have the office any more, but the Bodum is stashed somewhere around here.
 
Here in UK, I think nearly every household uses an electric kettle and wouldn't dream of boiling water on a stovetop. I needed anew one and bought one by Ninja. It heats water to any temperature as the company recommends different temperature for various drinks. Works great .
Maybe Americans have used a coffee machine rather than drink tea, so no need for a kettle.
 

Legion

Staff member
Here in UK, I think nearly every household uses an electric kettle and wouldn't dream of boiling water on a stovetop. I needed anew one and bought one by Ninja. It heats water to any temperature as the company recommends different temperature for various drinks. Works great .
Maybe Americans have used a coffee machine rather than drink tea, so no need for a kettle.
Same in Australia. I don't remember ever going to a house that didn't have one.

Most arn't fancy. Just ones that click off once the water is boiling.

When I was a boy they looked like this, but they are more boring now. There are still plenty of people here who collect those ceramic kettles. Antique stores are full of them.


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Phoenixkh

I shaved a fortune
In other countries, the power runs at different levels. We have paltry 110V here in the States, so the electric kettles here don't heat the water anywhere near the time in the UK and Australia.

But our is still pretty fast.
 

Legion

Staff member
In other countries, the power runs at different levels. We have paltry 110V here in the States, so the electric kettles here don't heat the water anywhere near the time in the UK and Australia.

But our is still pretty fast.
Hmmm. I didn't know that, but it makes sense.

Only a couple of minutes here. Way faster than a kettle on the stove.
 
Ay home i use electric kettle, on board the sip we use those pots
I like kettle more
Also sometimes, I use hot water from the boiler at home, that is the quickest way to get hot water (not boiling but realy hot)
 
Same in Australia. I don't remember ever going to a house that didn't have one.

Most arn't fancy. Just ones that click off once the water is boiling.

When I was a boy they looked like this, but they are more boring now. There are still plenty of people here who collect those ceramic kettles. Antique stores are full of them.


View attachment 1468853
Is that a ceramic kettle with a top/lid that has been molded to include a resistive heater element? I have seen photos from places like India where one could purchase a bare heating element attached to a wire and wall plug to be dropped into a pot or bucket of water or whatever. The kettle you have pictured looks a lot safer, but does it automatically switch off when the water boils?
 
I use one just about every day in my office at work. We have a stove top kettle at home. Oddly enough, we seem to rarely have the need to boil just water at home, then wife uses kettle and I'll use anything at hand that will hold water and can go on the stove.

Wife is strange like that, insisting on using the appropriate tool. When she does the cooking she dirties every pot and pan in the house. I on the other hand... She regularly gives me hell for using whatever is handy. Just this morning she caught me drinking water out of a soup bowl. Of course I delight in serving her ice cream in the cat's dish (clean of course).
 

Tirvine

ancient grey sweatophile
The forty year old Russell Hobbs that just clicks off when the water boils is extremely useful.
 

Legion

Staff member
Is that a ceramic kettle with a top/lid that has been molded to include a resistive heater element? I have seen photos from places like India where one could purchase a bare heating element attached to a wire and wall plug to be dropped into a pot or bucket of water or whatever. The kettle you have pictured looks a lot safer, but does it automatically switch off when the water boils?
More or less, yes. I can’t remember if they made them with an auto cut off, but the one in our house didn’t. You just turned it off at the wall when it was boiling. These were your standard electric kettle, before they started making them out of plastic, and later, stainless steel.

You can still buy those portable water boiling elements here in places that sell travel accessories. The element in the kettles look quite different, though.

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linty1

My wallet cries.
We have one of those zoji tanks someone posted above, and also a kettle at home for quick hot water for making baby formula etc. I have a gooseneck kettle that goes on the stove top, and while that's slow, I can grind and tamp/prep while it gets to boil.
 
We love our Cosori with the gooseneck spout. we don’t have to worry about boiling the teapot dry on the stovetop.

I have the Cosori as well. I use it exclusively for making tea. Mine has various temperature settings for the various tea types. You do lose a little heat pouring through the gooseneck spout so I often set the temperature one level higher than the recommended setting. If I fill the kettle, I have enough water to warm my teaware plus brew a couple of 8 ounce cups of tea or several smaller steeps in a Gaiwan.
 

musicman1951

three-tu-tu, three-tu-tu
🤔 I'd want one for precise tea temps, but wife loathes counter-gadgets.

Euro friends all use.


AA
I purchased mine at adagio.com (where I buy my tea) and it's only 9.5" tall (24.1 cm). That's small enough to fit in a cabinet, assuming you can make space there.
 
9:1 in favor of the kettle, not what the linked youtube video suggests (or there are more non-us members than I thought)
 
We have two, actually. A two-quart plastic one that we bought a while back, and then a smaller gooseneck that got mailed to me by mistake with some promotional coffee, and the company just said to keep it. The gooseneck gets used a lot, just made some pourover a few minutes ago. Mrs. Scandalous likes to make a variety of herbal teas including nettle and yarrow that we harvest ourselves (tastes pretty bad but good for what ails you) so a kettle is kind of indispensable around here.
 

Chef455

Head Cheese Head Chef
Yup. If you are a hot tea drinker I believe it's a necessity.

^^Also +1 for Adagio teas^^
Great products!
 
Love the SS kind - hate the plastic kind. Long lasting frequently used stuff should be made of better materials. Gave one as a graduation gift to a tea drinker that did not have one 17 years ago. It is still going and the recipient told me she has given some as well as a gift.
 

Star_Wahl_Clipper_Treker

Likes a fat handle in his hand
The question of why don't Americans generally use electric kettles when compared to other parts of the world has came up in multiple threads in the cafe. Here is a somewhat deep dive on the topic as it relates to heating speed and energy usage. This youtuber can be a bit long winded, but overall I like his presentation, including this video.

I think many members here already have/use an electric kettle, but thought it could be interesting to have an anonymous poll.

Their might be a statistical document somewhere that says British folks use an electric kettle more then Americans do. Which makes sense if you think about it, because everybody knows that there are more tea drinkers in Britain, then there are in America. Americans tend to be more coffee drinkers, and you don't typically make coffee in America using a tea kettle, unless your a fancy American using hot water from the kettle, for a French Press.

I am not a fancy American, I am a boring American, I would never impress anyone with my boring American lifestyle. Having said that, I make coffee using coffee makers, weather thats from my 12-cup Percolator, or my 1-cup drip brewer. And yet, I still voted yes to owning and using an electric tea kettle, why is that you ask?

This is because on the occasional time when I do drink tea, I use the kettle to heat up the water. I also use the kettle to heat up water for top roman. I use the kettle to heatup water to make hot coco. And I use the kettle to heat up water for my shaving scuttle. I have a Toastess Delfino stainless electric kettle. I've had it already for at least a decade now, surprised it still works honestly!

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It looks like they are now discontinued. So if this one dies, I will have to source a new one of the same quality. What I will say is, it takes longer to heatup water, then when it was new, obviously the heating element has aged, but it still gets water to a boil! One thing I will say, their patented 360 power connection technology, those contacts have to be cleaned regularly, as corrosion and or dirt builds up in there, and prevents connection. But as long as you keep that contact clean, it makes connection, and it works!

I am not a believer in the plastic electric kettles. They have exposed elements which can make you sick, as the element deteriorates. Also, the plastic itself is chemical based, and when heated up, will leach those chemicals into the water, to again, make you sick. I only believe in stainless kettles, and I strongly recommend that you start believing in them too, if you value your health.

The Toastess Delfino stainless electric kettle, is not just stainless metal. But the heating element is not exposed to the water, its contained in the bottom, bellow the pitcher. Having a non exposed heating element is one of the major pluses to this kettle! And its also probably the only reason why this kettle is still working today. Those plastic kettles probably would have erroded elements by now to complete dysfunction after 10-years.
 
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